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Channel 4 Defends Film
 The
team behind an English Civil War drama that was filmed in South Africa
rather than the UK has defended its decision.
The Channel 4 drama The Devil's Whore, set to to be broadcast in
November, was filmed in countryside in South Africa because it was cheaper,
organisers said.
The four-part serial tells the story of the Civil War through the eyes of
Angelica Fanshawe, an aristocrat drawn to the anti-monarchist cause.
The story includes the well-known Battle of Naseby, which happened in the
Northamptonshire countryside on June 14 1645.
Head of Channel 4 drama Liza Marshall defended the decision not to film the
scenes in England.
She said: "It's much more affordable to film there and we found a region
where the countryside just looked similar to England."
Northamptonshire County Council's cabinet member for culture, Councillor
Ursula Jones, said it was a shame the scenes had not been filmed in England,
even at the well-preserved historical site in Naseby.
She told the Northampton Chronicle: "I do think it's a shame that they
couldn't use the historic site because it has been so well preserved.
"I would love to have seen them filming here. It would have been really nice
because the site has been so well looked after."
18:00
August
26 2008 - waveguide.co.uk
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Adult
Satellite Channel Fined £20,000
An adult satellite channel has been fined £20,000 by Ofcom
for "totally unacceptable" breaches of its broadcasting code.
The regulator fined Satellite Entertainment because its service
SportsxxxBabes transmitted free-to-air adult sex material deemed harmful and
offensive, and which was not restricted to adult subscribers.
Ofcom received three complaints about the explicit sexual nature of the
unencrypted content broadcast on the channel on February 26, March 13 and
March 17 2007.
The channel uses female presenters, billed as "babes", who invite viewers to
contact them using premium-rate services for "adult chat".
On the dates in question, programming included sequences apparently showing
intercourse, oral sex, masturbation, the use of dildos, full nudity, and a
woman being gagged with her own knickers.
Satellite Entertainment denied that the content was "adult-sex" material,
stating that the sexual acts that appeared on screen were not real, but
simulated. The lower sexual organs of the presenters were pixelated.
Having assessed the material broadcast between 9.45pm and midnight on the
dates in question, Ofcom concluded that the explicitness of the sexual
content was "wholly unacceptable for broadcast on a free-to-air channel".
Satellite Entertainment was found to be in breach of rule 1.24 of Ofcom's
broadcasting code, which requires that "adult-sex" material broadcast
between 10pm and 5.30am must be encrypted to prevent access by minors; rule
2.1 which requires that members of the public are protected from viewing
harmful or offensive material, and rule 2.3, which requires that potentially
offensive material must be justified by its context.
Ofcom's ruling stated: "The unencrypted broadcast of content showing
presenters engaging in explicit sexual activity, without strong and
sufficient editorial justification for the inclusion of such images, is
totally unacceptable. It has the potential to cause offence to viewers and
harm to minors."
17:35
August
26 2008 - waveguide.co.uk
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Neighbours Actor Departure Is Permanent
Ian Smith, who plays Harold Bishop in Neighbours, is to film
his final ever episode for the soap in October, it has been confirmed.
The veteran actor confirmed in November last year that he was to reduce his
commitment to the Australian serial, only playing the beloved character on a
part-time basis.
And it has now been confirmed by Channel 10, the soap's Australian
broadcaster, that Smith is to leave the programme permanently.
"When the discussions were made about his decision to go part-time last
year, he said it was only going to be for a short time and then he would let
us know," a spokesperson for the channel explained.
"Production was aware that it would be coming.
"It was entirely his decision. We love him and would have loved to keep
him."
13:20
August
26 2008 - waveguide.co.uk
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Sky Drops Project
Catwalk
Sky One has dropped the fashion series Project Catwalk and
said it wants new "female-friendly" shows to replace it.
Fronted by Kelley Osbourne, Project Catwalk, which aimed to discover new
fashion designers, was based on the US format Project Runway.
The show followed a group of fashion designers as they compete against each
other to win the competition.
Project Catwalk launched in the UK in January 2006, with Elizabeth Hurley as
host and designer Ben de Lisi as fashion mentor.
However, Hurley was replaced by Osbourne for the second run last year, with
the third series airing in January this year.
A Sky1 spokesman confirmed the show would not return.
