Neuromancer by William Gibson
Chapters 17–18
Sunday, 19 July 2026
Saturday, 18 July 2026
Video Games
Balatro
Finally won a run today! 12 hours of playtime, that's taken me. Not so bad, I suppose.
Finally won a run today! 12 hours of playtime, that's taken me. Not so bad, I suppose.
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
Only one new addition trickling in again this week, but it's also time for the monthly running time update, factoring in a pile of stuff that arrived a few weeks ago.
Number of titles in collection: 3,712 [up 1]
Of which DVDs: 964 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,748 [up 1]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 542 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 8,906 [up 1]
Number of films: 4,777 [up 1]
Number of additional cuts: 506 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes: 10,123 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,297 [no change]
Total running time of collection (approx.):
620 days, 9 hours, and 18 minutes.
(Up 1 day, 16 hours, and 33 minutes from last month.)
See you next week, faithful reader.
Only one new addition trickling in again this week, but it's also time for the monthly running time update, factoring in a pile of stuff that arrived a few weeks ago.
Number of titles in collection: 3,712 [up 1]
Of which DVDs: 964 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,748 [up 1]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 542 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 8,906 [up 1]
Number of films: 4,777 [up 1]
Number of additional cuts: 506 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes: 10,123 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,297 [no change]
Total running time of collection (approx.):
620 days, 9 hours, and 18 minutes.
(Up 1 day, 16 hours, and 33 minutes from last month.)
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 17 July 2026
Thursday, 16 July 2026
Wednesday, 15 July 2026
Tuesday, 14 July 2026
Monday, 13 July 2026
Sunday, 12 July 2026
TV
Heated Rivalry
1x01 Rookies
Not normally my kind of thing (a sports-centric romance show), but it was recommended to me so giving it a go.
1x01 Rookies
Not normally my kind of thing (a sports-centric romance show), but it was recommended to me so giving it a go.
Saturday, 11 July 2026
Fiction
Neuromancer by William Gibson
Chapter 1
I've wanted to read this certified classic for years; the fact there's a TV adaptation on the way has finally spurred me on.
Chapter 1
I've wanted to read this certified classic for years; the fact there's a TV adaptation on the way has finally spurred me on.
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
Number of titles in collection: 3,711 [up 4]
Of which DVDs: 964 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,747 [up 4]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 541 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 8,905 [up 5]
Number of films: 4,776 [up 4]
Number of additional cuts: 505 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 10,123 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,297 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Number of titles in collection: 3,711 [up 4]
Of which DVDs: 964 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,747 [up 4]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 541 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 8,905 [up 5]
Number of films: 4,776 [up 4]
Number of additional cuts: 505 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 10,123 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,297 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 10 July 2026
Fiction
Welsh Fairy Tales, Myths & Legends by Claire Fayers
The Drowned Land
The Three Calves
Taliesin Saves the Day
Pryderi and the Fairy Queen
The Afanc
King Arthur's Cave [the end]
The Drowned Land
The Three Calves
Taliesin Saves the Day
Pryderi and the Fairy Queen
The Afanc
King Arthur's Cave [the end]
Thursday, 9 July 2026
Fiction
Welsh Fairy Tales, Myths & Legends by Claire Fayers
Rhiannon and Her Baby
Tappers in the Copper Mine
Rhiannon and Her Baby
Tappers in the Copper Mine
Wednesday, 8 July 2026
Fiction
Welsh Fairy Tales, Myths & Legends by Claire Fayers
The Leaves That Hung But Never Grew
The Devil and Giant Jack
The Leaves That Hung But Never Grew
The Devil and Giant Jack
Tuesday, 7 July 2026
Fiction
Welsh Fairy Tales, Myths & Legends by Claire Fayers
Rhiannon and Pwyll
The Boy Who Asked Questions
The Girl from Llyn-y-Fan-Fach
The Fairy Harp
Rhiannon and Pwyll
The Boy Who Asked Questions
The Girl from Llyn-y-Fan-Fach
The Fairy Harp
Monday, 6 July 2026
Sunday, 5 July 2026
Fiction
Welsh Fairy Tales, Myths & Legends by Claire Fayers
My Brother the Fairy
Gelert the Brave
Devil's Bridge
My Brother the Fairy
Gelert the Brave
Devil's Bridge
this week on 100Films.co.uk
Let's see how 100Films.co.uk is doing at the halfway point of 2026, first with the regular review of June...
And then last month's failures...
More next Sunday.
And then last month's failures...
More next Sunday.
Saturday, 4 July 2026
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
Just one new addition this week, and as it's a BD-to-4K upgrade, it barely even registers.
