Category: news

Cities of Death

Cities of Death available in GW stores, but not to buy…

One of my local GW stores had all the Cities of Death stuff out, but it was covered in clingfilm and the staff weren’t allowed to sell any of it.

Why?

Tell me why?

Managed to look at the Cities of Death supplement, which though has some nice pictures, does not look as nice or as good as Cityfight from my flick through.

The barricades look really nice though, the resin ones for £12.

The urban basing set was about a quarter of the size I thought it would be, imagine the box needed for a Space Marine Bike and you have the size of the urban basing set! Within it will be five very small tubs!

Building sprues look better in real life than they do on paper.

No Orks until end of June though…

New Forgeworld Epic Thunderhawk and Arvus Lighter

At GamesDay France, amongst a whole lot of new models from Forgeworld, one person managed to capture some new Epic models from Forgeworld.

They are an Epic Thunderhawk and an Epic Aruvs Lighter.

I know I have been one of a few wondering if Forgeworld were giving up on Epic, but these splended new models show that Forgeworld still have Epic models for us.

I am not a fan of the Thunderhawk, so I am hoping that they do an Epic Thunderhawk Transporter which is a model I really do like.

Sharpe’s Cut

This book presents a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at the making of “Sharpe’s Challenge”, a major film for television starring Sean Bean. The Sharpe television series is a high point of British television drama. Led by the charismatic Sean Bean playing the redoubtable hero Richard Sharpe, the films brilliantly echo and enhance the remarkable strengths of the bestselling novels by Bernard Cornwell…

"Sharpe" Cut: The Inside Story of the Creation of a Major Television Series

Fourteen films have already aired and now two new films are being released. The series has achieved 14 million viewing figures, with additional and ongoing sales in video and DVD. “Sharpe Cut” is a unique book. It is the book of the creation of a television drama from start to finish; the first of its kind. Linda Blandford spent the entire six months of the filming of “Sharpe’s Challenge” with the cast, crew and producers. She has created a brilliant, vivid account, full of scene and story, high drama, near disaster and comedy.

“Sharpe Cut” gives the reader all the inside touches of what life on a film set is really like. From the producers to the stuntmen, from the chefs to the martial organisers, from the production designers to the costume designers and the make-up artists; they are all here. And so of course are the actors, famous and unknown, bringing all the work to life. Living together for months on end, they become a family of a sort and yet are torn apart at the completion of each film.

“Sharpe Cut” is a brilliant evocation of the life and work of creating a major television drama, with a narrative as compelling as a thriller. It is an intimate and compelling peak behind the director’s chair, into a world the audience can normally only guess at.

Get Sharpe’s Cut at Amazon.

Sharpe’s Challenge

Though not related to a specific book (it took elements from Tiger and Fortress) I did find Sharpe’s Challenge an enjoyable romp and very much in the tradition of Sharpe on TV.

Sean Bean gave his usual portrayal of gutter rat raised from the ranks and was a classic Sharpe.

It was nice to see a little homage to the books showing Sharpe in India in 1803.

If you didn’t see it, you can now order the DVD which was released today (1st May 2006).

Sharpe’s Challenge

The new Sharpe is on tonight on ITV1 at 9pm.

Sean Bean is back as the swashbuckling hero in SHARPE’S CHALLENGE. A year after Wellington crushes Napoleon at Waterloo, dispatches tell of a local Maharaja who is threatening British interests in India. Wellington sends Sharpe to investigate what turns out to be his most dangerous mission to date. The fate of an Empire and the life of a General’s daughter lie in one man’s hands….

Sharpe's Challenge

Sharpe in India

It has been pointed out to me that the new Sharpe series is in fact set two years after Waterloo (ie 1817) and not in the 1790s like the books. So some of my comments were slightly out of kilter.

Sean Bean is back as the swashbuckling hero in Sharpe’s Challenge, an action packed mini-series to be shot on location in Rajasthan, India. Two years after the Duke of Wellington crushes Napoleon at Waterloo, dispatches from India tell of a local Maharaja, Khande Rao, who is threatening British interests there.

Therefore Harper can be with Sharpe no problem as can Simmerson. They are I guess part of the main story and won’t be used as flashbacks.

Also it avoids the issue of how to make Sean Bean look twenty years younger…

Andreas Katsulas died

G’Kar no more…

Andreas Katsulas, whose striking Greek visage was often obscured by prosthetic makeup in his several sci-fi roles, died on Monday, February 13, of lung cancer at the age of 59.

Science fiction fans know him well as the Narn ambassador “G’Kar” in Babylon 5. His numerous other TV credits include spots on Alien Nation, Max Headroom, Millennium, Diagnosis Murder, NYPD Blue, etc.

Katsulas also played the recurring role of the Romulan “Commander Tomalak” in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episodes “The Enemy,” “The Defector,” “Future Imperfect” and “All Good Things…”

Katsulas also had his share of movie roles, and perhaps his most famous was the notorious one-armed man “Frederick Sykes” in “The Fugitive” with Harrison Ford.

Of working-class Greek and American heritage, Katsulas was born in St. Louis, Missouri, and caught the acting bug at age 4. He earned his master’s degree in theater from Indiana University, and performed on stage in St. Louis, New York and Boston before being cast by Michael Cimino in “The Sicilian.” That started his Hollywood career, where his scowl and furrowed brow landed him mostly villainous parts, such as a ruthless mobster in Ridley Scott’s “Someone to Watch Over Me,” and a terrorist leader in “Executive Decision” with Kurt Russell and Steven Seagal.

Katsulas is survived by his second wife, whom he married less than a year ago, and a daughter and a son from his first marriage. Funeral services are pending in his native St. Louis.

G'Kar

Sharpe’s Challenge

A comment from Simon during a recent game about Sharpe in an ITV advert for new drama, made me do a little internet searching and I found out about Sharpe’s Challenge.

Sharpe is back on the telly in an all-new mini-series based in India.

Sharpe's Challenge

Sharpe’s Challenge will be on ITV on the 23rd and 24th April and BBC Worldwide will be showing it in other parts of the world.

Plot

Sean Bean is back as the swashbuckling hero in Sharpe’s Challenge, an action packed mini-series to be shot on location in Rajasthan, India. Two years after the Duke of Wellington crushes Napoleon at Waterloo, dispatches from India tell of a local Maharaja, Khande Rao, who is threatening British interests there. Wellington sends Sharpe to investigate on what turns out to be his most dangerous mission to date. When a beautiful general’s daughter is kidnapped by the Indian warlord, the tension mounts, leaving Sharpe no option but to pursue the enemy right into its deadly lair. Deep in the heart of enemy territory he also has to keep at bay the beautiful but scheming Regent, Madhuvanthi, who is out to seduce him. The fate of an Empire and the life of a General’s daughter lie in one man’s hands….

Sharpe's Challenge

Sean Bean is back as Sharpe, and Daragh O’Malley plays Patrick Harper (which is different to the books as Sharpe does not meet Harper in the books until Portugal). Michael Cochrane is also back as General Sir Henry Simmerson!

I wonder if these characters are in the main plot (hope so) and not just used as flashback excuse.

Update: Get Sharpe’s Challenge at Amazon.