Secret Diary of a Call Girl

One of the more surprisingly funny panels at TCA this month was for Showtime's Secret Diary of a Call Girl. Well, anytime you get a room full of critics talking about dominatrix training and "modesty sacks," it's got to be a pretty good time.

The show's star, Billie Piper, let us in on some of the upcoming stories for the show, how playing a call girl has changed perceptions of her, and whether the US or UK was more prudish about the show. Read on for highlights:

• Playing Belle means men are terrified of her: "Men don't come anywhere near me anymore," Piper said. "They seem so threatened by me now. They also just stare for ages, like I'm going to do something wild and raunchy. And, you know, much to their disappointment, it never really happens."
• She was never really worried that playing a prostitute would harm her image: "I really, really liked the early drafts of the script. I liked the idea," she said. "I didn't really think about it too much. I think my family and friends were quite concerned about my mental state and well-being when I was making the show, but they got over it pretty quickly."
• But it sure surprised London: "People were really shocked when Billie took the role in the UK," said producer Rebecca De Souza. "Her perception at home was very much as a kind of girl-next-door darling, the nation's darling. So to take a role like this was really quite extraordinary, very, very bold."

To find out what's coming up for both Hannah and Belle and find out how to see the season two premiere even if you don't have Showtime, just read more

It's NBC's turn to present at the TCA press tour today, but before they take the stage, I wanted to pass along some of the remaining goodies from the CBS and Showtime presentations. I've got lots of good stuff — including an interview with United States of Tara and Rachel Getting Married star Rosemarie DeWitt —that I'll share in the coming days, but for now, some highlights from Wednesday's panels:

• Showtime's Nurse Jackie, which stars Edie Falco, is about a woman who's the absolute best nurse imaginable but also has serious human flaws — namely a severe addiction to pharmaceuticals (and an affair with her pharmacist). The show will premiere later this year and be paired with Weeds. Two of the show's executive producers are recovering addicts, so that part of things should feel very real — but that doesn't make it somber. "We love addictions," cracked executive producer Linda Wallem. "We think they're hilarious and great."
• The lovely Joss Stone came by to discuss her role as Anne of Cleves on The Tudors. It's her first real acting job and not an easy one to jump into, but she said that was OK: "I prefer to do that. I like to go headfirst into whatever it is." She said she also appreciated knowing that — unless the producers were seriously changing history — she wouldn't be leaving the show with her head cut off.
• Speaking of which, if you're waiting for the part of the show where Jonathan Rhys Meyers gets ugly and fat to play King Henry, well, don't hold your breath.

To hear some funny revelations from the Secret Diary of a Call Girl panel, read more

All of the new DVD releases hit stores (and Netflix) on Tuesdays. So each week in What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday, I sort through the best of the batch and tell you what to add to your queue. In addition to the selections below you can also take home Battlestar Galactica: Season Four and Righteous Kill.

Pineapple Express
You guys, Pineapple Express is not just a stoner movie, OK? James Franco was nominated for a Golden Globe for his work! This is award-worthy stuff! I kid, I kid. But it is funny to me that Franco is up for a serious award for playing a pot dealer who has lines like, "Pandora can't go back into the box — he only comes out."

This movie was a lot of fun to see in the theaters and as a DVD it will probably get the most play in dorm rooms, frat houses, and 20-something apartments across the nation. Seth Rogen and James Franco are a match made in stoner heaven, but be warned: The movie is actually pretty graphically violent (just a heads-up if that's a buzzkill for you).

Special features include an extended version of the film, commentary with the filmmakers and cast, and of course, the gag reel.

Three more up next so read more

Watching Secret Diary of a Call Girl, which starts tonight on Showtime, is like getting let in on the juiciest piece of gossip ever. The show is sly and slick, pulling back the curtain on the world of sex-for-money in London and leaving you feeling like the ultimate insider.

