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In This Corner

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REVIEWS | A-B | C-D | E-I | J-M | N-R | S-T | U-Z | MISC


Take That... for the Record

ITV

The 5th most popular member of Take That laughed like Brian Blessed as he tried to remember if he had sexual intercourse with Lulu. "If I did I don't remember - I'm a gentleman!" - it's more likely you were stupendously pissed, Jason . "If Lulu says I've give her one and she says I was great that's fine by me". Oh I bet it is you dirty fecker.

"He's endured sex with Lulu but he also gets more ass in a month than most guys get in their life."

Success is relative. Jason is the least popular member of the most successful British band since The Beatles. He's endured sex with Lulu but he also gets more ass in a month than most guys get in their life.

Such paradoxes littered Take That... for the Record - part reflection, part reunion for the five Northern lads who shook the world with their sussed pop and dead fit arses. Marking the tenth anniversary of their split, it seemed fitting.

"He's definitely in the top three most disturbed individuals I've worked with.' And Rob's worked with crazy bastards like Kylie Minogue so you know he was wild."

It took them from early years of boot camp choreography, whipping the tubby Gary Barlow (third most popular member of Take That) into shape, through playing the gay clubs and the first TV appearances all the way through to world domination and the inevitable bust-ups that followed.

Robbie Williams, the second most popular member of Take That, had a tortured relationship with manager Nigel Martin Smith. "He's definitely in the top three most disturbed individuals I've worked with." And Rob's worked with crazy bastards like Kylie Minogue so you know he was wild. Smith seemed bemused by Williams' antipathy but Robbie insisted "I only ever wanted him to love me. That's the really sad thing. And he never did."

Robbie also had a tortured relationship with Gary Barlow. It seemed there was only room for one songwriter in the band and that had to be the more experienced Barlow. Jealousies and post-split rivalries abounded. You want to dislike Barlow, hoping he's careerist industry scum but he comes across as a nice enough lad like the rest of them. Robbie takes things awfully personally, you suspect.

"You want to dislike Barlow, hoping he's careerist industry scum but he comes across as a nice enough lad."

The shocking (ie not shocking at all) drug use was also covered. Robbie, shivering in bed because he'd been up all night with a certain international model drinking champagne and taking cocaine. In a totally unconnected story, it was revealed recently that Robbie was secretly dating Naomi Campbell for a year. Que vida.

"There was a time when I became too powerful. 'I can't be sacked now - let's do drugs''" he deadpans.

Williams is the most interesting, most successful and least happy of the group. Even by celebrity standards, he seems desperately in need of approval. His engagingly open manner set the tone for the boy band confessional.

"'I wanted to kill myself but I'm just too much of a shitbag to do it'. If only Richey Edwards had such insight."

And it was his departure which really spelled the end for the group - a crippling body blow after which they staggered on for a year but, as Mark willingly acknowledged, it never felt the same without Robbie.

When the split came it came as a relief for the boys. All except for Howard Donald, fourth most popular member of Take That, who left his hotel room to jump into the Thames. "I wanted to kill myself but I'm just too much of a shitbag to do it". If only Richey Edwards had such insight.

It was fascinating to see how the boys had spent their time since the split. Howard hasn't pursued the suicide route, preferring to record his own album "which is, in my eyes, a great album" - yep, and in Helen Keller's eyes also. "We just didn't end up releasing it " which, on the face of it, seems a curious oversight.

"Yeah alright Howard, we get the message - you're great but nobody loves you."

He showed us clips of the unreleased single "Speak Without Words" ("it was an amazing single. It really was an amazing single"). Yeah alright Howard, we get the message - you're great but nobody loves you.

Gary the Gunt has been raising a family with his wife Dawn, a former Take That dancer. He seems happy in his gigantic mansion surrounded by gold discs,oil paintings and smiling kids.

Dim-witted pretty boy Mark, most popular member of Take That, has moved to The Lakes to walk through streams and ponder how he spends all his cash. After a brief spell back in the spotlight winning Celebrity Big Brother, he's currently writing music for a film.

"He didn't mention his brief appearance as a DJ in Lynda La Plante's criminally underrated Killer Net which is a shame as I really liked that (everyone else thinks it's shite)."

Jason Orange, has been back to college to "do some courses" which I think is a capital idea. He's also done some backpacking and been pondering stuff. He didn't mention his brief appearance as a DJ in Lynda La Plante's criminally underrated Killer Net which is a shame as I really liked that (everyone else thinks it's shite).

The reunion itself felt slightly awkward with Robbie not turning up. He sent a video apologising to all the members individually - telling Howard, Mark and Jason what nice guys they are. And while he didn't go so far as to call Barlow a nice guy he apologised for calling him a crap songwriter.

Williams explained the insult by saying he had his head up his own arse at the time and wanted to be in Oasis which, as excuses go, beats the crap out of '' the dog ate my homework".

"Williams explained the insult by saying he had his head up his own arse at the time and wanted to be in Oasis which, as excuses go, beats the crap out of 'the dog ate my homework'."

Would Robbie swap all he had for The Life of Barlow? "14 Brits?" he howled "Fuck off!" before conceding "no, in all seriousness I would swap everything I have for that."

It goes to show that you can have the girls, the drugs and the acclaim but it's simple old domesticity that the lonely pop-star wants. Expect a double disc concept album on that very theme sometime soon.

The best thing about it: Candid backstage footage - for once, very revealing.

The worst thing about it: Early Barlow footage of Christmas hymn C&A pullover atrocity.

