Acorn Antiques

Starring: Julie Walters, Victoria Wood Dvd Release: 7th February, 2005 Number Of Discs: 1 Format: PAL, Region 2 Encoding

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Acorn Antiques was a parodic soap opera featured regularly on the sketch show Victoria Wood As Seen On TV, which ran from 1985 to 1987. The show spoofed the real soap Crossroads & its apparent low production values; specifically the stagy look of the show & the tendency they had to keep going when someone fluffed a line or missed a cue. The cavalier attitude some soaps had to continuity was also spoofed; in one episode the antique shop is, for no referred-to reason, a health farm. References to other soaps were also featured; one episode ended with the announcement that the shows theme song was available to buy as Anyone Can Break A Vase, a reference to the pop song Anyone Can Fall In Love, which was based on the EastEnders theme. One of the shows spoof documentaries, presented by Duncan Preston, took us behind the scenes at Acorn Antiques. Joe Public never clocks a darn thing. Miss Babs. The overwrought owner of Acorn Antiques, who moved from one crisis to another. Was usually on the phone, being told of a disaster the budget wouldnt stretch to showing. Miss Berta.

This is quite a short little DVD, coming in at just over the hour, with no extras & quite an abrupt start ... which helps sustain the image of a low-budget, incompetent production. Victoria Woods beautifully observed & scripted assassination of Crossroads unfolds before you like an accident happening in your sitting room. A dozen episodes, with no pretence at continuity, are dealt for your delight, each opening with the wonderful Julie Walters lurking in shot, in a doorway, ready to deliver her line, her coffee, & the odd macaroon or two.

All the dreadful timing, the fluffed lines, the out-of-sequence entrances & exits, the perilous props, intrusive camera angles, bad hair days, & lethal technology are present, not to mention the pretentious scripts, ham acting, abrupt editing, lack of fading, & monotonous direction. Its a pastiche of bad television which can only be put together by a superb cast - & Victoria Woods assembled a magnificent ensemble for this classic. Julie Walters, of course, & Victoria Woods herself, but Celia Imrie, Duncan Preston, Kenny Ireland, & Rosie Collins play their ham roles magnificently. Their timing & professionalism is impeccable ... well, nearly.

Every mistake you can imagine is beautifully choreographed & scripted, & the dozen episodes of Acorn Antiques are stitched together via the continuity of Susie Blake, playing the worst television announcer since ... well, Ill leave you to fill in that gap. Short, sharp & witty, & a national treasure. Excellent.

Julie Walters is a British actress, mainly associated with comedy & character roles. She ranked first in a poll to find Britains most popular actress. Born in Smethwick, England, Walters first became known as the occasional partner of comedienne Victoria Wood. Their series, Wood & Walters, appeared on television in 1982 & they have continued to perform together frequently over the years. One of Julie Walters best-known roles is as Mrs Overall in Woods spoof soap opera, Acorn Antiques. Her first serious acting role on TV was in the classic Boys from the Blackstuff in 1980 & she broke into films with her sensational Academy Award nominated & BAFTA Best Actress award winning performance opposite Michael Caine in Educating Rita, a role she had created on the West End stage. Julie Walters has won numerous acting awards & was made an OBE in 1999 for her services to the theatre. In 2001, she won a Laurence Olivier award for her performance in Arthur Miller s All My Sons. She received her second BAFTA for her supporting role as the ballet teacher in Billy Elliot. Posters Of The Return

Editors Choice: Billy Elliot, The Return, Calendar Girls, Before You Go, Girls Night, Sister My Sister, Just Like A Woman, Buster, View DVDology

Victoria Wood is a British comedienne, actress, singer & writer. She has written & starred in sketches, plays & sitcoms & her live stand-up comedy act is interspersed with songs of her own composition, which she accompanies on piano. Wood was born in Ramsbottom, Greater Manchester, Lancashire & studied drama at the University of Birmingham, beginning her show business career during her time as an undergraduate. Her first big break was as a novelty act on the BBC s consumer affairs programme, Thats Life in 1976. Her first play, Talent won her an award for Most Promising New Writer & she has since won many awards for her light entertainment performances. Wood married magician Geoffrey Durham in March 1980, but they separated in October 2002. They have two children, Grace & Henry. A television film, Pat & Margaret starring Wood & Julie Walters as long-lost sisters with very different lifestyles. She was awarded the OBE in 1997. In 2003, she was listed in The Observer as one of the 50 funniest people in British comedy.

Editors Choice: Victoria Wood, Live, Dinnerladies, Julie Walters And Friends, Acorn Antiques, View DVDology

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