The show stars Billie Piper as Belle, a high-class hooker — and the alter ego of Hannah, an everyday gal who prefers jeans and books to corsets and stilettos. In the first couple of episodes, Belle explains, in blunt and clever language, the mechanics of her job: Keep two closets and two cell phones, take the money first, give the client what he wants — and don't be afraid to enjoy it.

There's surprisingly little sex in Call Girl (and some of it is more funny than salacious, like when Belle puts a saddle on a particularly dorky, heavily sideburned client who has a thing for horses). The real seduction comes from Piper, who's eminently watchable as the confident, sassy Belle. Belle often speaks directly to the camera, not unlike Carrie in the early episodes of Sex and the City, but the narration doesn't seem forced or awkward. Indeed, it's all part of the fun, with Piper tossing her hair, cocking an eyebrow, and looking — it seems — right at you as she reveals another trick of her trade. It's clear, from the first few episodes, why people seem to fall in love with Belle left and right. I know I did.

The series premieres tonight at at 10:30 p.m. EDT and PDT. No Showtime (or can't wait)? You can check out the first two episodes online right now. To watch a preview with Belle talking about her life as a call girl, just read more

• CBS learned a big lesson this week: Britney equals ratings gold. I learned you should never mess with the fanboys of Fanboys.
• The Oliver Stone Bush biopic cast is quickly filling out. I wonder who's going to play Dick Cheney? Which reminds me, all that horse-loving talk aside, I'm starting to think Kristy Lee Cook is an evil genius.
• This is one of those weeks where TV news makes a lot of sense and then none at all. I can understand why there is interest in shows about escorts after the Spitzer scandal. But a show that's just people falling? Really?
• More good stuff came out of the Paley Festival in Los Angeles this week, including the goods on Gossip Girl, Damages and Dirty Sexy Money.
• Well it's the end of the road for the March book club, thanks to everyone for reading along! I'm really excited about April's book, The Life Before Her Eyes. I hope you can hunt down a copy for yourself this weekend and join in. And don't worry, I can confidently state the new editions of these books will never be selected.
• Axl Rose, if you're listening, please finish up that that album so America can toast you with Dr. Pepper!
• Can you guess which rock songs these lyrics belong to? Also, can you guess what TV show I'm recasting based on these lyrics? "What would we do, baby, without us? Sha-la-la-laaaa. . ."

Photo courtesy of CBS

Starting this Summer, premium cable is going to be all about the premium prostitute. Showtime and HBO each have a series about high-end call girls in the works, one imported from the other side of the Atlantic, one developed right here by Sex and the City's Darren Star — and yes, this all started even before Eliot Spitzer's scandal broke.

The first of the shows, the UK's Secret Diary of a Call Girl, will hit Showtime in June, while Star's Diary of a Manhattan Call Girl was just given the go-ahead from HBO. Secret Diary of a Call Girl, which aired its first season in the UK last Fall, is based on the anonymous blog of a London "working girl," while Star's show draws its inspiration from a semi-autobiographical novel by a former New York call girl. No, no chance for confusion there.

Showtime recently released a trailer for its series, and I'm curious to know if you'll be tuning in — or, if you've already seen the UK version, if you think we in the US should give this show a shot. The series starts June 16, but you can watch the trailer for yourself right now if you read more

• Ewan McGregor will play Jim Carrey's love interest in the "dark comedy" I Love You, Phillip Morris, reports Variety.
• E! Online has news that Josh Groban's holiday album sales have broken a record originally set by Elvis Presley.
• MTV and Jerry Bruckheimer are teaming up to make video games, Broadcasting & Cable reports.
• Zap2It reports that Brad Pitt may replace Heath Ledger in the drama Tree of Life.
• TV Guide writes that USA has canceled The 4400 and Dead Zone.
• The Smashing Pumpkins will release an acoustic EP in 2008, NME reports.
• Mischa Barton has signed on for the indie thriller Homecoming, writes Variety.
• Showtime has bought Secret Diary of a Call Girl, a British series based on a sex worker's anonymous journal, Mediaweek reports.
• From the department of weirdness: Michael Douglas is now doing the voiceover for the NBC Nightly News, TV Guide reports.

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