As we draw closer to the end of another year in which I’ve not done much on here again, it’s time to look at some of the things that I have watched, listened to and so on.
TV Programme
Adolescence started the year off with a bang. It was a hard watch at times, but it was worth it. There were brilliant perofrmances from all the main actors, and the fact that each episode was filmed in one shot, made it feel even more engrossing.
Honorable mentions – On Call (Amazon) A rookie and a veteran officer patrol duo in Long Beach, California, face the morality of protecting and serving a community. Brian and Maggie (Channel 4) Dramatisation of the infamous 1989 interview between journalist Brian Walden (Steve Coogan) and Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher (Harriet Walker).
Album
Since things at work have changed and I no longer have to listen to music for my job, I’m not as ‘up’ on new music as I once was. However, in the last 3 months, there has been one album that I’ve gone back regularly on the commute, and it’s The Art of Loving by Olivia Dean. It’s a stunning album, with some amazing songs. Her voice is stunning and album highlights for me include So Easy (to Fall in Love) & Lady Luck. A stunning release.
Honourabale mentions Deftones – Private Music – loud rock music of the highest order. Brother Ali – Satisfied Soul a new name to me, he’s an American rapper & I spent a lot of time listening to this album after it featured on a podcast, more on that later.
Single
As I mentioned above, Olivia Dean hasn’t been far from my ears this year and the song I kept going back to is Man I Need. Superb.
Honourable Mentions – Benson Boone – Sorry I’m Here for Someone Else the first single from his 2025 album American Heart, not as good as Beautiful Things but a great title. Raye – Where Is My Husband! A big bold pop song.
Podcast
I listen to a lot of podcasts on my commute. I subscribe to a lot that auto download and some I just download the episodes that I’m interested in. However This is Not Happening is the only podcast that I listen to every single episode. It’s a music review podcast presented by four friends, Guy, David, Joey & Nolan*. There have known each other for years and started a blog. Then during lockdown, they started a podcast. Each month one of them bring an album to the table for them to review. It’s a simple concept and it works brilliantly. The pod has brought so many albums to my attention over the last years that I would never have heard otherwise, like the Brother Ali I mentioned above. *Many years ago, I used to work with Nolan but I haven’t seen him in over decade.
Honourable mentions The News Agents & News Agents USA Emily Matlis, Jon Sopal and Lewis Goodall share their opinions and others on the news on both sides of the Atlantic. I don’t listent o every episode, becasue the news is depressing! Crunch and Roll a podcast interviewing radio people about their careers. Jake’s Notebook Jake Humphrey used to be on the TV, now he runs a massive production company behind some great podcasts including High Performance and the Room Where It Happened, which Jake’s Notebook is a spin off from. He simply spends 20 minutes looking back through his notebooks and discusses what he’s written about. Sounds a bit boring, but I promise you it’s a really good listen.
Goodbye Ozzy
I can’t do a review of the year, without mentioning the Prince of Drakness! I’ve have been a fan of Ozzy Osbourne since 1983, when I heard Bark at the Moon on the Radio One on the Roundtable show. Over the years, I’ve bought every album he’s recorded and I was lucky enough to see him live, alongside Black Sabbath a few years ago, but never a solo show. This year, he played his farewell show in Birmingham, with some of the biggest names in rock there to say thank you. And then just two weeks later he was gone. I remember getting the breaking news alert and saying to Mrs Bewes that Ozzy has died. Everyone had seen how frail he seemed in footage of the gig, but I don’t think anyone expected him to go so soon afterwards. His music has been the soundtrack to much of my life, he’s strange to think that there won’t be any new music from him anymore. Plus, so much of his music is wrapped up in memories of my Mum, who died in 2024. She went to Woolworths in 1983 and bought Bark at the Moon for me after I was raving about it. I played her so much of his music over the years, that she actually became a bit of a fan. She didn’t like him swearing so much, but she did find him funny. Thanks for music, the memories and the laughs Ozzy. RIP.