Are reality shows safe for the mentally fragile?

[Andrew Timm] No, I don’t mean the viewers! The contestants! Like poor old Susan Boyle who rose to fame in the UK thanks to Simon Cowell’s “Britain’s Got Talent” talent show; then conquered world fame thanks to YouTube; and then hit the ground unibrow-first when she came only second and had to accept that she wasn’t what all the media hype led her to believe! Did no-one see this coming?

Comments [1] [24 Nov 08:38]

Toilet humour

[Andrew Timm] Okay, toilet humour is probably the lowest form of humour, besides sarcasm, puns, and possibly SABC 3’s “Font”. But this is a true story loosely linking a toilet “situation” and television and me, so dammit, I’m going to tell it!

Comments [9] [12 Nov 11:06]

Why South African comedy is unfunny – some pointers

[Andrew Timm] I have a passion for television comedy, that little 30-minute holiday you get from your stressful day when you sit down, watch a favourite sitcom and escape into your happy place once or twice a week. But what is it that makes my toes curl with cringing embarrassment at the local fare being offered up as situation comedy?

Comments [5] [27 Oct 10:35]

Shoots and travel

[Andrew Timm] Some people love to travel to do shoots in far off and exotic locations. So do I, but I have some ground rules, and you'll nod in agreement if, like me, you're one of those people whose idea of ‘roughing it' is single-ply loo paper.

Comments [8] [16 Mar 13:47]

In the headlights

[Andrew Timm] She stood there trembling; her eyes wide and paralysed like a terror-stricken rabbit in the headlights of an oncoming 18-wheeler. As she opened her quivering lips I thought she was going to scream or perhaps projectile vomit.

Comments [4] [05 Mar 19:28]

The circle of life… and TV

[Andrew Timm] I recently turned 40. Being a milestone birthday I felt I had to re-examine my life, and my achievements (or lack thereof) in the grand scheme of things. Well, that didn’t take long – I decided that my greatest achievement was still having actual human hair on my head, and that my biggest disappointment was increasing my waistline by three sizes since I was 30 (I still hang onto eight pairs of size 32/81 trousers, convinced that I will one day wear them again.)

Comments [2] [03 Mar 09:04]