What the Biscuit Team is Watching and Reading this Week!
Film, Books & Television worth putting down your phone for
The sun may be shining but that doesn't mean we are staring up into the blue skies...okay maybe sometimes...the team here at Biscuit are enjoying the longer and lighter evenings with a good book and a great series! Stuck for inspiration? See what we are watching and listening to this May.
Piglet by Lottie Hazell
Whoever said not to judge a book by it's cover clearly hadn't foreseen this wonder by Lottie Hazell. Admittedly the sweet tooth is strong within Biscuit HQ, so this option was a bit of a no brainer! Here's the synopsis:
For Piglet – an unshakable childhood nickname – getting married is her opportunity to reinvent. Together, Kit and Piglet are the picture of domestic bliss – effortless hosts, planning a covetable wedding ... But if a life looks too good to be true, it probably is.
Thirteen days before they are due to be married, Kit reveals an awful truth, cracking the façade Piglet has created. It has the power to strip her of the life she has so carefully built, so smugly shared. To do something about it would be to self-destruct. But what will it cost her to do nothing?
As the hours count down to their ‘big day’, Piglet is torn between a growing appetite and the desire to follow the recipe, follow the rules. Surely, with her husband, she could be herself again. Wouldn’t it be a waste for everything to curdle now?
The Four Seasons on Netflix
An eight part series and remake of the 1981 Alan Alda cult film of the same name, The Four Seasons follows the lives of three wealthy couples in their 50s whose decades-long friendship is tested when one husband decides to divorce. What follows is a sharp and witty look at how their quarterly weekend getaways are impacted as a result.
Written, produced and starring Tina Fey, alongside Steve Carrell and Dolman Domingo, not only are we left coveting a spot on the trips, but also a snoop into their wardrobes! With half hour episodes, this is an easy weekend watch!
On
The Handmaid's Tale
We have eagerly awaited the arrival of the sixth and final series of The Handmaid's Tale, showing on both Channel 4 and Amazon Prime, slightly behind our friends in the US and Australia.
Adapted from the classic novel by Margaret Atwood, The Handmaid’s Tale is the story of life in the dystopia of Gilead, a totalitarian society in what was formerly the United States. Offred (Elisabeth Moss), one of the few fertile women known as Handmaids in the oppressive Republic of Gilead, struggles to survive as a reproductive surrogate for a powerful Commander and his resentful wife.
In the final season of The Handmaid’s Tale, June’s (Moss) unyielding spirit and determination pull her back into the fight to take down Gilead. Whilst husband Luke and best friend Moira join the resistance, Serena tries to reform Gilead while Commander Lawrence and Aunt Lydia reckon with what they have built. This final chapter is set to bring lots of tears as well as lessons in hope and courage in the face of adversity - blessed be the fruit!
Race Across The World
BBC's Race Across the World is back. Now on it's fifth series, five intrepid duos start from China's stunning Great Wall to race to a finish line in Indias Southern most tip - Kanniyakumari.
Stripped of smartphones, internet access and their bank cards, they face unprecedented challenges on a limited budget. In China, contestants will be put to the test, travelling through trailblazing cities, ancient towns and rural villages before reaching the heart of the Himalayas and the world's highest mountains. From there, they will travel south to India, taking in 13 of its 28 states- each with its own culture and landscape!
All Fours by Miranda July
From the acclaimed author of The First Bad Man comes a wry, intimate portrait of female reinvention, as a 45-year-old woman begins a new life in a nondescript motel in America:
A semi-renowned artist sets off on an ambitious cross-country drive from Los Angeles to New York. Yet, just thirty minutes after parting with her husband and child, she makes an impulsive decision to leave the freeway. She finds herself in a nondescript motel, where she embarks on a spontaneous reinvention, sparking an unexpected journey of transformation.
Miranda July's second novel, All Fours, showcases her unparalleled talent for storytelling. With her signature humour, impeccable comedic timing, and fearless exploration of human intimacy, July crafts a narrative that is both absurdly entertaining and deeply poignant. All Fours follows the quest of a 45-year-old female artist seeking a novel sense of freedom. It reimagines the sexual, romantic, and domestic dimensions of life in a way that both defies and enriches our expectations.
Department Q
One on our watch list! We have been anticipating this cop drama ever since filming took place in Edinburgh and the surrounding areas.
Dept. Q. is Netflix’s newest crime thriller based on Afdeling Q, a bestselling Nordic noir book series by Danish author Jussi Adler-Olsen. Whilst the novels revolve around a cold-case unit tackling Denmark’s most haunting unsolved crimes, the franchise, from the creator Scott Frank (The Queen's Gambit), takes on a fresh new twist.
This time, the action shifts to Edinburgh, with Matthew Goode stepping into the role of Carl Mørck, a decorated english detective leading the cold-case team. With horrors in his past, he is a notorious figure in his adopted hometown of Edinburgh and manages to get under just about everyone's skin... you don't say!