Number of titles in collection: 3,707 [no change]
Of which DVDs: 964 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,743 [no change]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 540 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 8,900 [down 1]
Number of films: 4,772 [no change]
Number of additional cuts: 505 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 10,123 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,297 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Just one new addition this week, and as it's a BD-to-4K upgrade, it barely even registers.
Number of titles in collection: 3,707 [no change]
Of which DVDs: 964 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,743 [no change]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 540 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 8,900 [down 1]
Number of films: 4,772 [no change]
Number of additional cuts: 505 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 10,123 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,297 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 3 July 2026
Fiction
Welsh Fairy Tales, Myths & Legends by Claire Fayers
Introduction
The Dragon and the Flag
Flower-Face
Introduction
The Dragon and the Flag
Flower-Face
Tuesday, 30 June 2026
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
After absolutelty nothing last week, this week saw the arrival of nine box sets! Most of them are actually single-film affairs, but even those often come as "box sets" these days thanks to making everything premium. (One set included two films that replaced previous Blu-ray copies, hence the lower total increase below.) Anyway, working all that out is why this update is days late... not that anyone would care but me.
Number of titles in collection: 3,707 [up 7]
Of which DVDs: 964 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,743 [up 7]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 539 [up 7]
Number of discs in collection: 8,901 [up 33]
Number of films: 4,772 [up 18]
Number of additional cuts: 505 [up 9]
Number of TV episodes: 10,123 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,297 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
After absolutelty nothing last week, this week saw the arrival of nine box sets! Most of them are actually single-film affairs, but even those often come as "box sets" these days thanks to making everything premium. (One set included two films that replaced previous Blu-ray copies, hence the lower total increase below.) Anyway, working all that out is why this update is days late... not that anyone would care but me.
Number of titles in collection: 3,707 [up 7]
Of which DVDs: 964 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,743 [up 7]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 539 [up 7]
Number of discs in collection: 8,901 [up 33]
Number of films: 4,772 [up 18]
Number of additional cuts: 505 [up 9]
Number of TV episodes: 10,123 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,297 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Monday, 29 June 2026
Sunday, 28 June 2026
TV
Poker Face
2x07 One Last Job
I like most episodes of this show, but I loved this one.
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x43 Week 9: Wednesday
Sherlock Holmes: Incident at Victoria Falls
Part 2 (of 2)
2x07 One Last Job
I like most episodes of this show, but I loved this one.
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x43 Week 9: Wednesday
Sherlock Holmes: Incident at Victoria Falls
Part 2 (of 2)
Saturday, 27 June 2026
Thursday, 25 June 2026
Wednesday, 24 June 2026
Monday, 22 June 2026
Sunday, 21 June 2026
TV
The Mighty Nein
1x04 The Mighty Nein
I have mixed feelings about how much they've changed from the actual play, but this is still a really good show.
[Watch it (again) on Prime Video.]
1x04 The Mighty Nein
I have mixed feelings about how much they've changed from the actual play, but this is still a really good show.
[Watch it (again) on Prime Video.]
Video Games
Balatro
Actually got to Ante 8 today. Didn't beat it, but you get rewards for even reaching it, so that was nice. Still not "a quick game", though — took me an hour to do that.
Actually got to Ante 8 today. Didn't beat it, but you get rewards for even reaching it, so that was nice. Still not "a quick game", though — took me an hour to do that.
Saturday, 20 June 2026
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
No new additions this week (several things that are out on Monday are in the post, due to arrive on Monday — shocker!), but it is time for the monthly running time update.
Number of titles in collection: 3,700 [no change]
Of which DVDs: 964 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,736 [no change]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 532 [no change]
Number of discs in collection: 8,868 [no change]
Number of films: 4,754 [no change]
Number of additional cuts: 496 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 10,123 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,297 [no change]
Total running time of collection (approx.):
618 days, 16 hours, and 45 minutes.
(Up 10 hours and 33 minutes from last month.)
See you next week, faithful reader.
No new additions this week (several things that are out on Monday are in the post, due to arrive on Monday — shocker!), but it is time for the monthly running time update.
Number of titles in collection: 3,700 [no change]
Of which DVDs: 964 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,736 [no change]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 532 [no change]
Number of discs in collection: 8,868 [no change]
Number of films: 4,754 [no change]
Number of additional cuts: 496 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 10,123 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,297 [no change]
Total running time of collection (approx.):
618 days, 16 hours, and 45 minutes.
(Up 10 hours and 33 minutes from last month.)
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 19 June 2026
TV
The Mighty Nein
1x03 The Fletching & Moondrop Traveling Carnival of Curiosities
Finally picking this back up, after just seven months. Ridiculous, but here we are.
[Watch it (again) on Prime Video.]
1x03 The Fletching & Moondrop Traveling Carnival of Curiosities
Finally picking this back up, after just seven months. Ridiculous, but here we are.
