I Love Television....

I suddenly realised the other day that I hadn't really watched television for some time....
not any good television anyway, the kind where you cannot wait for the next episode.
  

Like most parents, evenings are spent in a round of homework, baths, discussions & keeping up with the events of the school day.

And, of course, when you have less time, you tend to be more particular about what you spend that time on.

I gave up watching soap operas years ago & I realised the other day that whilst we have more & more channels and therefore endless programmes to watch....I do prefer watching really good quality television - and sometimes, there just seems to be nothing worthwhile on.

It did get me thinking however about how great really good television can be & that actually there is something about getting totally caught up in it that I absolutely love.

"Homeland" was probably the most recent TV programme that I felt like that about....

I was a huge "24" fan & both shows had me glued to the television, at times watching through my fingertips, sitting on the edge of my seat, talking about it to friends - and desperate for the following week's episode.

Such is the power of a great show full of characters that you can empathise with, even if you can't always identify with them. 

Jack Bauer in "24" was one such character....I loved every season of that show.

Even when he bent the rules, he was the hero that you rooted & felt for.

There is something about watching a TV series, any series sometimes....

something about watching in your own living room that connects you with it differently to going to the cinema.

Maybe it's the fact that the characters come into your home & you are able to almost develop a relationship with them, in your own mind anyway.

Most women could name you their favourite "Sex And The City" character

within seconds - as well as telling you which character they are most like.

(My answer to both questions would be Charlotte!)

The same, probably, with "Friends", we all instantly know who our favourite is (Ross). 

 Virtually impossible not to love & enjoy, "Friends" is a great example of the power of TV.

Who can't name a whole list of "favourite" episodes....it's a feel-good show that is always funny.

I've probably laughed, cried & can recite lines more from that show that any other show in my TV history.

I do think as well that certain TV shows connect you with particular times in your life, much like a song or a book does....they also connect you with people, you can bond over them.

Something I've got into over the last couple of years has been the TV boxset.

The number of evenings that I've stayed up way too late watching "just one more episode....".

It's a great, albeit it very intense, way of catching up on seasons that you've missed - my current favourites are "Private Practice" & "Grey's Anatomy".

I watched so much of both of those a couple of weeks ago, that by the time I'd finished, I had almost convinced myself that I was a doctor - or at least I could be one!!

  

 A good TV show can comfort & inspire, distract & stir your emotions like nothing else....

the saddest & most emotional moment in "ER" wasn't when George Clooney left the show, it was when Dr Mark Greene died....
in Hawaii, listening to "Over the Rainbow" on the headphones his daughter had placed on his head.

The whole episode was brilliantly directed, incredibly moving & I sobbed inconsolably.

There is something unifying about watching TV....

whether it's the Olympics, a Royal Wedding or the final episode of "Downton Abbey".

Television connects people & when it's good TV, there's really nothing quite as powerful.

Ross & Rachel...."I got off the plane"....this still brings tears to my eyes!!

Do you want to enjoy your favourite series on brand new television set? 

BrightHouse allows you to pay weekly for your TV, spreading the cost, so you can pay a little bit at a time.

This is a sponsored post but all words, thoughts & opinions are my own. All images chosen by me.