And The Awards Go To The Usual Crowd

The Emmys are only on once a year and they're usually entertaining enough but the cynic in me can't help but scoff at some of the winners speeches for some reason. For a two hour gig, Jimmy Fallon (who I find rather Marmite mostly) did a decent enough job but I don't think there was a win that was that genuinely shocking. Most of the usual candidates (Mad Men, House, Glee, Dexter, etc) were up and the wins attributed to them were deserved and all but the Emmys has almost become more about what everyone is wearing (or who everyone is wearing) rather than the actual ceremony itself. Here's to next year though.

I just knew with the way that Mistresses had been going for the past three episodes that the finale wouldn't match up and it didn't. Why the hell didn't the BBC give this a longer run? Because of that shortcoming, we've been left with a rather rushed finale where Trudi and Katie were at loggerheads over the latter's affair with Richard (your blandness will not be missed) but manage to reach some civility because for half the episode you're almost thinking that Jessica's illness might actually kill her off. As glad as I am that it didn't, this along with Siobhan getting Dominic after leaving it so long. This was a good show but this last series showed that the BBC were more concerned with getting out of the way than ending it satsfyingly.

A week into Ultimate Big Brother and you'd have to admit that it's certainly been eventful enough. Josie walked out after two days, John McRirick was evicted after actually being fun and thanks to an argument with Nadia, Coolio was also forced to leave and there was Michelle and Victor from BB5 having some fun in a bedsit at the expense of the other housemates. Even I felt bad for Nikki when she was terrorised with a clown and there was fun with seeing the likes of Anna Nolan, Craig Philips and Stuart Pilkington over the last few days as a part of tasks and treats for the housemates. However the Chantelle and Preston stuff is a little uncomfortable to watch (not to mention that the usual gossip mags are obsessed with them two getting back together) but I did like Victor, Michelle and Nick's little analysis over the antics of the house dynamics and the former occupants from BB11. So far, this has been fun enough, though I can see a Brian or Chantelle victory come next Friday.

That's it - The Vampires Diairies is really getting interesting. Bonnie's totally a witch and while setting candles alight might not be the most amazing thing on a supernatural themed show, Bonnie is by far the best character on this show and can I have some sympathy for Caroline too? Her relationship with Damon should be enough to show fangirls that dating the latter is a bad thing to do. Elena won pointers in this episode for trying to get Damon away from Caroline but lost them for not sticking to her guns and getting answers from Stefan. Also while Stefan's method of incapacitating Damon was genius, I'm more intrigued by this band of supernatural hunters comprising of Tyler's parents, Caroline's mother and Jenna's reporter ex-boyfriend. Nice to know that some people in Mystic Falls are privy to vampires.

I tried to get into Vexed but the three episodes that BBC2 offered me for the last few Sundays made me wished that I hadn't bothered. The problem with this show has been that it's often not funny enough for a straight up comedy and the crassness often underscored anything dramatic. The last episode with Jack and Kate searching for a kidnapped pop star was probably the better of the three but if this show returns next year, it needs to figure out what it wants to be and stick with it.

- Jon Hamm and Paul Giamatti are both confirmed for appearing in the new season of 30 Rock. Hamm's character will be a love interest for Liz Lemon.

- Carol Burnett has been cast as Sue's mother for the second season of Glee.
- Stephen Collins will apear in Brothers And Sisters as Charlie, a love interest for Saul. He'll also appear in No Ordinary Family as the boss of Julie Benz's character, Stephanie.

- Naoko Mori is another actor attached to the SyFy series, Three Inches.

- Lois Smith has been cast as Tom Scavo's mother in Desperate Housewives. She'll appear in the fifth episode of the new series.