"Project Catwalk was a great addition to Sky1's schedule," he said. "Kelly
Osbourne, Ben de Lisi and the team have provided a fantastic platform for
genuine talent, introducing the rising stars of fashion to the UK.
"We felt the series had come to a natural end and we're now looking for some
new female-skewed formats for the 8pm slot to complement our success in the
9pm and 10pm hours."
The Sky1 controller, Richard Woolf, added: "We have done three seasons of
Project Catwalk. I want to find other shows that will go in that slot. 8pm
is a real opportunity. What we really need are some more female-friendly
formatted shows."
12:41
August
26 2008 - waveguide.co.uk
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Torchwood
New Series Starts Filming
 Filming for the third series of the drama Torchwood, created
by Doctor Who writer Russell T Davies, has begun in Cardiff.
Due to transmit in 2009 on BBC One, the series – called Torchwood: Children
Of Earth – sees the team embarking on a single action-packed adventure as
they battle for the future of the human race against the fiercest force they
have encountered.
The highly-motivated Torchwood team are John Barrowman as Captain Jack
Harkness, Eve Myles as Gwen Cooper and Gareth David-Lloyd as Ianto Jones.
Other regular cast involved in their high-octane adventure are Kai Owen as
Rhys Williams, Gwen's husband, and Tom Price as PC Andy.
Special guests in the five part series are Peter Capaldi (Doctor Who, The
Thick Of It, Skins), who plays the role of Mr Frobisher – a civil servant
who is hiding a terrible secret; Paul Copely (Coronation Street, The Bill)
as Clem – the survivor still haunted by his past; and Liz May Brice (Bad
Girls, The Bill) as Johnson – the cynical covert government agent determined
to expose Torchwood.
Russell T Davies said: "The new series of Torchwood is hugely bold and
promises to be bigger and better than ever – the audience is in for an
amazing ride.
"This series is one big serial and the most ambitious story we've ever made,
and we've got plenty of surprises in store."
Julie Gardner, Head of Drama, BBC Wales, said: "We hope to make Torchwood a
gripping and surprising TV event with storylines that push our team into
greater danger and sacrifice.
"Joining our main cast are some fantastic guest artists who will only add to
making this unmissable TV."
The first two series of Torchwood have received global critical acclaim and
the hit drama has been sold to more than 20 countries.
12:31
August
26 2008 - waveguide.co.uk
Reader Comment
Well this time let's hope that any adult content is
something more than "Ooh, let's make Captain Jack bi-sexual and
bi-species"...
Deke.
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Protesters Seize
Thai TV
Thousands of royalist protesters stormed Thai state
broadcaster NBT yesterday, halting programming, as a part of demonstrations
to try to overthrow the elected coalition government.
NBT journalists abandoned their studio in favour of a room at the Bangkok
Traffic Police headquarters, from where they resumed transmission after an
hour of disruption.
"We can't broadcast from the Vibhavadi headquarters as there are 5,000
protesters on the premises," NBT chief Suriyong Hoonthasarn told the press.
Earlier, police arrested 80 people armed with pistols, golf clubs and knives
after they burst into NBT studios as part of a prelude to wider protests
organized by PAD. When thousands of PAD supporters massed, police stood
aside.
"They shouted 'Get out, get out' at us repeatedly. All 150 of us were
rounded up for a short while before police arrived and talked them down to
the ground floor," newscaster Soifah Osukonthip said on air.
06:35
August
26 2008 - waveguide.co.uk
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Doctor Who Wins Award
Doctor Who was voted programme of the year at the Edinburgh
TV festival's annual awards, which were announced on Saturday.
It is the second year running that the sci-fi show has won the prize.
BBC One, meanwhile, was named channel of the year for the second year in a
row, while BBC Three won the award for digital networks.
The Apprentice took the award for terrestrial show of the year while the
prize for non-terrestrial show went to BBC Three comedy Gavin And Stacey.
It is the first time since 2002 that one broadcaster has swept the board,
with the BBC taking all the main prizes.
BBC One was competing against BBC Two, ITV1, Channel 4 and Five for the main
prize, while the other nominees in the multi-channel category were BBC Four,
ITV2, Sky One, E4 and Dave.
06:30
August
26 2008 - waveguide.co.uk
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