Wednesday 31 December 2008

Tom's Highly Unscientific Top Ten of 2008!

I'm building a masterpiece in my iPod, currently 21,987 items occupying 100.95 GB. FACT.

Using the highly unscientific principle of making an auto-playlist of songs listed by my iTunes as being released in the year 2008 and sorting it by number of times played, I can show my Top Ten of the year!

This is highly unscientific as my iTunes is really rubbish at recording years. For instance, both "Sunday Bloody Sunday" by U2 and "Teenage Kicks" by the Undertones were apparently released in 2008.

This list also gives songs that were released earlier in the year a greater chance of being listened to, so again... unscientific.

With all that in mind, here's what I've been listening to in 2008!

1) "You've Done It Again, Virginia" by The National
2) "A-Punk" by Vampire Weekend
3) "Dancing Choose" by TV On The Radio
4) "DLZ" by TV On The Radio
5) "Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa" by Vampire Weekend
6) "M79" by Vampire Weekend
7) "Listen To Your Body Tonight" by Black Kids
8) "Ragged Wood" by Fleet Foxes
9) "Red Dress" by TV On The Radio
10) "Campus" by Vampire Weekend

UPDATE: See the top ten in VIDEO FORM!

... and here's my current all-time Top Ten!

1) "Finer Feelings" by Spoon
2) "Easy/Lucky/Free" by Bright Eyes
3) "Don't You Evah" by Spoon
4) "Friends" by Led Zeppelin
5) "Arc Of Time (Time Code)" by Bright Eyes
6) "I Want This Cyclops" by Destroyer
7) "Suffer For Fashion" by Of Montreal
8) "Gronlandic Edit" by Of Montreal
9) "A Sentence of Sorts in Kongsvinger" by Of Montreal
10) "Neon Bible" by Arcade Fire

Now, I know it looks like I only own 6 albums, and the other 21,000 tracks are entirely useless. But I promise you, there shall come big exciting developments in the year to come.

I hope.

Tuesday 30 December 2008

Tom's Highly Unscientific Top Ten in Video Form!

1) "You've Done It Again, Virginia" by The National - This is from the Black Cab Sessions. Amazing song.



2) "A-Punk" by Vampire Weekend - The BRILLIANT Garth Jennings video.



3) "Dancing Choose" by TV On The Radio


4) "DLZ" by TV On The Radio - Someone politicised this song on YouTube! Who'd'a thunk it?



5) "Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa" by Vampire Weekend - Another splendid Richard Ayoade video for Vampire Weekend. They have some amazing videos.



6) "M79" by Vampire Weekend - A video of a live performance of M79 laughingly labelled on YouTube as "High Quality". There is also a great internet debate at the bottom of the video which goes along these lines...

Yakslipper: "Quit declaring "high quality" when your recordings are god awful."

blinkuhx3 (the poster): "you don't have to watch them. most of them are good. i like consistency. and currently, i possess freedom of speech."

Yakslipper: "Freedom of speech works both ways. And, by the way, the quality is very bad."

Dudes! Let's agree to disagree!



7) "Listen To Your Body Tonight" by Black Kids - A dramatic reading of this song. I think it gets the mood across.



8) "Ragged Wood" by Fleet Foxes - The wonderful Carleton Singing Knights of Carleton College in Northfield, MN take on this lovely song.



9) "Red Dress" by TV On The Radio - A fairly shonky live version of the funkiest song on "Dear Science,".



10) "Campus" by Vampire Weekend - Amber Kipp made a version of this song with a Bob Dylan vibe. WINNER!




EXTRA BONUS VIDEO!

Great live version of Spoon's "Finer Feelings"! A wonderful song that I can't rave about enough!

Saturday 20 December 2008

TomCast - While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks By Night

Listen in to Tom Wateracre's festive "reimagining" of While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks By Night! Now featuring a lot more stuff about deckchairs.






Direct download (right click, save target as):- http://wateracre.jellycast.com/files/audio/TomWateracreShepherds.mp3
Raw feed:- http://wateracre.jellycast.com/podcast/feed/2

Wednesday 17 December 2008

TomCast - Episode One - Polite Club

Join me for the inaugural TomCast! Featuring highlights from "Pegabovine: Polite Club", the 2008 Edinburgh show. Recorded by Damian Robertson.






Direct download (right click, save target as):- http://wateracre.jellycast.com/files/audio/TOMCAST1.mp3
Raw feed:- http://wateracre.jellycast.com/podcast/feed/2

Wateracre on Kermode & Mayo

I had the very great pleasure of having a letter read out on last Friday's Kermode & Mayo podcast. If you didn't hear it, here it is...




Spot my fliers of the future saying "That's good!" - Mark Kermode.

