It’s that time of year again, when I realise I stopped tracking my favourite entertainment in March and try desperately to remember my favourite content of the year. It doesn’t have to be published in 2024, but that’s when I indulged in it for the first time. This is my top entertainment of 2024.
2024 came out swinging, with the first novel I read becoming my favourite book of the year. However, a lot of my entertainment was rewatching TV shows (insert your own joke about comfort TV). Turns out ER is as good as I remember, Gilmore Girls never gets old, Community will always have a place in my heart and Brooklyn 99 will always go on when I don’t know what to watch. (RIP Captain Holt, you will always be adored.)
Overall, TV and podcasts dominated the year. Luckily, it was a great year for both. Myy Disney+ account and my Pocket Casts app were worth their weight in gold. Anyway, enough of the hinting, let’s get stuck into my top entertainment of 2024.
Top Entertainment of 2024 – Books
Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabriella Zevin
Sam and Sadie became childhood friends by playing computer games in hospital. Although they drift apart, a chance meeting and their passion for gaming brings them back together. Instead of just playing games, now they’re studying to create them too. As their talents grow, their relationship progresses from friends to business partners. Together they work through romantic relationships, illness, success, failure and a crime that changes them both forever.
I could not get enough of this book and was genuinely a little bereft when I finished it. Sam and Sadie’s relationship is one I don’t see often enough in entertainment. Platonic love. They are best friends, divided by life’s difficulties and shame. I wish I’d written a review of this back in January ’24 as I’m sure I could’ve written something far more insightful. Simply put, I adored this book. So much so that I downloaded the audiobook version as soon as I finished reading it, just so I could enjoy it in a different format.
The gaming industry makes a great setting for this story but no gaming knowledge is needed to enjoy this sweeping story of friendship and conflicting ideals. Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow has been out for a few years so it’s already won a ton of prizes, all truly deserved. If you take one recommendation away from this list, please make it this; you won’t be disappointed.
The List by Yomi Adegoke
Ola has what most people consider a picture-perfect life. Her work as a journalist is getting the attention of all the right people and has made her a minor celebrity. She’s also about to walk down the aisle and marry her fiancé Michael. All is going great… until Michael’s name appears on ‘The List’.
The list is an online collection of anonymous allegations of abusive men in positions of power. As a high-profile women’s journalist, Ola is expected to investigate and comment on this breaking story. With her colleagues unaware that her fiancé’s name is on the list, she’s pressured to get to work. As she begins to investigate the origins of the list, Ola is torn between believing women and trusting the man she’s about to marry.
Written in short, compelling chapters, The List is a gripping novel that had me hooked from the first few pages. Packed full of ethical dilemmas, I really felt for Ola and the awful position she’s placed in. I genuinely struggled to put this book down and I can’t wait to see how the forthcoming TV adaptation is handled. The List was the perfect book to pull me out of a mid-year reading slump and has me very excited for whatever Yomi Adegoke writes next.
The Circle by Dave Eggers
After getting hired by The Circle, Mae can see her whole life turning around. Both she and her family can use their healthcare, and she can stay in their luxury apartments on their futuristic campus in California. She’ll be proud to tell people she works for the biggest internet company in the world.
But as Mae settles into her new role, the pressure of being a perfect employee begins to wear her down. Alongside her work, she’s meant to participate in countless social activities, react and post online almost constantly and be socially and ethically responsible at all times. As her work/life balance begins to disappear, her nearest and dearest suffer the consequences.
Dave Eggers’ Circle is an unsettling look at what could happen if companies like Amazon and Google combined to become an overarching global internet power. He amplifies the potential pitfalls of social media and highlights the often real ways work pressures people to spend their ‘free time’.
Parts of The Circle were so familiar to me in real life that it made me more uncomfortable than any horror I read this year. We can all relate to the pressure of a constantly pinging phone and the demand for immediate contact. However, the way Eggers describes Mae’s growing responsibilities and claustrophobia is palpable.
The Circle was my first Dave Eggers novel and it’s definitely piqued my interest in his work. If you have recommendations from his back catalogue, please let me know in the comments.
The Chaos Machine: The Inside Story of How Social Media Rewired Our Minds and Our World by Max Fisher
I’m cheating slightly with this choice but stick with me…
The Chaos Machine provides a clear and factual account of how we got to where we are with social media. While I felt reasonably educated on this subject, Max Fisher reveals ‘behind the scenes’ events within the businesses and how they influenced what the public could, allowing readers a deeper understanding. His easy-to-follow timeline of events and technology makes for captivating, if not terrifying reading.
