Archives for July 2010

It's clear Theresa resents Scarlett's life, but it's shocking to see the lengths she's willing to go to. The family may be no stranger to knock-off tellies, true, but what was alarming about the situation was how far Theresa was willing to push it. And did you see Theresa's reaction when Scarlett made the joke about prison radio? Watch out, Scarlett - there's a lifetime of seething resentment there.

So his wee girl's taken up with his best mate. We're delighted for Jack and Hayley, but how is Gordon going to react? We predict rage heading in Jack's direction. Gordon's still tentatively getting to know Hayley as his daughter after all and Jack's romantic track record is legendary. Gordon's in for his first real challenge as a father.

It's busy on set today but not with River City. Garrow's Law is filming so the canteen is filling up with 18th Century types! We are pleased to report that they are enjoying food from the present day.

Also we had a look at the interview with Gordon McCorkell on The Hour. He talks about playing Deek and the reactions from the public to his character.

Friday 23 July is 80s day on Radio Scotland. There'll be a day of programming inspired by the decade of the filofax, Frankie and The Kids from Fame. In this mood of nostalgia we thought we'd take a look back in time and see what connections we can spot between River City and the world of 80s music!

As Glasgow's a city of music it's not surprising that, at one stage or another, many of the River City cast, past and present, have dipped their toes into the world of pop and rock.

During the 1980s Deacon Blue brought their anthemic soul-tinged rock to a world stage. At the forefront, singing her heart out, was Lorraine McIntosh, who played Deek's troubled mum Alice.

We hear on the River City grapevine that Libby McArthur, aka Gina Rossi, was in a band called Sophisticated Boom Boom. They performed in some Peel Sessions. Meanwhile, in another 80s connection, Juan Pablo di Pace, who played Jo Rossi's illicit other half Luca, made an appearance in the video for a song first made popular by Steve Winwood in 1982. The 2004 video by Eric Prydz for 'Call on Me' featured Juan Pablo enjoying a rigorous work-out.

Bob's utterly convinced that he works best with Iona as a duo but Drew's arrival might throw a spanner in the works. The debut of Bob and the Bob Tones went down a storm at the groovy '60s night, but can Mr O'Hara keep a lid on his jealousy? He's not a malicious man, but he certainly is a sensitive soul.

Big Bob may be tentatively dipping his toes into the world of performance but Tom Urie, who plays Big Bob, is no stranger to the live music world. He's a talented musician and songwriter, and you can listen to samples of his songs on his own website. Daniel Healy, who plays the character of Drew, is also a musician so the Bob Tones aren't short of experience.

Listen to Stephen Purdon and Libby McArthur, aka Bob and Gina, in a funny tussle with authority in the Radio Scotland Comedy show Swots. Our Radio Scotland blog colleagues took some great photos at the show's recording and they've also added an exclusive 'set' from Stephen.

Joyce Falconer, soon to be seen in the documentary Beyond the Bothy, made an appearance in last week's episode of Swots. Watch a clip of her backstage at the show.

A reminder that Tuesday 20 July's episode of River City is on half an hour later than usual. The show starts at 2030 on BBC One Scotland. Heading out? You can always catch up on the iPlayer.

Joyce Falconer, famed for her role as Roisin in River City, will be exploring the musical world of north-east Scotland in a documentary on BBC Two Scotland.

Beyond the Bothy follows Joyce as she tunes in to the north-east Scotland tradition of bothy ballads. Joyce is mentored by Joe Aitken, a legend in the bothy singing world, as she makes a bid for victory at the annual bothy ballad competition in Elgin.

The one-hour long documentary of Beyond the Bothy airs on Friday 23 July at 2100. if you're in a lyrical mood, listen to Joyce's honeyed-tones tackling Burns himself.

Find out more about Beyond the Bothy.

'Who's got their eyes on Charlie's bum?' Robbie speaks the truth as ever.

Charlie did catch Hayley's eye but that fire blew out before it got started. Tempting Jack was the real reason behind her seduction of Charlie. But how can she snare him? Tequila and bus stop snogs might work on the young and innocent, but have you got any wooing tips for Hayley when dealing with a player like her boss?

Gordon McCorkell, aka Deek, is keeping busy this week while his character is going off the rails. He's appearing on Radio Scotland's MacAulay and Co on Wednesday 14 July. Tune in at 1005 to listen live or catch-up afterwards. Gordon will be appearing on The Hour on Wednesday also and being interviewed on Friday by Dave Marshall on Smooth FM. Busy man!

A very busy Joyce Falconer joined in the school-themed fun in Saturday's episode of Swots on Radio Scotland. Look at pictures and watch a clip of Joyce talking about getting the 'scud' at school in Torry.