[Watch it (again) on Prime Video.]
Video Games
Balatro
Getting into the groove of "just play to unlock cards you don't have yet, don't worry about understanding it or playing it well". Dunno if that's the right approach, but it's quicker.
Getting into the groove of "just play to unlock cards you don't have yet, don't worry about understanding it or playing it well". Dunno if that's the right approach, but it's quicker.
Thursday, 18 June 2026
Video Games
Balatro
Played for an hour-and-a-half today. Has it finally clicked? Eh, I wouldn't go that far, but I didn't have anything else I felt like doing and multiple runs are good for filling out my card collection.
Played for an hour-and-a-half today. Has it finally clicked? Eh, I wouldn't go that far, but I didn't have anything else I felt like doing and multiple runs are good for filling out my card collection.
Wednesday, 17 June 2026
Tuesday, 16 June 2026
Monday, 15 June 2026
Sunday, 14 June 2026
Saturday, 13 June 2026
Video Games
Balatro
The Sphere
Took me less than five minutes to finish this today, once I spotted the (too subtle, in my opinion) clue for how to get past the puzzle I was stuck on — which turned out to be the final puzzle.
The Sphere
Took me less than five minutes to finish this today, once I spotted the (too subtle, in my opinion) clue for how to get past the puzzle I was stuck on — which turned out to be the final puzzle.
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
A handful of 4K titles this week, including an upgrade from regular Blu-ray for Speed Racer. Plus, a 2-disc Hammer box set which is 100% special features (including one short film, so it crops up there, at least).
Number of titles in collection: 3,700 [up 3]
Of which DVDs: 964 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,736 [up 3]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 532 [up 3]
Number of discs in collection: 8,868 [up 6]
Number of films: 4,754 [up 2]
Number of additional cuts: 496 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes: 10,123 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,297 [up 1]
See you next week, faithful reader.
A handful of 4K titles this week, including an upgrade from regular Blu-ray for Speed Racer. Plus, a 2-disc Hammer box set which is 100% special features (including one short film, so it crops up there, at least).
Number of titles in collection: 3,700 [up 3]
Of which DVDs: 964 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,736 [up 3]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 532 [up 3]
Number of discs in collection: 8,868 [up 6]
Number of films: 4,754 [up 2]
Number of additional cuts: 496 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes: 10,123 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,297 [up 1]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 12 June 2026
Video Games
Balatro
Played my most successful run yet. Still feel like I'm muddling through rather than really knowing what I'm doing, but when the right cards come up and synergies click, it is moderately satisfying. Got defeated at the end of Ante 6 (of 8) and that took almost an hour, so still the idea of this being a "one more quick run" game is ludicrous to me.
The Sphere
I'm pretty good at point-and-click adventure games — I've been playing them most of my life. This one came out today, free, billed as a 20–30 minute experience. After an hour of playtime (some of which was spent faffing with Steam Deck controls to make them palatable, to be fair), I'm still stumped by one puzzle; and I only got past the first "puzzle" because I happened to see a solution on Reddit. It looks pretty, at least.
Played my most successful run yet. Still feel like I'm muddling through rather than really knowing what I'm doing, but when the right cards come up and synergies click, it is moderately satisfying. Got defeated at the end of Ante 6 (of 8) and that took almost an hour, so still the idea of this being a "one more quick run" game is ludicrous to me.
The Sphere
I'm pretty good at point-and-click adventure games — I've been playing them most of my life. This one came out today, free, billed as a 20–30 minute experience. After an hour of playtime (some of which was spent faffing with Steam Deck controls to make them palatable, to be fair), I'm still stumped by one puzzle; and I only got past the first "puzzle" because I happened to see a solution on Reddit. It looks pretty, at least.
Wednesday, 10 June 2026
Video Games
AtmaSphere
Abandoning this. I did manage to complete the level I got stuck at yesterday, and immediately found the next one trickier (unsurprisingly). It's too stressful to be fun for me, which is a shame because I like the underlying concept and the rainy atmosphere / peaceful music would be pleasant... if the gameplay didn't completely undermine it.
Balatro
Some people think Balatro is the most addictive game in history. Me, I load it up once every few months when I'm not sure what else I want to play to see if it's finally clicked. I don't dislike it, but I still don't really get what's meant to be so amazing about it. And it still took over half-an-hour to get through a run that I only got to about the halfway point (Ante 4 or 5 of 8) — that's still not my idea of a "quick game where you always want just one more run".
Abandoning this. I did manage to complete the level I got stuck at yesterday, and immediately found the next one trickier (unsurprisingly). It's too stressful to be fun for me, which is a shame because I like the underlying concept and the rainy atmosphere / peaceful music would be pleasant... if the gameplay didn't completely undermine it.