I haven’t finished this book yet (that’s the cheating I mentioned earlier), but it has been one of my most thought-provoking and important reads of 2024. Fisher’s writing has increased my awareness of time spent on social media and encouraged me to step away more often. Even though it can be heavy, The Chaos Machine is vital reading and an education we should all be privy to.
Top Entertainment of 2024 – TV
Fallout (Prime)
More than 200 years after the Great War of 2077, generations of families live in underground vaults, hiding from the nuclear wastelands above. On a mission to find her father, Lucy goes against everything she’s ever known and leaves the tranquillity of her vault. On the surface she meets various people and monsters, never knowing who to trust or what could be around the next corner.
Although I’m not a gamer, I was well aware of the Fallout franchise and the popularity of the games. When the TV series was released on Prime at the beginning of the year, I thought the trailer looked fun but didn’t hold my breath. You might also think my brief description of the plot above could sum up many sci-fi or fantasy tales…and you wouldn’t be wrong.
However, Fallout ended up being one of my favourite series of the year, and when looking for something similar, I found it hard to find anything as fun. Ella Purnell was great as the lead character Lucy, but Walton Goggins stole the show as The Ghoul. Thankfully there’s another series on the way, hopefully soon.
Silicon Valley (Now)
Set in the world of tech startups, Richard creates a compression algorithm in an app he calls Piper Piper that could be worth a fortune. On his first step to tech fame, he employs a business incubator team to prepare his app for launch. Across fifty-three episodes, the crew codes, pitches, employs, fires, sells, thrives and fails.
Yeah, I know this show ended in 2019, but prior to 2024, I’d only watched sporadic episodes here and there. And damn I was missing out. Six seasons were nowhere near enough; I could’ve binged on this story all year and been as happy as a pig in the proverbial. Silicon Valley is whipsmart, bleak, fast-paced and had me laughing out loud throughout.
Shogun (Disney+)
Set in the 17th century, British sailor John Blackthorne is captured by the Japanese leader, Toranaga. Although he plans to use John as a bargaining tool, he soon discovers his foreign knowledge could help his struggle for power. To assist with the language barrier, Toranago orders Lady Mariko to serve as John’s ongoing translator. As one of the few people he can communicate with, the relationship between John and Lady Mariko grows. Soon, John has his own position of power within Toranaga’s community and not everyone likes it. However, he’s never allowed to forget that his life is in Toranaga’s hands.
You’d have to live under a rock not to have heard of Disney’s Shogun this year. I imagine you’ll find it on 99% of the 2024 roundups, and with good reason. I don’t often get drawn into historical dramas easily but Shogun was a wonderful exception. Visually stunning, superbly acted and completely immersive, Shogun is an incredible series that I’ll definitely be re-watching. Hopefully they can keep up the momentum for the next series.
Fargo – Season 5 (Amazon Prime)
Although hinted at being based on a true story, season 5 of Fargo is purely fictional. Set in 2019, Minnesota, housewife Dot is arrested for accidentally tasering a police officer at her daughter’s PTA-style meeting. This inadvertently causes her secret past to come back to haunt her. Soon Dot is on the run with several different factions after her, some with better intentions than others.
I had high hopes from the off with season 5 of Fargo thanks to an attention-grabbing cast. Juno Temple shined in the lead as Dot, and it was nice to see her in something meatier and more physical than the only other role I’d seen her in, as Keeley Jones in Ted Lasso. Jon Hamm also makes a fabulous baddie, someone you can truly love to hate.
Fargo tells a different story with each series and they have had their ups and downs over the years. I’m happy to say this is up there with the best.
Abbott Elementary (Disney+)
Abbott Elementary is a sitcom mocumentary following the faculty of a financially struggling elementary school in Philadelphia. Janine Teagues is a passionate young teacher who leads the show, closely followed by her fellow educators, feckless principal and mysterious janitor. Janine is on a constant mission to bring out the best in her students while battling cutbacks and attempts to undermine the school by the local private elementary.
I decided to watch Abbott Elementary after seeing it being shortlisted for several comedy awards, but I hadn’t had anyone recommend it to me, so I wasn’t overly committed. The first season felt like it was unashamedly trying to recreate The Office magic, with a very similar setup of relationships, mocumentary style and even in the editing. However, I’m glad I carried on watching as I thought it really found its feet in the second and third seasons. Once I finished the third season (I still haven’t managed to watch the fourth), I found myself missing the characters and wanting more. As the last episode I watched ended on a romantic cliffhanger, I hope the potential resolution of the ‘will they/won’t they’ storyline doesn’t lead to the fourth season falling flat.
We Are Lady Parts (Channel 4)
When strait-laced student Amina is recruited to become the guitarist of the Muslim female punk band, Lady Parts, she needs to get over her stage fright, hide their music from her family and hope her ‘mean girl’ friends don’t find out.
