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Claude Chabrol’s 1978 film Violette Noziere takes its title from the name of one of France’s most notorious murderers, a young lady who poisoned her father and attempted, but failed to also murder her mother. Violette Noziere then needs no introduction, at least to a French audience. Set in 1930s Paris, this is a less than opulent presentation of the city of light. Chabrol’s city is one of backstreet tenements where working class folk aspire to better things, attempting above

Amongst the many ways murderers 'do away’ with their victims, poisoning must surely be one of the ghastliest of methods. Convulsions, vomiting, nausea, severe headache etc. – death by poisoning must be one of the slowest, most painful deaths imaginable. Hours, even days could elapse before the victim drew their last, tortured breath. What a way to go. In days of yore arsenic and strychnine could be bought over the counter. Back then, before the advances in toxicology and post

With its shots of Normandy beaches basking in warm sunshine, accompanying air of indolence and maybe just maybe the promise of erotic fulfilment in the balmy air, Francois Ozon’s Summer of 85 makes an impactful start. One is immediately reminded of Eric Rohmer’s Pauline a La Plage. So far so good. And like Rohmer’s quintessential coming-of-age drama of 1983, Ozon’s tale will also concern itself with emotional and sexual awakening. Nor would any such tale be complete without t

Note: This interview was conducted with Colin shortly before his death in car accident on 26 January 2016. “Some men are born great, some achieve greatness”, wrote Shakespeare, “and some (quoth the bard) have greatness thrust upon ‘em.” He was right of course. Take the music biz as an example. One minute it’s indifference and ingratitude down the Pig and Whistle with nought but the promise of a grope of the bassist’s sister to sustain your rock n’ roll dreams, the next minute

Interviewed by Jonathan Ross in 1991, Rula Lenska, Julie Covington and Charlotte Cornwell put the unexpected success of the 1970s series Rock Follies in which they starred down to several factors: sister’s doin’ it for themselves and also the unique format of the show. The show certainly had something – a certain Je ne sais quoi. Time for a trip down memory lane to the scorching hot year of 1976, year of the hose pipe ban, hot pants, glitter and James Hunt. Oh, what fun! Wit