Balatro
Some people think Balatro is the most addictive game in history. Me, I load it up once every few months when I'm not sure what else I want to play to see if it's finally clicked. I don't dislike it, but I still don't really get what's meant to be so amazing about it. And it still took over half-an-hour to get through a run that I only got to about the halfway point (Ante 4 or 5 of 8) — that's still not my idea of a "quick game where you always want just one more run".
Tuesday, 9 June 2026
Video Games
007: Everything or Nothing
Over an hour spent replaying near-impossible bits over and over. Ugh. I'm not really enjoying this, which is such a shame after hearing good things about it for so long. If it was anything other than Bond, I'd probably just give it up as no fun.
AtmaSphere
Kind of a puzzle platformer based on rolling a ball along narrow paths. Enjoyed it at first, but got fed up with the challenge before the end of level 7 (of 30-ish, so not even a third of the way through). Maybe I'd just been playing for too long by that point — I should probably try again another day.
Over an hour spent replaying near-impossible bits over and over. Ugh. I'm not really enjoying this, which is such a shame after hearing good things about it for so long. If it was anything other than Bond, I'd probably just give it up as no fun.
AtmaSphere
Kind of a puzzle platformer based on rolling a ball along narrow paths. Enjoyed it at first, but got fed up with the challenge before the end of level 7 (of 30-ish, so not even a third of the way through). Maybe I'd just been playing for too long by that point — I should probably try again another day.
Monday, 8 June 2026
Sunday, 7 June 2026
Video Games
007: Everything or Nothing
I didn't think it would take me so long to continue this, but, well, I've not been doing much of anything recently (see the general infrequency of posts the past few weeks). Also I wasn't enjoying it as much as I'd hoped. Games were harder back in the day! Or I'm just rubbish at them. Probably both. In that vein, I spent half-an-hour today battling through a single level. I did it on 'standard' difficulty, at least, rather than dropping to 'easy' like I normally do, so I guess that's something. I thought I'd switch back to 'easy' going forward, but I persisted on 'standard' through the next couple of levels. Is that some kind of personal growth? Let's not go too far.
I didn't think it would take me so long to continue this, but, well, I've not been doing much of anything recently (see the general infrequency of posts the past few weeks). Also I wasn't enjoying it as much as I'd hoped. Games were harder back in the day! Or I'm just rubbish at them. Probably both. In that vein, I spent half-an-hour today battling through a single level. I did it on 'standard' difficulty, at least, rather than dropping to 'easy' like I normally do, so I guess that's something. I thought I'd switch back to 'easy' going forward, but I persisted on 'standard' through the next couple of levels. Is that some kind of personal growth? Let's not go too far.
this week on 100Films.co.uk
Oh deary me, is it another new month already?! 2026 is disappearing fast... and that's kind of the theme of the monthly review I posted this week on 100Films.co.uk...
As usual, it's accompanied by a list of some of my many failures...
More next Sunday? You know there won't be.
As usual, it's accompanied by a list of some of my many failures...
More next Sunday? You know there won't be.
Saturday, 6 June 2026
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
Just one new addition this week, as various things got pushed back or what have you. There's certainly plenty due later in the month.
Number of titles in collection: 3,697 [up 1]
Of which DVDs: 964 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,733 [up 1]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 529 [no change]
Number of discs in collection: 8,862 [up 4]
Number of films: 4,752 [up 1]
Number of additional cuts: 495 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 10,123 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,296 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Just one new addition this week, as various things got pushed back or what have you. There's certainly plenty due later in the month.
Number of titles in collection: 3,697 [up 1]
Of which DVDs: 964 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,733 [up 1]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 529 [no change]
Number of discs in collection: 8,862 [up 4]
Number of films: 4,752 [up 1]
Number of additional cuts: 495 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 10,123 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,296 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Wednesday, 3 June 2026
Monday, 1 June 2026
Sunday, 31 May 2026
TV
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x36 Week 8: Monday
4x37 Week 8: Tuesday
Secret Service
Part 3 (of 5)
Part 4 (of 5)
[Watch it (again) on ITVX.]
4x36 Week 8: Monday
4x37 Week 8: Tuesday
Secret Service
Part 3 (of 5)
Part 4 (of 5)
[Watch it (again) on ITVX.]
Saturday, 30 May 2026
TV
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x33 Week 7: Wednesday
4x34 Week 7: Thursday
4x35 Week 7: Friday
Secret Service
Part 2 (of 5)
[Watch it (again) on ITVX.]
4x33 Week 7: Wednesday
4x34 Week 7: Thursday
4x35 Week 7: Friday
Secret Service
Part 2 (of 5)
[Watch it (again) on ITVX.]
