tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-228588112026-05-05T01:16:29.347+01:00"Scraping Along The Bottom!"Doc Sleazehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09939793278552442225noreply@blogger.comBlogger4249125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22858811.post-57558231787748404022026-05-04T22:56:00.000+01:002026-05-05T00:16:20.394+01:00

Sometimes - and usually against my better judgement - I revisit a movie that, when I first saw it, I thought was an irredeemable mess.  So, I recently sat down and rewatched, for probably the first time in twenty-plus years, The Avengers (1998), the largely forgotten and largely unlamented attempt to reboot the classic sixties TV series for the big screen. One of the reasons that the film

Doc Sleazehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09939793278552442225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22858811.post-2650603926112712912026-05-01T22:47:00.000+01:002026-05-02T00:33:16.965+01:00

There's nothing like a funeral to remind us of our own mortality.  Having attended one this time last week, I've spent the past seven days, not obsessed with the subject, but certainly feeling more aware of my own mortality than usual.  Not in a morbid way, but just contemplating the way our awareness of the fact evolves over time.  I mean, when we're young, we think that we are

Doc Sleazehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09939793278552442225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22858811.post-11241274490164557772026-04-30T23:07:00.000+01:002026-05-01T00:04:06.647+01:00

Ever had that sneaking suspicion that, somehow, you've inadvertently transgressed some online law and are now getting paid back over it?  It's what I've been left wondering of late as not only has the amount of spam I receive been increasing, but increasingly, it's in French.  I mean, why?  Sure, I watch French language movies with subtitles, but I can't recall the last time I

Doc Sleazehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09939793278552442225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22858811.post-79981982413748476162026-04-28T23:34:19.227+01:002026-04-28T23:34:19.228+01:00

Cannon Films, while they existed (which was for a surprisingly long time), were always reminiscent of Universal or Columbia Pictures as they existed in thirties and forties.  Almost, but-not-quite, major studios adept at turning out mid-budgeted pictures or grinding out series spun off from such a successful film, with ever decreasing budgets and ambitions, yet all the time still striving to

Doc Sleazehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09939793278552442225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22858811.post-67139193144066875892026-04-27T23:27:00.000+01:002026-04-27T23:28:39.205+01:00

'Washington in shock after Trump press gala shooting' blare the headlines today.  Shock at what, exactly?  The fact that this is the third (alleged) attempt on Trump's life?  Or that the US, a nation renowned for its gun nuts, who have been brought up to shoot from the moment they can walk, has produced so many bad shots and just downright incompetent would-be assassins?  It's

Doc Sleazehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09939793278552442225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22858811.post-20052496619362072432026-04-24T23:34:00.000+01:002026-04-25T00:07:32.046+01:00

The latest episode of 'After Hours', which can be heard here:After Hours: The Man Who Fought Hitler's Ghost This is episode three and I'm somewhat happier with this one than the previous edition.  It could still do with a slightly shorter running time, but overall, it is far more streamlined than its predecessor.  Most of the segments were recorded as the scripts were completed, which

Doc Sleazehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09939793278552442225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22858811.post-2537197120344961732026-04-23T23:11:00.000+01:002026-05-05T01:16:29.347+01:00

I suddenly realised that I hadn't commented on the passing of so called 'MoD UFO Expert' Nick Pope.  Now, while my condolences obviously go to his family, I feel that it is worth reiterating that all of his supposed insights into the UK MoD's 'UFO Files' were absolute bollocks.  There has never been a 'UFO Desk' at the MoD - there is simply some poor desk officer to whom falls the task

Doc Sleazehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09939793278552442225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22858811.post-88440011918723052992026-04-21T23:14:00.003+01:002026-04-22T01:29:22.152+01:00

Damn it, I did it again!  I allowed myself to be drawn in by one of those tabloid story headlines and ended up underwhelmed!  In this case it was a Daily Star story on an aggregator site, entitled 'Brit Scientist Killed by Carrots After Horror Experiment Went Very Wrong'.  I mean, how could I resist?  It immediately conjured up visions of a crazed botanist in a lab full of

