Maid for TV

Sarah and Dawn chat about Alison Hammond and our last episode (00:00) News from this month including our verdict on new presenters on veteran shows: Nigella on Bake Off and our verdict on the slightly baffling new Strictly presenting team. (06:46) Drag Rage is dragged from the BBC (14:25) Age is apparently the factor behind two wild decisions - Amazon dropping Ride or Die and Tom Jones being dropp...

Inspired by the BBC’s advertising campaign asking “What has the BBC ever done for me?” Dawn and Sarah put themselves in Romesh Ranganathan’s shoes and ask what has the BBC ever done for them. But first some news. Nicola Coughlan is killing her husband with a leg of lamb, Taskmaster is courting controversy, and Jeremy Vine’s show is under fire. (03:35) So what has the BBC done for us? (12:42) Threa...

Sarah is lusting after Scotsmen and Dawn is wheezing (01:27) Renewals of some of our faves(04:27) New shows, some with familiar IPS, including the feminist, funny Smack the Pony making a return (08:52) Final MAFS update, and we get depressed about AI, LGBTQ characters and platforms morphing into each other. (22:00) FUNDRAISER LINK FOR JAZZY: https://www.gofundme.com/f/honoring-steven-schmaneks-fin...

Slow Horses fanfiction (00:00) Dr Who News: "out for tender" is a good thing, apparently (04:08) Only Murders Goes English - Could an all-star British cast resurrect Only Murders in the Building? We’re excited for the rebrand to Someone's Only Gone and Kicked the Bucket in the Flats. (11:32) RIP the lovely Anthony Head (14:45) even a nearly perfect show can get its lesbian characters...

You wait weeks for an episode, and 2 come along at once! As a special bonus episode, Dawn and Sarah talked to Sarah's Rambling Through Eternity co-host, Eurovision expert, David Evans-Powell about this years event, the complex geopolitical situation facing Eurovision's creators - the EBU, and Britain's future in the competition. Stay connected with us: Maid for TV Instagram: @maidfortv...

Apologies for Dawn's sound quality and the belated upload. Exciting comedy recommissions from the BBC. (00:00) New Strictly presenters. (07:58) Celebrity Traitors season 2 line-up. (15:00) Married at First Sight sexual assault allegations - how to protect contestants in reality TV. (22:55) Good Omens - did the salvaged finale fulfil fans' hopes? (43:18) Our recommendations of the month: (0...

Dawn and Sarah start with the bad news of BBC redundancies, in the continuing saga of BBC issues. (03:50) TFI Friday has been rebooted for Channel 4, but who is it for? (11:24) The Pitt's cast losses leave a bad taste in the mouth (16:53) What's the verdict on SNL UK, and the current wave of shows putting British comedy in the spotlight? (21:30) Our recommendations of the month:(59:15) DTF...

(2:55) TV news - Rebooted X-Files news, a potential Lovejoy reboot and Firefly relaunch hints. And who should take over Richard Osman’s hosting duties on House of Games . (18:00) Urrgh - the BAFTAs. Our national broadcaster is front and centre of another embarrassing scandal and we’re getting pretty sick of trying to defend the BBC yet again.  (29:40) We look back on the prolific career of Victori...

(01:20) TV news: Mock the Week is back but can you find it? Surprise ratings hits from 2025 and YouTube in the ascendant. (21:00) When TV shows pick up and move, plus Sarah waxes lyrical about the charms of Brum but has to issue a tiny apology about the BBC’s efforts in the Midlands.  (27:15) The new BBC diversity report: is Aunty Beeb doing too much or not enough? Well, it depends who reports the...

Happy new-ish year!  (03:34) Christmas TV was a big fat let-down. The Maids know how to fix it and we’ll tell you what we want to see. (20:08) Three cheers for New Years Treats which both feature a malevolent presence who puppets a gang of plucky volunteers for his entertainment - Taskmaster and Stranger Things. (30:50) We recap the best TV of 2025 and why it was the year of The Traitors. (41:10)...

Dawn and Sarah detail their separate forays into TV last month. (00:00) Line of Duty is coming back, is it a good move? (08:15) Saturday Night Live UK have announced their creative team, can it match the success of the US version? (12:10) Teatime sci-fi favourite Stargate is coming back for a new generation (19:58) What's going on with BBC resignations, and who should be the next DG? (23:53) M...

We cover the big TV stories this month:  What skills and qualities do the new Strictly presenters need and who is Dawn backing for the big job? (04:00) Is it ok to get excited about Celebrity Traitors series 2 already? (17:35) And is the TARDIS stuck with the handbrake on now Disney has pulled finance? (30:27) Girlbands Forever We loved last year’s Boybands Forever BBC documentary. Can the new Gir...