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
This week's additions include one of my absolute highlights of the year: the 1996 Doctor Who TV Movie, restored in 4K UHD. Haven't had a chance to watch it yet, but very much looking forward to it. It also replaces an entire DVD box set as I continue to rework my Who collection into HD.
Number of titles in collection: 3,696 [up 1]
Of which DVDs: 964 [down 1]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,732 [up 2]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 529 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 8,858 [down 4]
Number of films: 4,751 [up 2]
Number of additional cuts: 495 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes: 10,123 [down 11]
Number of short films: 1,296 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
This week's additions include one of my absolute highlights of the year: the 1996 Doctor Who TV Movie, restored in 4K UHD. Haven't had a chance to watch it yet, but very much looking forward to it. It also replaces an entire DVD box set as I continue to rework my Who collection into HD.
Number of titles in collection: 3,696 [up 1]
Of which DVDs: 964 [down 1]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,732 [up 2]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 529 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 8,858 [down 4]
Number of films: 4,751 [up 2]
Number of additional cuts: 495 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes: 10,123 [down 11]
Number of short films: 1,296 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 29 May 2026
TV
How I Met Your Mother
2x03 Brunch [2nd watch]
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x32 Week 7: Tuesday
Secret Service
Part 1 (of 5)
[Watch it (again) on ITVX.]
2x03 Brunch [2nd watch]
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x32 Week 7: Tuesday
Secret Service
Part 1 (of 5)
[Watch it (again) on ITVX.]
Thursday, 28 May 2026
Monday, 25 May 2026
Saturday, 23 May 2026
TV
A Midsummer Night's Dream
I can't believe it's taken me 10 years to get round to watching this. That's insane. And it's really good, too! I was thinking about logging it as a film, because it is a "TV movie", but it also feels very 'TV'. Good, but TV-ish.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Russell T Davies Remembers... A Midsummer Night's Dream
A short featurette-length piece of RTD reflecting on the production — even this was three years ago!
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
I can't believe it's taken me 10 years to get round to watching this. That's insane. And it's really good, too! I was thinking about logging it as a film, because it is a "TV movie", but it also feels very 'TV'. Good, but TV-ish.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Russell T Davies Remembers... A Midsummer Night's Dream
A short featurette-length piece of RTD reflecting on the production — even this was three years ago!
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
It's patchy whether new releases turn up on the Saturday before or not anymore — this week, not. So really it's just the monthly running time update that's new here.
Number of titles in collection: 3,695 [no change]
Of which DVDs: 965 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,730 [no change]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 528 [no change]
Number of discs in collection: 8,862 [no change]
Number of films: 4,749 [no change]
Number of additional cuts: 494 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 10,134 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,296 [no change]
Total running time of collection (approx.):
618 days, 6 hours, and 12 minutes.
(Up 22 hours and 47 minutes from last month.)
See you next week, faithful reader.
It's patchy whether new releases turn up on the Saturday before or not anymore — this week, not. So really it's just the monthly running time update that's new here.
Number of titles in collection: 3,695 [no change]
Of which DVDs: 965 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,730 [no change]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 528 [no change]
Number of discs in collection: 8,862 [no change]
Number of films: 4,749 [no change]
Number of additional cuts: 494 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 10,134 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,296 [no change]
Total running time of collection (approx.):
618 days, 6 hours, and 12 minutes.
(Up 22 hours and 47 minutes from last month.)
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 22 May 2026
Articles
Tosca review – Puccini’s high-octane bloodbath bonanza makes for a shocking festival kick-off
and
‘Really entertaining in a horrible way’: the indestructible appeal of Tosca
by Flora Willson (from the Guardian)
I'm going to see this production next month. Sounds like it's gonna be good.
and
‘Really entertaining in a horrible way’: the indestructible appeal of Tosca
by Flora Willson (from the Guardian)
I'm going to see this production next month. Sounds like it's gonna be good.
Tuesday, 19 May 2026
Fiction
The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole
Preface to the First Edition
Sonnet
Chapter 1
The first-ever Gothic novel! I've been meaning to read this forever. Decided to finally dive in on a whim.
Preface to the First Edition
Sonnet
Chapter 1
The first-ever Gothic novel! I've been meaning to read this forever. Decided to finally dive in on a whim.
Monday, 18 May 2026
Video Games
007: Everything or Nothing
Well, technically I played it — replayed one level to test all the additional fiddling I'd been doing! Basically, I had to re-do everything I did months ago (even more than I'd done yesterday; though it had remembered a few things I'd done to Wind Waker, at least), which involved copious googling and whatnot, because of course I couldn't remember exactly what I did before (I'd done it, I didn't need to still know it!) A bunch of time spent getting things exactly how they used to be — ugh. Hope it doesn't forget its settings on a regular basis, because I don't want to have to keep doing this.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Anniversary Edition
I'm about to be away for a few days, so I wanted to make sure to get some Skyrim in (after missing yesterday) to avoid another Situation. For once, decided to revel in enjoying the mood and atmosphere rather than worrying about Doing Stuff. Did come across some Thalmor and slaughtered them, though. Both were nice. If I ever get a VR headset, I'll have to get Skyrim VR... but then I might never leave...