Doc Sleazehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09939793278552442225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22858811.post-13746771299894607142026-04-20T22:42:00.006+01:002026-04-21T01:32:57.100+01:00

An Italian/German/Yugoslav co-production, the fact that The Dead Are Alive (1972) isn't better known is possibly related to it being misleadingly marketed in various territories.  It's English language title seems to imply a zombie movie, while the German release title and marketing - which translates as Mystery of the Yellow Grave - plays up a tenuous Edgar Wallace connection, (it was

Doc Sleazehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09939793278552442225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22858811.post-76271772247646335152026-04-17T22:48:00.002+01:002026-04-18T04:16:44.082+01:00

I recently decided to do my mental health a favour and opt out of following the Spurs, or, indeed, any football for the time being.  With Tottenham looking down the barrel of relegation from the Premier League and the whole 'controversy' over the appointment of Roberto DeZerbi as manager, the whole fan discourse surrounding the club has become incredibly toxic.  I alluded to the Roberto

Doc Sleazehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09939793278552442225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22858811.post-45267756928447158092026-04-16T22:43:00.002+01:002026-04-17T00:21:02.232+01:00

It's been a while since I bored everyone with talk of model railways, so I thought I'd bring you an update on something I recently bought at the local Toy and Model Train Fair: This is an ex-LMS General Utility Van (GUV).  Although built by and for the LMS.after nationalisation these could be found all over the British Railways network, often in parcels trains, or attached to the back

Doc Sleazehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09939793278552442225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22858811.post-56444097810340566392026-04-14T22:48:00.016+01:002026-04-15T00:47:50.228+01:00

One of the fascinating things about web stats is seeing where the various visitors to your site come from.  Or supposedly come from.  According to my IP address, for instance, I can be either in Leeds, Rochdale or Wakefield, whereas, in reality, I'm physically located at the other end of the country.  It's down to the fact that there days I'm with a relatively small ISP, whose

Doc Sleazehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09939793278552442225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22858811.post-57261281547369224702026-04-13T23:17:00.001+01:002026-04-14T06:34:08.409+01:00

Look, the media really do have to stop 'sane washing' Donald Trump.  Lately, I've come across even otherwise sober outlets like The Guardian and the BBC discussing how Trump's erratic behaviour in terms of his foreign policy are down to him employing the 'Madman Strategy'.  The thinking goes that this approach -  which supposedly originated with Richard Nixon - involves

Doc Sleazehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09939793278552442225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22858811.post-56626956776550409102026-04-10T21:01:00.001+01:002026-04-11T00:02:53.884+01:00

Some historical movies really need to run a disclaimer in the opening credits, along the lines of 'any resemblance to historical fact is purely coincidental and completely unintentional on the part of the producers'.  I watched a couple of such movies, both from the sixties, which fell firmly into this category over the Easter weekend.  One was Battle of the Bulge (1965), a war movie

Doc Sleazehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09939793278552442225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22858811.post-17285511747899893332026-04-09T22:36:00.004+01:002026-04-10T00:40:53.468+01:00

Times change.  It occurred to me the other day that, once upon a time, I'd have been all over the coverage of the Artemis II moon mission.  I mean, I go way back with this stuff - when I was a child the Apollo missions dominated the news and fascinated us all.  I remember the anxious days and hours of the Apollo 13 mission, when there was a very real chance that they wouldn't make

Doc Sleazehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09939793278552442225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22858811.post-55974386057869183212026-04-07T22:53:00.006+01:002026-04-08T00:51:57.805+01:00

Death Screams (1982), part of the cycle of slasher movies that followed the success of Halloween (1978) and Friday the 13th (1980), certainly gets off to a brisk start, with a pair of young lovers gorily murdered by an unseen assailant before even the opening titles have rolled.  Unfortunately, we then have to wait to virtually the end of the film before we get any more slasher action. 

