The undead walk again

CHANNEL HOPPING
AS Egg woke from his slumber, I couldn’t help but think, man that must have been some drip he was on in the hospital. Weeks in hospital, without any food, without water and he can still get up and walk around.

He doesn’t even seem to need the toilet. I am not an expert in medical matters but everyone is a bit stiff and sore if they have been sick in bed for a few days, so I can only imagine how you’d be if you were stuck in bed for anything up to a month. Of course, no timeline was provided, so it was hard to gauge exactly how long he was out for.
That minor criticism aside, The Walking Dead is a great addition to the winter programming schedule. The programme is based on the monthly black and white American comic of the same name. However, it bears an uncanny resemblance to the British film 28 Days Later which starred our very own Cillian Murphy and was directed by the wonderful Danny Boyle.
The virus in the film was known as the ‘rage’ and was caused by animal activists who broke into a laboratory. However, in this programme and in the graphic novel which is the inspiration for it, the reason behind the zombie-creating virus is not known and nor is the timeline.
However, both projects track the demise of a country (this time the US) torn apart by violence and senselessness and a group of people desperate to survive.
The programme, which started on FX last Friday night at 10pm, highlights the talents of the young British actor Andrew Lincolin, who will forever be known in my mind and therefore this column as Egg from This Life. He also starred in Teachers and of course was the gallery worker suffering from an extreme case of unrequited love for Kiera Knightley in Love Actually. You know the guy, standing in the snow with the hand written signs, with the stereo pretending to be singing carols and professing his undying love for his best mate’s wife. Tragic!
Anyway, he gets shot and wakes up to find the world has suffered a zombie apocalypse. Dazed, confused but not in need of any lavatory facilities he takes to the streets in order to get home and find his wife. He is befriended by a young man and his son who have not yet fled as the man’s wife has become a zombie and let’s just say, they are having a small bit of trouble letting go.
From there, Egg, who just happens to be the local sheriff’s deputy, suits up Eastwood–style, ten-gallon hat and a sack-load of rifles and rides his horse (yes, horse) into Atlanta, only to discover it too has become a zombie playground. Following a few near-death experiences, he finally takes refuge in a tank, presumably left behind by the military who seem to have joined the zombies, with nothing but his wits and a voice on the radio offering help, albeit in a rude way.
Despite the plot being very much like all previously told zombie stories, it is very entertaining. It may have something to do with the fact that we already know what zombies can do, how they are a bit thick, can be out run and won’t really do anything if you just get the hell away from them, shoot them or bash them in the head. It’s comforting to know what we’re dealing with but it’s the way the scenes are shot that makes it stand out and the dialogue isn’t half bad either. It’s more like a really good drama than a horror. I say this because I find horror to be vacuous, pointless pieces of filming – Let me qualify that, most horrors made nowadays are nothing more than shiny slasher flicks aimed to shock rather than scare.
This, on the other hand, has genuine suspense created by the pacing and cinematography. The fact that it is filmed in the south of the US helps also as there is something a little eerie about that particular geographical location. Anyway, it’s definitely worth a look, if for no other reason than for the musical score which beautifully frames the shots and messes with the viewers emotions. Watch it on Friday nights on FX at 10pm.
So we have said goodbye to Jack Duckworth in a moving tribute to his past years on Coronation Street. The actor ended his time on the soap by having a dance with the ghost of his wife and then sitting down in his chair for the last time. However, in true soap fashion, he didn’t leave without first having a good heart-to-heart with the son he wished he had and his girlfriend knowing that Kevin is the father of the baby. So although he went peacefully, he has left a volcano of destruction behind ready to explode.
One to watch: The Zoo on Tuesday, Novmeber 9 at 8pm on ITV. This three-part documentary goes behind the bars of London Zoo, the world’s oldest zoo. It looks at the lives of the staff and the animals. It’s been over 10 years since the TV cameras were allowed access and the stories begin with that of Gorilla keeper Dan Simmonds, who gave up a lucrative life as a City Trader to work with the animals.