I used to avidly wait for Kermode's Cult Movie Corner on the old Mark Radcliffe Radio 1 show, and even encouraged my friend Tony Devey to do a Cult Cellar slot on our student radio show.

Big honour, then. Do subscribe to their podcast. It is great.

Wednesday 10 December 2008

Nine Comedians And Carols

Very excited to take part in Nine Comedians & Carols on Saturday organised by Paul Kerensa (he's a big fan of Roxette), and featuring myself, Tim Vine, Miranda Hart, Jo Enright, Jude Simpson, Girl and Dean, and probably some other people showing up. (I worked that out as I've only listed eight people.) It's at St Johns Stoke, Guildford, and it might be sold out. I'm finding it difficult to check that.

I'm doing a silly version of "While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks By Night". I'll record it and stick it on my website soon, along with my traditional Christmas song about the 21st of December, as written a while ago for the Faultless & Torrance Xmastraveganzera.

I Was In A Film

Hello there -

I was in a film last Friday for my friend Geraldine Geraghty, who previously directed me in her short film Golf Sale. It's called "Me, Me, Me", or at least was called that at the time of filming. It looks like it's going to be funny and dark and delightful, so I will keep you updated of when it's completed and where it's going to be shown.

Whilst filming it in a very hot yoga studio, I had one of those horrible experiences where you say to someone "I recognise you from somewhere", and then you realise it's because they have a regular role in Pulling.

I haven't done yoga for many years, probably since university. It's one of the great joys of a artsy-fartsy drama degree that you get to do yoga and roll around on mats with over-excitable Danes. Not that I think you could call this filmed yoga actual yoga. It was half an hour of pretending to do yoga. I didn't even get to bust out my impeccable lotus position or nuffink. Still, I felt like my chakras had been properly... uh... vented by the end of it.

Monday 8 December 2008

Brighton Gig Cancelled

The Brighton gig tomorrow is cancelled, unfortunately, so apologies Brightonians, you've got to wait. Apparently the gig that I was booked on has had two nights of splendid entertainment, both of which have been poorly attended, so another comedy night bites the pebble beach, so to speak.

Speaking of Brighton's delightful pebble beach, it's worth checking out my friend Dave Holby in a mankini in this terrifying yet compelling video. It's on the website Videojug which I used to work for as a researcher, and sometime actor, as you'd know if you've ever had low self esteem, recurring dreams, or bad breath. We made many videos very very fast, hundreds of them a week, although the website has recently apparently been shedding staff almost as quickly. A shame. Mind you, I don't miss their lifts.

More news on the film I was in on Friday to come, as well as some audio delights in time for Christmas. Hooray!

Thursday 4 December 2008

wateracre dot co dot uk

Hello there -

As you can see, www.wateracre.co.uk is now coming together. Various plans for the site, but in the meantime, enjoy my new Twitter account on the right of the homepage. Feel free to follow me if you're already on Twitter.

There's also a gig list on the right, with details of forthcoming gigs, including Nine Comedians and Carols in Guildford with Paul Kerensa, Tim Vine, Miranda Hart, Girl and Dean and others, and the very exciting prospect of Totally Looped in 2009 to look forward to.

Also check out my reviews archive, featuring reviews of films, theatre and other things, written for CultureWars and other august publications.

Thanks for stopping by!

Thursday 20 November 2008

New website coming soon

Hello there. Tom Wateracre here.

I'm mashing my website like a swede and remodelling it into a brand new whizzy website which will encompass all areas of my life. Well, not all areas, just the interesting ones.

That will mean that it will look a bit messy round here for a bit. Please hang on, as normal - if not actively better - service will be resumed soon.

Hooray!

Monday 10 November 2008

Act/React: The King Of Spain

I made a new half-hour show for the lovely people at Upstart Theatre on the 10th November, and they were kind enough to put some video highlights up on YouTube. Here they are, for your delectation!







Friday 24 October 2008

About Tom Wateracre

Tom Wateracre is a comedian, actor, writer and songwriter, based in London, England.

He was born at the tail-end of the Seventies, in Surbiton, Surrey, an area emerging from the horrible shadow of The Good Life. A childhood of introspection and isolation produced a man of oblique talent - with a fascination for the smaller peccadillos of interpersonal behaviour. And also of battles between alien spacecraft.

He got into acting in his teenage years, which were regularly described by onlookers as "difficult". Whilst attending the University of Exeter, he ran a fortnightly comedy sketch show with the other founder members of what was to become Pegabovine.

Pegabovine's first post-university show The Freudian Slip won two awards at the National Student Drama Festival in 2003, including the Festgoer's Prize for most popular play.

Wateracre took part in Pegabovine's two Edinburgh Fringe shows - "The Slush Pile" (2006) and "Coat Of Arms" (2007) - before taking the reins for 2008's "Polite Club", a one-man show of songs and sketches.

