Rhys Thomas

Dodger: the Oliver Twist prequel that's scary, starry and totally irresistible TV

This Dickens spin-off claps along like The Goonies and is so ace it's been promoted from CBBC to BBC One. No wonder Christopher Eccleston and Julian Barratt were lining up to star.

Dodger review

A boisterous and amusing drama that will get the kids into Dickens.

Oliver Twist given new spin in BBC prequel

The writers of forthcoming 10-part family adventure series Dodger say they "made a conscious effort" to put food poverty "to the fore" in their show based on the exploits of Dickens' characters the Artful Dodger and crime-lord Fagin.

Kemps doc sequel scuppered by Covid - temporarily?

Filmmaker Rhys Thomas has revealed that following the success of The Kemps: All True there were plans for a sequel, but then Covid came along.

Are Spandau Ballet's Gary and Martin Kemp the anti-Bros? Their mockumentary The Kemps: All True, written and directed by Rhys Thomas, was a knowing nod to the lovably unforgettable, occasionally rather dark, Matt and Luke Goss documentary, Bros: After the Screaming Stops, which taught the world a hard showbiz lesson: never underestimate the stupidity of Bros.

Could the Kemps' attempt at a two-man Spinal Tap be as funny with the protagonists in on the joke? The answer was yes, sprinkled with a few nos. Occasionally the jokes stuttered, and co-stars like Anna Maxwell Martin were wasted. As a vegetarian, I didn't feel offended enough by Gary's Wonge vegetarian food range that was 65% meat. However, the Kemps emerged as great sports, their acting background paid off with solid comic timing, and there was a firm grasp of rock cliches and the mockumentary style: "This is the very first time they've been back to their childhood home since their last documentary three years ago." As a side-note, Martin's film franchise idea "the hardest British bastards in the galaxy" (Daniel Mays as Dick Turpin: "Stand and deliver, you twats!") would probably work as a real pitch, and I deserve a cut for suggesting this.

The Kemps: All True review

The show packed in so many offbeat scenes that will lodge in the brain, that The Kemps: All True is surely the stuff of cult longevity. It's comedy Gold.

TV review - The Kemps: All True

This really was delightfully ridiculous and gloriously funny material, both of the Kemps were on fantastic form and Thomas assembled a superb supporting cast too, all of whom made this exceptional material consistently hilarious.