We Are Lady Parts was easily my favourite UK comedy of the year (although it was first screened in 2021). Punk is the perfect platform for this group of incredible ladies who all have something to be angry about. Whether it’s family pressures, pointless dates, societal expectations or educational stresses, they all have their problems. Music brings this unlikely band together and it makes for fun, heart-warming viewing while balancing that out with enough bleak humour to keep me watching. I really hope there’s more to come from this series in the future.
Hacks (Amazon Prime)
Once revered comedy starlet Deborah Vance needs to revitalise her stale boomer humour before returning to the comedy circuit and prepping for her next big show. To revitalise her act, she employs an anxious young comedy writer, Ava. After researching Deborah’s history, Ava is inspired to meet one of the first ladies of comedy but isn’t fully prepared for the reality of working with someone who isn’t ready to change.
Although I’ve seen Hacks promoted as a comedy, I would describe it as a drama with funny parts. Several moments are incredibly bleak (and that’s coming from me!) Although I really enjoyed this series, I didn’t fall in love with it immediately as I got the impression it was a sitcom-style comedy. Once I’d shaken that idea, I devoured all three seasons. The relationship between Deborah and Ava makes for compulsive viewing. Both of them have plenty of vices and are selfish in their own ways. While Deborah is more in control of the relationship due to her experience and as the employer, Ava doesn’t hold back when she gets a chance. If you’re a fan of beautifully written, messy, complicated characters that aren’t always likeable but give you plenty to think about, I think you’ll enjoy this series as much as I did.
Top entertainment of 2024 – Movies
Bottoms (Amazon Prime)
PJ and Josie are struggling through high school as unpopular lesbians, desperate for acceptance and a little bit of romance. When a rumour circulates that they spent the holidays in a juvenile detention centre, their popularity suddenly skyrockets. They take the opportunity to cash in on their newfound notoriety (and an ongoing feud with another school) and provide a women’s self-defence class. Or more accurately, a women’s fight club. Soon they’re popular, dating and the girls in the club are more confident than ever. But with the jocks out to undermine them, can the lie about their criminal record ever remain a secret?
Bottoms is a classic coming-of-age story for the modern day. The premise (lying to girls to get close to them – don’t worry, this is fully addressed) isn’t new, but it’s handled in a super fun, self-aware way. The characters are all a little over the top and loveable, making them memorable and perfect for a fun watch with true heart. I’d been craving a fun, rewatchable comedy since falling for Booksmart several years ago and Bottoms is it.
Suzume (Netflix)
When teen orphan Suzume sees a young man walking along the quiet street on her journey to school, his looks and demeanour grab her attention. Later, while in class, she sees clouds of smoke no one else can see, billowing from an abandoned resort and goes to investigate. There, she finds the man from earlier, Souta, struggling to close a door where all the smoke is coming from, so she helps him to push it closed.
Souta tells her he’s a “Closer”, someone trusted to find and lock doors across Japan to stop a supernatural force causing earthquakes. As Suzume begins to understand, a mystic cat turns Souta into a child-sized three-legged chair. Still sentient and able to move (well, jiggle about), Souta must continue his mission as a chair, now with Suzume’s help.
I love some anime but I do find it a minefield. After devouring Attack on Titan years ago, I was recommended a ton of series packed with violence against women, SA and similar themes I have less than no interest in consuming. (Don’t get me started on the first episode of Dandandan on Netflix. I read several reviews and none mentioned the violence and SA towards women that is a major theme of the first episode.) If you’re similarly minded to me, you’ll appreciate the fact there’s nothing in Suzume that would warrant a trigger warning. Unless you find a girl crushing on a chair offensive I guess.
If you like the premise of this, I don’t think you can go wrong. I’ve found there are two types of people; the ones who love this idea and those who think it’s too silly and dismiss it completely. The latter are seriously missing out as this is some visually stunning fantasy escapism. I watched it for the first time when I was sick at home and could only really move from the sofa to bed and back again. It was perfect comfort viewing.
If you’re a fan of Studio Ghibli works such as My Neighbour Totoro or Kiki’s Delivery Service, I think you’ll enjoy this as much as I did.
Late Night with the Devil (Shudder via Amazon Prime)
This documentary-style movie uncovers the long-lost recording of a 70s late-night chatshow. The Halloween episode of Night Owls, hosted by Jack Delroy was an urban legend until the video was found.
After Jack’s first guest, a psychic medium, becomes violently sick during the interview, he abruptly moves on to the main guest. Thirteen-year-old Lilly D’Abo believes she is possessed by a demonic spirit and wants to prove it. As communication with Lilly’s possessor begins, the participants and live audience witness something they never could have predicted.