(Apologies for the late drop - Dawn's fault.) (Apologies Dawn's audio - an experiment that failed) Summer is done! Autumn is here! Which means a bountiful new crop of TV to watch! We round up the new & returning shows we’re most looking forward to.  (03:00)In our semi-regular feature “What on earth is going on over there?” we take a look at the state censorship Trump & Co are tryin...

Join us for MfTV's first-ever in-person meetup, and live podcast recording in the heart of Edinburgh in the middle of the Festival. As you can imagine there is lots of background noise, but these are our unedited real-time highlights of the Edinburgh International TV Festival - an insight into the industry at this pivotal time.

Masterchef controversy: how can shows punish presenters without also punishing the contestants on their shows? (01:34) San Diego Comic Con recap: the glut of prequels and spin-offs announced at the world's biggest comic con (08:13) The Proms: The Traitors at the Proms and other "post pub" treats from the classical music feast (18:30) TV views from an 82 year old Maid: Dawn's mum...

Glastonbury v BBC: trying to make sense of this summer’s most controversial broadcast (08:25) Transaction and Pushers: TV comedy taking risks in increasingly conservative times (25:30) Thank you for being a trailblazer: The Golden Girls and how they were ahead of their time (35:46) Our recommendations of the month: (01:03:52) Based on a True Story (Sky Max and NOW) Smoke (Apple TV+) Stay connected...

News: BBC comedy commissions and savage cuts at ITV daytime (4:00) Ncuti Gatwa replaced by Billie Piper - well, yes and no. The fall-out continues from that Doctor Who episode (17:00) And, speaking of shock endings, the dangerous high-wire act of ending your series on a cliffhanger. From Mork and Mindy via My So Called Life to The Wheel of Time and how streamers force writers to keep the twists an...

To mark the end of Series 15… David Evans-Powell and Justin Hancox are here to guide us through their love for the show, tell us why the Doctor is especially beloved by LGBT+ fans and drop the knowledge about Classic Who. This is the story of our history growing up with and without the Doctor, where it fits into our family life and British culture. And we ask the big Who questions that occupy our...

TV news: stop trying to make the 90s happen! Apparently there’s no IP like an old IP. (3:00) Shocking TV deaths are not just the preserve of fantasy, thriller and sci-fi; how to do it well so your fans stay loyal and keep watching! (18:12) The rise and rise of warm & friendly competition shows. In honour of Race Across the World 2025 (BBC iPlayer) we discuss how to compete for big prizes, but...

(00:00) Sarah's catopolis (05:12) Returning shows (16:05) The Change (34:44) Adolescence and toxic masculinity (01:08:08) Recommendations We give you our hot tips for shows returning this month. The Change - wild, free and menopausal. Why Bridget Christie is our hero and Jerome Flynn is hot. Adolescence is the biggest ever UK show on Netflix. We discuss why we love it but are less enamoured of...

(00:00) Changes (04:05) Freelancer crisis (14:44) Detectives (26:59) Eastenders (50:49) Recommendations In this episode we discuss: Changes at Maid for TV More about the crisis in TV production, tough times for freelancers and the inevitable knock-on effect for diversity. Same old same old? Detectives Bergerac and Linley rebooted. And something a little bit different happening in Bradford. Eastend...

In this episode, we discuss...  In 2025 can we still find value in Neil Gaiman’s work? And we recommend the best articles to read to help you come to terms with the very serious allegations. (1:30)  Is it ok to be sad about the LA fires in terms of the loss to our collective culture and our childhood escapism as filming locations are lost to catastrophic climate change? (15:40)  Appointment TV is...

Happy 2025! Welcome to Season/Series 2 of Maid for TV (you can listen to us having *that *discussion live in this episode!). In with the new and out with the old… but not quite yet as each of your hosts reveal their top shows of 2024. That's three Top 3 lists from your TV Maids. We deliver quantity AND quality. Dawn: Shrinking, Fargo S5 and Gavin and Stacey's 2024 Christmas Special. Elaine: Shogun...

In this episode, we discuss...  Protect the talent! We (briefly) mention yet more allegations against another household name (01:00)  The Christmas Radio Times: festive nostalgia and all the shows we're looking forward to, including Top of the Pops and Bullseye! (12:30)  Boybands Forever: 90s survivors reveal their side of the story in this fascinating documentary (31:00)  And, as always, our regu...

In this episode, we discuss...  Good news for returning and recommissioned TV: are shows created by women having a moment? (01:30)  Our Algorithm Means Death: the fight against decluttering and plea for you to hang on to your physical media (08:40)  What connects SVU, Doctor Who and The Walking Dead? (25:00)  And, as always, our regular recommendations for your viewing pleasure (50:00)  Drop us a...