Well, technically I played it — replayed one level to test all the additional fiddling I'd been doing! Basically, I had to re-do everything I did months ago (even more than I'd done yesterday; though it had remembered a few things I'd done to Wind Waker, at least), which involved copious googling and whatnot, because of course I couldn't remember exactly what I did before (I'd done it, I didn't need to still know it!) A bunch of time spent getting things exactly how they used to be — ugh. Hope it doesn't forget its settings on a regular basis, because I don't want to have to keep doing this.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Anniversary Edition
I'm about to be away for a few days, so I wanted to make sure to get some Skyrim in (after missing yesterday) to avoid another Situation. For once, decided to revel in enjoying the mood and atmosphere rather than worrying about Doing Stuff. Did come across some Thalmor and slaughtered them, though. Both were nice. If I ever get a VR headset, I'll have to get Skyrim VR... but then I might never leave...
Sunday, 17 May 2026
Video Games
007: Everything or Nothing
Back when I got my Steam Deck, one of the first things I did was set up emulation to be able to play this Bond game — I’ve actually owned it for years (it was released on GameCube, though I can’t remember if I bought it then or picked it up later when I had a Wii) but never actually played it. I even spent a tonne of time fiddling around to make it nicer — not just living with the default settings, but getting the emulator to render it in HD, getting the widescreen working (much harder than it should be), and buying an adapter so I could use one of my original GameCube controllers. After all that tinkering, I got it just right… and then went and played other stuff. For eight whole months. Ha.
I’ve been meaning to get back to it ever since, especially with the new Bond game looming, and today I finally pulled my finger out. And immediately… spent over half-an-hour fiddling and faffing again because it wasn’t running right. I guess some update or other to the emulators broke it. (I dread to think that it’s done the same to my (also perfectly set up after much fiddling) copy of Wind Waker, but I didn’t dare check.)
But I got there in the end… although, to be honest, it didn’t feel as pleasant to play as it did last time. I don’t know if the emulator software’s changed, or if I didn’t get the settings quite as just-so as before, or if I just replayed the opening level so many damn times back then that I’m misremembering how easy it was because I simply got so good at it. Certainly, I found some levels more of a struggle than I expected — don’t know if that’s just my skill level, or the barrier of using old kit (the controller is quarter-of-a-century old and has spent most of that time in storage, after all), or just how game design has changed in the intervening years.
In fact, there are multiple ways the game feels odd beside from the gameplay / level design. For example, there’s a “level” which is just a series of cutscenes — no interaction, you just watch them. For no apparent reason, some are pre-rendered but some are realised in-engine. At one point, there’s a pre-rendered shot of Bond and Q riding in an elevator for a couple of seconds, which they exit and it cuts to the scene proper which is in-engine. Why?! I don’t know if it was always odd or that’s just a way things have changed since. Amusingly, the pre-rendered scenes were no doubt meant to be higher quality moments back then, but now they’re low-res and blurry and riddled with compression artefacts and glitches, whereas the stuff rendered in-engine is in HD thanks to my settings changes and so looks much better.
Still, I overcame all that to progress through 7 of the game’s 32 levels, about an hour of playtime, before — frankly — I’d had enough. Bit disappointing to find it so underwhelming and awkward after I’d been looking forward to playing it for so long. I do intend to finish it, but with a bit less enthusiasm now.
Back when I got my Steam Deck, one of the first things I did was set up emulation to be able to play this Bond game — I’ve actually owned it for years (it was released on GameCube, though I can’t remember if I bought it then or picked it up later when I had a Wii) but never actually played it. I even spent a tonne of time fiddling around to make it nicer — not just living with the default settings, but getting the emulator to render it in HD, getting the widescreen working (much harder than it should be), and buying an adapter so I could use one of my original GameCube controllers. After all that tinkering, I got it just right… and then went and played other stuff. For eight whole months. Ha.
I’ve been meaning to get back to it ever since, especially with the new Bond game looming, and today I finally pulled my finger out. And immediately… spent over half-an-hour fiddling and faffing again because it wasn’t running right. I guess some update or other to the emulators broke it. (I dread to think that it’s done the same to my (also perfectly set up after much fiddling) copy of Wind Waker, but I didn’t dare check.)