Late Night with the Devil is a truly gripping horror that I’d happily recommend to anyone who enjoys the genre. I find that good horror can be decimated by a bad ending, but this was fast-paced, never let up and had a very satisfying conclusion. There is some ambiguity towards the end and I’ve heard differing views about the final scenes, but all are very positive. I won’t go into my opinion as that’s spoiler territory, but if you want a solid horror with incredible acting, great effects and a unique style, this is it.
Top entertainment of 2024 – Podcasts
Thing Fell Apart (Season 2)
The first season of Jon Ronson’s Things Fell Apart was one of my highlights of 2022. Probably because of that, I didn’t listen to the second season right away. What if it didn’t live up to my now ridiculously high expectations?! Thankfully, my protective pessimism was misplaced. The second season of Things Fell Apart is just as impactful as the first.
Set within the recent pandemic years, Jon Ronson researches the truth behind some of the strangest stories that had a huge social impact during lockdown. Why was the family on a Twilight-themed holiday run out of a small American town? How was a Ted Talk used as punishment? And how did a story about litterboxes in classrooms for students identifying as cats begin?
Ronson speaks to the people behind the stories to find the humanity behind the headlines. So many of these stories begin with fear, misunderstanding or shame and every episode can fill you with as much hope as the misinformation fills you with despair. If only all journalists took inspiration from Ronson’s work and looked for the humanity behind the headlines; but I digress.
Things Fell Apart continues to be one of my favourite podcasts of all time and continues to solidify the admiration I have for Jon Ronson’s work.
Pop Culture Happy Hour
National Public Radio (NPR) produces several podcasts I enjoy. They include Book of the Day, Up First, Tiny Desk and TED Radio Hour. However, Pop Culture Happy Hour is my current favourite by far. Pop culture is so vast and with a multitude of streaming services, there’s no way to keep up with it all. Thankfully, Pop Culture Happy Hour drops five episodes a week to keep you informed. Running between 15–30 minutes long, they review the latest movies, TV series, documentaries, albums or books. Approximately once a week, they’ll also do a ‘…and what’s making us happy’ episode, where reviewers share their entertainment highlight of the week. I love this segment as it allows them to highlight different types of media and anything older
Hosts Linda Holmes, Glen Weldon, Stephen Thompson and Aisha Harris provide insightful, refreshing and thought-provoking opinions. Rather than having emotional disagreements, they share differing opinions in an open, caring and respectful way. This podcast is a highlight of my morning routine as I settle into the work day and always makes for enjoyable listening.
How Did This Get Made?
I have a terrible habit of hearing about or being recommended a great podcast, subscribing, and then forgetting all about it. This is why I’m subscribed to hundreds of podcasts and generally listen to about ten. I remember being recommended How Did This Get Made? years ago, but only this year did I realise what I was missing out on.
Hosts Paul Scheer (The League, Fresh Off the Boat), June Diane Raphael (Frasier, Abbott Elementary) and Jason Mantzoukas (Brooklyn 99, Big Mouth) passionately discuss what they love and hate about their chosen movie. The choices usually range from 80s classics to current releases, with a sprinkling of seasonal treats such as Hallmark Christmas specials.
If you want to test the waters, I highly recommend the episodes on Face/Off (as above), Drop Dead Fred and Ambulance.
How Did This Get Made? has had me laughing to myself for months now and I hope that never stops.
Candyman: The True Story Behind the Bathroom Mirror Murder
I was ten when the original Candyman movie was released and I’ve heard references to saying his name in the mirror for as long as I can remember. However, only when I heard about Jodan Peele directing a remake, did I watch the original. I thought it was great. Of course, it’s aged but its tense atmosphere and commanding presence of Candyman himself, played by Tony Todd, still made for gripping viewing.
This Candyman podcast looks back at the murder that inspired the movie franchise. On April 22, 1987, 52-year-old Ruthie Mae McCoy called 911 to report that someone was attempting to break into her apartment through the bathroom mirror. Her call was all but dismissed until her body was found two days later. Host Dometi Pongo investigates the original crime and looks at the social and political atmosphere that led the way it was investigated. I found Pongo’s fascination with the crime and the subsequent movie addictive listening and I appreciated him embracing the inclusion of Ruthie Mae McCoy’s family, ensuring they got the input and the respect she was not given at the time.
Top entertainment of 2024 – Music
My 2024 was shamefully lacking in new music. For some reason, my Spotify algorithm is recommending all sorts of rubbish. I don’t care how popular Ed Sheeran is, I will never want to listen to him Spotify! This has caused me to use it less and less. I’ll make more of an effort next year and hopefully have a wealth of new listens for you. Until then, here are some of the songs that kept me company over the last twelve months.