Doc Sleazehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09939793278552442225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22858811.post-62838701508397709812026-04-06T22:09:00.000+01:002026-04-06T22:09:04.723+01:00

What an Easter!  Every time you think that Trump and his buddies can't possibly do or say anything crazier, well, they just up the ante!  Who'd have thought that we'd ever see the day when a President of the United States would be publicly effing and blinding at the leadership of another sovereign state?  'Open the fuckin' Strait!'  I mean, I know that the US is at war with

Doc Sleazehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09939793278552442225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22858811.post-79529255185799018072026-04-03T20:42:00.004+01:002026-04-03T20:43:35.186+01:00

The Pete Hegseth Story, Episode 241, 'A Crisis of Confidence':   Happy Easter!

Doc Sleazehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09939793278552442225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22858811.post-64504284275923978282026-04-02T21:31:00.001+01:002026-04-08T03:54:35.566+01:00

So, JD Vance thinks that aliens are actually demons, rather than beings from other worlds.  Really?  I mean, is that the best you've got, JD?  With all the shit going down in the world today, (most of it perpetrated by a US administration of which he is part), that's what he spends his time worrying about?  Now, at this point, I could go off into a diatribe about how

Doc Sleazehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09939793278552442225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22858811.post-74410876335726466452026-03-31T22:13:00.004+01:002026-04-24T23:52:23.804+01:00

  Another episode of 'After Hours', my new podcast.   I have to admit that it isn't as polished as I'd hoped, not to mention the fact that it should have seen the light of day at least a week ago, unfortunately, however, everything got delayed by events beyond my control culminating in a family bereavement.  I'm not going to go into further detail, but it all blew off

Doc Sleazehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09939793278552442225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22858811.post-24576594502942884642026-03-30T21:34:00.002+01:002026-03-30T21:34:20.423+01:00

At first I put it down to the clocks having gone forward over the weekend, but no, it turned out that I wasn't sleep addled and misreading the breaking news I had woken up to - the world it seems really has gone mad.  I mean, this morning was already confusing enough as it was - being the start of the Easter break, it meant that the early morning sounds I woke up to didn't sound right. 

Doc Sleazehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09939793278552442225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22858811.post-591672474066398822026-03-27T22:43:00.001+00:002026-03-30T20:28:50.202+01:00

I'm afraid that, right now, I'm running on empty.  I have stuff going on in the real world I have to deal with, so I'm pretty much out of creative inspiration, even if I had time to develop any ideas.  So, rather than skip today's post entirely, I dug this out of an old memory stick - it was the script for what was, essentially, a precursor to my current podcasts, (I actually re-used

Doc Sleazehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09939793278552442225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22858811.post-90720139455321793372026-03-26T21:04:00.001+00:002026-03-27T00:39:51.565+00:00

People worry about AI 'hallucinating' stuff and fabricating completely untrue information, yet we currently have a US president who is apparently hallucinating entire 'peace negotiations' with Iran.  Where are these negotiations taking place, through what channels and who is involved, (bearing in mind that the Trump administration keeps insisting that they've decimated Iran's leadership, it

Doc Sleazehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09939793278552442225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22858811.post-35109727174060707872026-03-25T00:47:00.005+00:002026-04-15T04:27:00.201+01:00

Cannibalism - is that going to be next racist trope peddled by extreme right and their enablers in the British press?  Obviously, they might have missed the boat on that, as cannibalism was always - wrongly - associated with 'darkest' Africa.  Well into the seventies: I well recall seeing as a child all those cartoons in newspapers and comedy sketches on TV involving hapless white

Doc Sleazehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09939793278552442225noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22858811.post-15506514624289817682026-03-23T23:31:00.003+00:002026-03-23T23:31:39.833+00:00

Back in the US' bicentennial year, Universal Pictures decided to contribute to the celebrations with a pair of biopics of some of its best remembered stars.  Both Gable and Lombard (1976) and WC Fields and Me (1976) were critically panned and failed to find audiences.  Both have subsequently become very difficult to see.   The WC Fields movie for instance, I recall turning up

Doc Sleazehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09939793278552442225noreply@blogger.com0