But I got there in the end… although, to be honest, it didn’t feel as pleasant to play as it did last time. I don’t know if the emulator software’s changed, or if I didn’t get the settings quite as just-so as before, or if I just replayed the opening level so many damn times back then that I’m misremembering how easy it was because I simply got so good at it. Certainly, I found some levels more of a struggle than I expected — don’t know if that’s just my skill level, or the barrier of using old kit (the controller is quarter-of-a-century old and has spent most of that time in storage, after all), or just how game design has changed in the intervening years.
In fact, there are multiple ways the game feels odd beside from the gameplay / level design. For example, there’s a “level” which is just a series of cutscenes — no interaction, you just watch them. For no apparent reason, some are pre-rendered but some are realised in-engine. At one point, there’s a pre-rendered shot of Bond and Q riding in an elevator for a couple of seconds, which they exit and it cuts to the scene proper which is in-engine. Why?! I don’t know if it was always odd or that’s just a way things have changed since. Amusingly, the pre-rendered scenes were no doubt meant to be higher quality moments back then, but now they’re low-res and blurry and riddled with compression artefacts and glitches, whereas the stuff rendered in-engine is in HD thanks to my settings changes and so looks much better.
Still, I overcame all that to progress through 7 of the game’s 32 levels, about an hour of playtime, before — frankly — I’d had enough. Bit disappointing to find it so underwhelming and awkward after I’d been looking forward to playing it for so long. I do intend to finish it, but with a bit less enthusiasm now.
Saturday, 16 May 2026
Films
The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)
[#25 in The 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2026]
Blindspot 2026 #3
This was meant to be part of WDYMYHS 2019. Seven years late, I've finally got there!
[#25 in The 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2026]
Blindspot 2026 #3
This was meant to be part of WDYMYHS 2019. Seven years late, I've finally got there!
Video Games
Buffet Knight: Decadent Full Course
Had felt a little like I was going back and forth over the same areas making minor progress... then opened up one new pathway and loads more of the map. Fun times. Probably playing it incredibly inefficiently, just wandering around, back and forth, but hey, that's kinda what I was taught to do by...
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Anniversary Edition
Placid Plastic Duck Simulator
I don't really know if I should log this — it's kind of like logging wallpaper, considering it just sits there. Though wallpaper doesn't drop a new variant every now and then that you can give a name, I guess.
Had felt a little like I was going back and forth over the same areas making minor progress... then opened up one new pathway and loads more of the map. Fun times. Probably playing it incredibly inefficiently, just wandering around, back and forth, but hey, that's kinda what I was taught to do by...
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Anniversary Edition
Placid Plastic Duck Simulator
I don't really know if I should log this — it's kind of like logging wallpaper, considering it just sits there. Though wallpaper doesn't drop a new variant every now and then that you can give a name, I guess.
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
This week, a trio of Masters of Cinema titles turned up a whole week early, thanks to ordering direct. Plus another Akira Kurosawa in HD from the BFI, and a feature-length Hammer documentary from, er, Hammer themselves. Two of those are upgrades, but in both cases the previous copies are in box sets, so they're going nowhere.
Number of titles in collection: 3,695 [up 6]
Of which DVDs: 965 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,730 [up 6]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 528 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 8,862 [up 7]
Number of films: 4,749 [up 6]
Number of additional cuts: 494 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes: 10,134 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,296 [up 3]
See you next week, faithful reader.
This week, a trio of Masters of Cinema titles turned up a whole week early, thanks to ordering direct. Plus another Akira Kurosawa in HD from the BFI, and a feature-length Hammer documentary from, er, Hammer themselves. Two of those are upgrades, but in both cases the previous copies are in box sets, so they're going nowhere.
Number of titles in collection: 3,695 [up 6]
Of which DVDs: 965 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,730 [up 6]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 528 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 8,862 [up 7]
Number of films: 4,749 [up 6]
Number of additional cuts: 494 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes: 10,134 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,296 [up 3]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 15 May 2026
Thursday, 14 May 2026
Fiction
Swords Against Wizardry by Fritz Leiber
IV. The Lords of Quarmall pp.61–92 [the end]
And that is also the end of The First Book of Lankhmar, meaning I'm theoretically halfway through the series. That said, I've read four of its seven books, which cover 24 stories and leave 13 to go. It won't come as much of a surprise, then, that those 13 include three of the four longest tales (Lords of Quarmall ranks third), including the only full-length novel — which is what's up next (after I read an unrelated book or two first, just for variety's sake).
IV. The Lords of Quarmall pp.61–92 [the end]
And that is also the end of The First Book of Lankhmar, meaning I'm theoretically halfway through the series. That said, I've read four of its seven books, which cover 24 stories and leave 13 to go. It won't come as much of a surprise, then, that those 13 include three of the four longest tales (Lords of Quarmall ranks third), including the only full-length novel — which is what's up next (after I read an unrelated book or two first, just for variety's sake).