Our colleagues on the Radio Scotland blog have a wealth of extras from the recordings of the latest series of Swots.

The next episode is dominated by River City alumni, so take a look at the gallery of photos from the recording. You can listen to Libby McArthur and Stephen Purdon sharing their scholastic wit on the comedy quiz show at 1204 on Saturday 17 July.

As Ruth and Andy's romance heats up, the words of love between his banshee-like mum Sheila and girlfriend Ruth continue to inspire.

Sheila Carroll: You always were a cold-hearted wee tart.

Ruth: You always were an interfering old bag.

So sneaky Lee's campaign of manipulation continues after Amber's abrupt farewell to 'Just Gordon' and her hairdressing career. Now his green-eyed streak has come to the fore. We think Lee's exploits (locking his girlfriend in a cupboard and planting the keys in Jen's bag) had a touch of evil genius about them, but what should her suspicious friends do?

Do Jen or Charlie have the right to point out Lee's negative points to Amber?

We've spotted posters around town showing a very regal-looking Joyce Falconer. She's sporting Valkyrie-style Bavarian glamour gear and is accompanied by a horned companion on the posters.

Joyce, who played Roisin, the much-loved former River City resident, is starring in a musical based on the live of 'mad' King Ludwig. Directed by Andy Arnold, Valhalla! opens at Glasgow's Tron Theatre this week. You can watch an interview with Joyce on The Hour.

It seems Joyce has been very busy of late. She's appearing in a BBC Two documentary called 'Beyond the Bothy' which will be on Friday 23 July. We'll bring you more information about this show as soon as we can.

Don't forget that there will be no River City tonight.

Tuesday's usual episode hits our screens on Thursday 8 July. Tune in at 21:00 to watch the latest episode.

This will be repeated on Sunday 11 July, on BBC Two Scotland at 12:30.

We're back to 'normal service' then - River City will return to its usual time of 20:00 on BBC One Scotland from Tuesday 13 July. We'll keep you posted on any changes. Hope you're enjoying the summer of sport!

Were you watching the auditions for Big Bob's band and having a good old cringe like us? We asked Lizzie, one of the River City producers, to tell us about filming the audition scenes: 'Filming took on a rainy day in April and it was such fun - the auditions really lifted the crew's spirits!'

First up to sing for Bob was the goth girl - she had us reaching for the earplugs.

Lizzie explained: 'the actress had appeared previously in River City. She played an applicant for the hairdresser job at the salon which Robbie got'. In real life the actress is a burlesque performer called Lauren Lamarr.

Next up was Reynard, whose Girls Aloud interpretation was beyond the pale. As Lizzie told us: 'Reynard (whose name means fox) came straight out of the writer's head!'. Bob nearly lost his mind after this audition.

The one singer with talent was the Eurythmics-singing hippy chick. Her rendition of 'There must be an angel' was stunning. This talented lady is Sarah Beth Brown, whose band Born-by-Wires were recently featured in a Radio Scotland programme.

Hopefully Bob and Iona will make sweet music in future (at least that's what Bob has got planned, we reckon!).

We hear that a handy prop came to the rescue on one of the recent River City tours.

A lady in a wheelchair had a puncture while on the BBC tour at Dumbarton. Thankfully a canny staff member saved the day. A colleague from Radio Scotland was working as a tour guide. She cleverly recalled that Jimmy was confined to a wheelchair in a storyline of old, so the River City prop room was duly raided. A quick-thinking security guard called Jeremy helped out on the day. So Jimmy's wheels saved the day, and the wheelchair user was able to enjoy the delights of Shieldinch. The River City tours will continue throughout July.

We're on set at River City HQ today and things are comparatively quiet, as the cast and crew are on their summer break. The office is pretty busy though, as the production team continue to develop future stories and scripts. We hear that the BBC Three comedy How Not to Live Your Life is in production at the Dumbarton studios currently, and they'll shortly be joined by historical drama Garrow's Law. The CBBC show Hedz will be joining in the fun over the summer, where we hear the production team have the challenge of filming on the Montego Street set, but somehow they have to dress it so it looks unlike Shieldinch!

Jack's desperate attempt to entice the metrosexual masses to 'Just Gordon', with his 'pink pound' promotion, had us in stitches. Thanks to Molly's scheming ways, the salon was invaded by a blue rinse brigade with alleged bi-curious tendencies.

Hayley did cut through the nonsense to make Jack see sense, showing her maturity and admiration for her boss. But did we see that little snog coming? Not a bit of it!

Jack's a good pal of her dad! And is snogging the boss ever a good idea?