With Pegabovine, he has also appeared on Radio 4's 28 Acts In 28 Minutes, and on the BBC's Edinburgh YouTube channel. Pegabovine's podcast House Of Mirth is produced by Tom from the comfort of his home-studio-slash-bedroom.

He has deputised for both the Penny Dreadfuls (Brighton Comedy Festival, White Mischief, Edinburgh Bongo Club) and Potted Potter (Big Brother's Little Brother - C4).

His writing has appeared on BBC7's "Tilt", and he was long-listed for the BBC's "Witty & Twisted" competition. He is currently completing his first original screenplay.

He has worn glasses since the age of two, and was almost killed at age 27 by a pie.

He wears the soles of shoes down to a smooth finish in about three months.

He shops for food like his six-year old self would (lots of jelly babies and ice cream).

He welcomes you to his website.


Tom can also be found on Spotlight, Casting Call Pro, IMDB, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Noostar, MusicalComedy...

Thursday 23 October 2008

Voice, Voice Overs and Voice Acting

I am an actor, comedian, singer and voice actor. I have appeared on BBC Radio 4 and Channel 4, as well as on self-produced podcasts for this website and for Pegabovine. I have also recorded voicework for ILEX (Institute of Legal Executives), the National Student Drama Festival, Kulture Vulture Films, and did two years of music-based shows on Xpression FM.

Here are some samples of my voicework. Either download or listen using the available players. I am available for voiceovers and voice work by emailing me at the contact address on your right.

Voice Reel (1:42) - Download




Longer sample of "Leaving Microsoft To Change The World" by John Wood (1:04) - Download




Longer sample of "Henry V" (2:50) - Download





See also my profile at Voices.com.

Wednesday 22 October 2008

Reviews

Here's a collection of some of the reviews I've written for publication and for fun.

For types of reviews, click the links below:-

Theatre
Film
Live Music
Albums
TV
Experiences

Monday 20 October 2008

What People Say About Tom

"Charm personified... If Wateracre was wearing a cap, you could be sure he'd doff it to passing ladies." - Chris McCall, Fest Magazine, "Polite Club" review

"Top-quality musical material... the confidence of a natural performer." - Ashley Davies, The Scotsman, "Polite Club" review

"Hugely likeable" - Alexandra Hilliard, Three Weeks, "Polite Club" review

"Wateracre gave a subtle and mature comic performance as the eccentric and repressed Kenneth which ought to have the RSC battering at his door, if that's what he would like." - Julia Chamberlain, Chortle, "The Slush Pile" review

"Every scene is stolen by the third sibling, Quentin (Wateracre)... Wateracre seems to carry the spirit of Graham Chapman, undermining the authority figure he cuts with a self-destructive, devil-may-care mischief." - Steve Bennett, Chortle, "Coat Of Arms" review

Monday 8 September 2008

Big Brother's Little Brother

Due to Jeff sadly having to go on holiday, I deputised for him when Potted Potter appeared on Big Brother's Little Brother. I met Zezi and everything!

Thursday 10 January 2008

Casino Royale (a long time after everyone else has seen it)

Whilst reading about Gemma Arterton (I promise you, I am in no way obsessed by her delightful pointy nose and Uma Thurman bob), I came across an article about her in the new Bond film which had a spoiler warning.

It then said "Although, if you're reading an article about Bond 22 without having seen 'Casino Royale', you're an enormous internet geek who learns about the plots and characters of films from Wikipedia or Empire Online and not by actually seeing the films in question. Saddo. Get out more." I'm paraphrasing.

It was pretty shocking to realise, then, that I hadn't seen "Casino Royale". Despite being a Bond fan, despite my exciting fortnight working in the EON props archive, despite what everyone said about it, I still hadn't seen it.

Well, now I have.

If you haven't seen it, this review isn't going to be much help to you, but here's a cursory run-through of the plot. (Don't worry, there's not much plot in this film.) James Bond is, like, just some dude who kills two people and then instantly becomes an impassionate, cold-blooded killer. He does some running around, is in the Evening Standard, gets told off, goes to the Bahamas, annoys some guy, wins this guy's car at cards and sleeps with his wife. The guy is working for another, more mean guy, who has a scarred face. Now, this new guy is evil. The only tears he cries are tears of BLOOD, ffs! He likes playing cards and being evil, and so invites people to play cards and maybe a little evil on the side and Bond turns up to play some cards and see just how evil this guy is. By this point, there's an accountant with Bond, who is a hot chick (who'd have thought...). He plays some cards, beats up some guys, plays some cards, gets beaten up, plays some cards, gets poisoned, dies, comes back to life, plays some cards and then wins. The lady accountant is upset by all the beatings for about thirty seconds, then gets over it. Bond and lady then get captured, and the evil, blood-weeping guy plays Flicksies with Bond's testicles. Bond is hurt pretty bad, but when he wakes up, he decides that he is TOTAWWY IN WUV with the accountant. Then some stuff happens with some other dudes who aren't related to the weepy-blood guy, there's a big finish, and a smarmily self-referential coda.

