Okay, so… this is a book review. Sounds a bit boring doesn’t it?  I mean – a book review.  I can’t remember the last time that I did a book review per se because I think I got bored with them myself.  They’re everywhere, aren’t they?  Online. In magazines. In newsletters.  And part of me thinks – who needs ’em?  Why add to the mass of unread ones out there?

Regardless as to whether you have seen it, you probably have some awareness of Baby Reindeer , the autobiographical miniseries from Richard Gadd, which was released on Netflix in April 2024. The seven-part drama thriller recounts a stalking experience that Gadd suffered during his twenties while he was attempting to embark on a career as a stand-up comedian.

‘Mother, Mother Ocean/After all the years I’ve found My occupational hazard/Being my occupation’s just not around’                                     ‘A Pirate Looks at 40,’ Jimmy Buffet

Television careers offer many potential benefits: opportunities for creative expression, a sense of making a difference in the world, flexibility and autonomy – but often at a price.

While improvised or unscripted television has been a feature of media industries for decades, most such series are either comedy or reality television. Suspects (Channel 5, 2014-2016), on the other hand, was an unscripted crime drama featuring improvised dialogue. For those unfamiliar with the series, Suspects follows a group of officers from an unspecified London CID.

The mid-1990s were an unusual time to grow up in the US (at least I thought so). The success of The X-Files (Fox 1993-2003; 2016-2018) had led to an explicit spinoff ( Millennium, Fox 1996-1999) as well as a glut of similar conspiracy and alien-related series.

So, this morning, the day has already got off to a good start with the unprompted arrival of what I like to think of as a ‘Nice one!’ e-mail. They don’t have to be long.  They don’t have to be complicated.  And – indeed – they were a thing taught to me in the technology field before we even had e-mails.  I have no idea what I liked to think of them as back then.

British television series par excellence Doctor Who (1963-present) has been the subject of a wide variety of academic works.

This week, the nominations for the British Academy Television Awards will be announced. There will be nominations for a range of TV craft roles, including directors, cinematographers, sound recordists and editors, as well as production design, hair and make-up, and costume;

The Book Reviews Section for the journal Critical Studies in Television is interested in adding to our list of possible book reviewers. We are particularly interested in recruiting PhD students who would like to get the experience of writing for a Journal. Guidance will be given about shaping a review, reviews will get sympathetic editorial advice and deadlines can be adjusted to suit personal circumstances.