The verdict on Take That... for the Record: "Lulu was the best piece of ass I've ever had and I've had 'em all over the world. SHAZZAM!"

Marks out of 10: 7.5


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REVIEWS (cont'd)

J-M

Jericho

John From Cincinnati

Jordan and Peter: Marriage And Mayhem

Joss Whedon's Dollhouse will be the greatest television show in history

Journeyman

jPod

Keys To The Vip

The Kill Point

Kings

King Of Shaves advert

Life

The Life and Times of Tim

Life on Mars

Lip Service

Live From Studio Five

Louie

Louis Theroux - The City Addicted to Crystal Meth

Loose Women

Lost

Lost Season 2

Lost Season 3 Finale

Lost Season 3: half-term report

Lost Season 3 Premiere

Lost Season 4 Half Term report

Lost Season 6 Premiere

Lost Season 6x09 - Ab Aeterno

Lost Series Finale

Luther

Luther Series One finale

Mad Men

Mad Men Season 2

Mad Men Season 2 Finale

Mad Men Season 3 Premiere

Mad Men Season 3 Finale

Mad Men Season 4

The Madness of Boy George

Mars Believe World Cup Campaign

Man vs Wild

Martina Cole's The Take

Mary Archer

The Mentalist

Mercy Series Premiere

Michael Carroll: King Of Chavs

Misfits

The Mitchell Brothers' Return

Mock the Week

Modern Family

Mongrels

Monkey Dust

Morales v Barrera III

My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding

My Family

My Name Is Earl

My Penis And I

My Supermodel Baby

 

N-R

Nibble Nobby's Nuts adverts

Nigella

Neighbours 20th anniversary show

No Angels

No Heroics

Old Enough To Be His Mother

Oscars 2005

Only Yesterday - The Carpenters' Story

Pacific

Paradox

Party Animals

Party Down

The Persuasionists

Peaches Geldof: Teen America

Pete Burns' Cosmetic Surgery Nightmares

The Peter Serafinowicz Show

PhoneShop

The Pick-up Artist

The Pickup Artist Season 2 Premiere

Pineapple Dance Studios

Preston's Walk Out on Never Mind The Buzzcocks

Prison Break

Prison Break 2

Prison Break Season Two: half-term report

Prison Break Season Two Premiere

Prison Break Season Two Finale

Prison Break Season 4 Half Term Report

Pulling

Pulse

Pushing Daisies series premiere...

Richard and Judy

Rev

Rome Season One

S-T

Saxondale

The Secret Life of A Manic Depressive

The Secret Policemen's Ball

Seduction School: Size Doesn't Matter

Sex Addict

Seymour Butts

Shameless

Shameless Season 4

Shane

Sherlock

Sherlock series 1 finale: The Great Game

The Shield

The Shield - Season Five Finale

The Shield - Season 6

The Shield series finale

Six Feet Under

Skins

Skins Season 2

Smoking Room

Sons of Anarchy

Sons of Anarchy Season 2 Premiere

The Sopranos Season 6

Space Cadets

Spartacus: Blood and Sand

Spartacus: Blood and Sand Season One Finale

The Spy Who Stole My Life

State of the TV Nation Address

Stepkids In Love

Strike Back

Studs of Suburbia

Summer Heights High

Supernanny

Surviving Disaster

Take That... for the Record

Talk to me

Take Me Out

Ted Bundy - Natural Porn Killer

Terminator - The Sarah Connor Chronicles

The Thick Of It

The Thick of It Series 3

This Life +10

This World: Kidnap Cops

Top 30 TV Shows of 2010

Tower Block of Commons

Treme

True Stories - The Trials Of Amanda Knox

Too Ugly For Love

True Blood

True Blood Season 2 Final

TV's Naughtiest Blunders

U-Z

Unanimous

Underbelly

Undercover Princesses

Veronica Mars

Veronica Mars Season Three Half-term Report

Veronica Mars Season Two

Veronica Mars Season Three Premiere

Veronica Mars Season Three finale

A Very Social Secretary

Vexed

Weeds

Weeds Season 3

Weeds Season 4

Weeds Season 5 Finale

Weeds Season 5 Premiere

When Fearne Met Peaches

When Lineker Met Maradona

Wimbledon coverage

The Wire Season 3

The Wire, Season 4

The Wire Season 5 Premiere

The Wire Series Finale

World Cup coverage

World Cup Final 2010

The World Cup has been kidnapped and molested

World's Deadliest Gangs

Worried About the Boy

X Factor 2005

X-Factor 2007

X-Factor 2008

X-Factor 2009

MISC REVIEWS

40 Pupils Suspended For Bullying

606 with Danny Baker

Amazon Review Scum

Blowjob monologues and the like

Everything is retro, funky and kitsch on eBay nowadays

Floyd Mayweather v Carlos Manuel Baldomir

An Illustrated History of Dis

Fooled By Randomness

Hip-hop

Indie kids - munching on cock all day, every day, from now until forever

Listen up, douchebags: Larry Merchant KO1 murdering rapist hype merchant scum that constitute boxing's deal-making fight-avoiding turd elite

Love skunk Vernon Kay sprays his rat jism

Morales v Barrera III

Music Sounds Better With You(tube)

NME cool list

Playlouder Reviews

Roid Jones jnr? You must be joking, Joke

Stan Collymore

The Streets

Vertigolf

War Winehouse!

We Expose Palace Security As A Bag Of Shite