I'm not quite sure what I was expecting, but for the first ten minutes I sat there thinking "this is just like a Bond film!" It didn't feel as dramatically different as I was led to believe. They had that goofy incorporation of the gun barrel logo, and another pretentious title sequence. The parkour stunt sequence, running up the crane, fighting on the crane, falling off the crane, is bloody great. After that point, it kind of waffled on for about an hour, batting off embarrassing cameos from Richard Branson and, uh, Gunther von Hagens and doesn't really pick up until Eva Green turns up, with her smokey eyes and smirky face. I liked her in this a lot, despite the fact that - as my housemate pointed out - her relationship with Bond is pretty stupid.

My main criticism of Daniel Craig as James Bond is that sometimes director Martin Campbell shoots him in darkened rooms and in the half-light, he looks exactly like Ray Stubbs.



Because Craig looks enormous. When he first tries on his dinner jacket, prancing around a hotel room, he looks like Bongo, the bouncer from the Ink & Paint Club in "Who Framed Roger Rabbit". He is clearly exceptionally muscled, as the scene in the dinky pants shows (ladies), and after forty years of a lithe Bond (apart from in "A View To A Kill", ho ho), it's quite weird to see not a gentleman killer, but a killer - like someone cast Ricky Hatton as James Bond. Bond has always been the physical underdog - think of the look on Connery's face as he sized up Oddjob. Or Moore being pounded on the head by the massive hands of Jaws. In the exhilarating parkour sequence, the villain is the leapy, sproingy lightweight, and Bond is the hulking oaf literally running through walls. And what's painful is that Craig is clearly an intelligent actor, but the script requires him to be "a blunt object". He's a thug. Maybe the theory behind the progression of this "reboot" of Bond is that, over time, Craig slims down, becoming more like the Bond we know.

(Incidentally, rather than the Bourne films, I realised whilst watching it that my enjoyment of the Bond films has probably spilled into my love of "Spooks", and I then realised that Bond should probably be played by Rupert Penry-Jones.)

Tonally, the film's a bit like watching "The World Is Not Enough" whilst someone occasionally kicks you in the head (or plays Flicksies with your testicles). The imported grittiness feels jarring, and the humour (obviously from the flamboyant purple quills of Neil Purvis and Robert Wade) doesn't sit well with the lunk they've asked Craig to be. Then there's the much-vaunted contribution of Paul Haggis, a man whose origins creating kindly-mountie cop-fluff "Due South" I will bring up every time I speak of him. I loathed "Crash", and all the cloying dialogue late in the game about how Bond has "no armour… you've stripped it from me" is textbook Haggis. Craig even speaks Haggis's dialogue with the same enormous significance as they did in "Crash" - like there's a lump of coal in his mouth, and if he gently spits it out, Tiny Tim will be warm this Christmas.

It should also be mentioned that this film is really damned long. It's two hours and twenty-four minutes. Like I said, other than the parkour chase, the opening hour is all faff, and it's only once Eva Green plonks herself unceremoniously into the seat opposite Bond on the train to Montenegro that the film hunkers down and focuses. The love story doesn't work because it is fluffy and vague - Bond has been established as a cold-hearted rogue who clearly just wants to jump Green's bones, and we're supposed to believe that, after the Flicksies, Bond genuinely is in love. It's nonsense, and again jars with the smart-arse toughnut they've spent the previous two hours setting up. And then they go all Tracy in "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" with the end of the film, which hopefully sets up Bond 22's excoriating examination of Bond's misogyny… it was all Eva Green's fault! Damned women! Can't trust them as far as you can throw them down a lift-shaft!

I absolutely agree that the franchise needed a re-think after "Die Another Day", which was the frothiest piece of nonsense the Bond films have ever thrown up. The good news is that "Casino Royale" doesn't have an invisible car or Toby Stephens playing the son of a North Korean general, or Halle bloody Berry. The bad news is that the weaker writing aspects of the Purvis/Wade era are exacerbated by Paul Haggis schmaltzification, and together they have contrived to make Bond a step away from being played by The Rock. Where "Batman Begins" provided an origin movie which showed the raw potential of a man being shaped into a hero, here Bond is a lump of clay, and remains a lump of clay. The hope is that Daniel Craig's Bond continues to develop over the next couple of films into something a little… well… Bondier.

The website of Tom Wateracre

About Me

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London, United Kingdom
Writer, Screenwriter. Born in the late Seventies. Likes marzipan.