Video Games
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Anniversary Edition
When I started Skyrim, I aimed to not use fast travel — half the fun is traversing the world and stumbling upon things. Eventually I caved and began to use it to quickly transport loot for sale; then, after I’d explored some regions so thoroughly there were no more landmarks to discover and the random encounters were becoming repetitive, I allowed myself to skip around those areas sometimes. I think this ‘limited and specific’ kind of use is preferable to both “no fast travel whatsoever” and “using fast travel willy-nilly”.
However, there are some quests that require you to ping back and forth around the map to complete their objectives. I’ve mostly tried to treat these as either a way to explore new areas (setting off to the next objective, getting sidetracked by a gazillions things on the way, and eventually reaching my goal several hours of playtime later) or let them sit in my journal, thinking “I’ll do that next time I’m in the area anyway”. The latter is part of why I have a lot of stuff backed up; and, honestly, I can’t remember the storylines associated with many of them, because in some cases it’s been literally hundreds of hours since I received the quest. I did once do a quest like that by fast travelling back and forth to its various objectives. It meant I completed it promptly, but it also felt kinda unsatisfying to ‘cheat’ like that.
Nonetheless, with the amount of stuff I’ve got sat waiting, and the aforementioned struggle to follow storylines properly (I’ve also completed quests where I’ve just ticked the boxes having forgotten why I’m doing what I'm doing, and that’s even more unsatisfying), maybe it’s time to allow myself to do a bit more teleporting and get a few things properly completed. I mean, I’ve still got three cities left unvisited, including some major ones (one is part of an entire new island), and they’re definitely gonna bring a whole lot more stuff to do! And that's without starting/resuming any of the major questlines...
When I started Skyrim, I aimed to not use fast travel — half the fun is traversing the world and stumbling upon things. Eventually I caved and began to use it to quickly transport loot for sale; then, after I’d explored some regions so thoroughly there were no more landmarks to discover and the random encounters were becoming repetitive, I allowed myself to skip around those areas sometimes. I think this ‘limited and specific’ kind of use is preferable to both “no fast travel whatsoever” and “using fast travel willy-nilly”.
However, there are some quests that require you to ping back and forth around the map to complete their objectives. I’ve mostly tried to treat these as either a way to explore new areas (setting off to the next objective, getting sidetracked by a gazillions things on the way, and eventually reaching my goal several hours of playtime later) or let them sit in my journal, thinking “I’ll do that next time I’m in the area anyway”. The latter is part of why I have a lot of stuff backed up; and, honestly, I can’t remember the storylines associated with many of them, because in some cases it’s been literally hundreds of hours since I received the quest. I did once do a quest like that by fast travelling back and forth to its various objectives. It meant I completed it promptly, but it also felt kinda unsatisfying to ‘cheat’ like that.
Nonetheless, with the amount of stuff I’ve got sat waiting, and the aforementioned struggle to follow storylines properly (I’ve also completed quests where I’ve just ticked the boxes having forgotten why I’m doing what I'm doing, and that’s even more unsatisfying), maybe it’s time to allow myself to do a bit more teleporting and get a few things properly completed. I mean, I’ve still got three cities left unvisited, including some major ones (one is part of an entire new island), and they’re definitely gonna bring a whole lot more stuff to do! And that's without starting/resuming any of the major questlines...
Wednesday, 13 May 2026
Video Games
Buffet Knight: Decadent Full Course
Completed the second dungeon today, of which I believe there are five, and I was thinking "this game is going quite quickly"... until I realised my playtime so far is 3½ hours, which means five dungeons + I presume some kind of equivalent endgame is likely to be over 10 hours, which is a perfectly reasonable game length, especially for an indie. Skyrim may have distored my perspective...
(Actually, it's almost the perfect time for this comparison, because 3½ hours is exactly how long I played Skyrim on Monday, during which I completed a couple of bits of some quests (I don't think I did a whole one) and spent a lot of time running around 'n' admining — vs doing about ⅔ of Buffet Knight in that time.)
Completed the second dungeon today, of which I believe there are five, and I was thinking "this game is going quite quickly"... until I realised my playtime so far is 3½ hours, which means five dungeons + I presume some kind of equivalent endgame is likely to be over 10 hours, which is a perfectly reasonable game length, especially for an indie. Skyrim may have distored my perspective...
(Actually, it's almost the perfect time for this comparison, because 3½ hours is exactly how long I played Skyrim on Monday, during which I completed a couple of bits of some quests (I don't think I did a whole one) and spent a lot of time running around 'n' admining — vs doing about ⅔ of Buffet Knight in that time.)
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