Welcome to 2026, the year of the Vertical, or so I’ve heard. As I write this, it is snowing pretty hard on and off -which is making us feel all Christmasy all over again. Best go get a slice of Stollen. I’m going to add a section to the coming soon parts of these Roundup posts, to include upcoming film festivals, particularly in the UK -so if anyone knows of any or wants to promote one, please let me know about them at kthorror@gmail.com.
December Roundup
TV Land:
- Let’s see, there was Stranger Things
- That Ghost Story one on the BBC
- Fallout -sttill loving this
- Percy Jackson -pretty sure the new series started in December
- Vlogmass -from various creators
- The War Between Land & See (haven’t watched it yet -I’ve been watching, erm, Christmasy stuff)
- The Hunting Wives, apparently started on ITVX, which is cool.
- The Abandons -which I started but I just couldn’t get into. I was hoping for a really good, female led, western. Maybe I’ll give it another go, but it wasn’t really doing it for me. Which is a shame because I love Gillian Anderson and Lena Headey.
- Amadeus -which I really want to watch but don’t currently have a subscription to the right service!
Fallout
This series just gets better and better, and it’s strangly one of the ones I don’t mind that the episodes are weekly.
In a future, post-apocalyptic Los Angeles brought about by nuclear decimation, citizens must live in underground bunkers to protect themselves from radiation, mutants and bandits.
–Fallout, IMDb–
Looking Ahead
The things I’m either watching or think look interesting (and that may be on a channel I can’t watch -so go watch them for me, okay!).
On TV for January 2026 in the UK:
- The Night Manager S2 – BBC One 1st
- Red Eye S2 – ITVX 1st
- Run Away – Netflix 1st
- Lynley -BBC One 5th
- Girl Taken – Paramount+ 8th
- A Thousand Blows S2 – Disney+ 9th
- Grosse Pointe Garden Society – ITVX 11th
- Star Trek: Starfleet Academy – Paramount+ 15th
- A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms – Sky Atlantic 19th
- Steal – Prime Video 21st
- Wonder Man – Disney+ 27th
- Bridgerton S4a – Netflix 29th
- Under Salt Marsh – Sky Atlantic 30th
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms
I’m going to have to get another subscription, there are too many good shows that are going to be on NowTV entertainment (I got movies, should have got both on the deal) that I want to watch.
A century before GOT, Ser Duncan the Tall, and his squire, Egg, wandered through Westeros while the Targaryen dynasty ruled the Iron Throne, and dragons were still remembered. Great destinies and enemies await the incomparable friends.
–A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, IMDb–
Upcoming Film Festivals
- Palm Springs International Film Festival – US, January 2
- Saint Augustine Film Festival – US, January 9
- Belmont World Film’s Family Festival – US, January 18
- Sundance Film Festival – US, January 23rd
- London Short Film Festival – UK, January 23rd
- FIPADOC International Documentary Film Festival – France, January 24
- Goteborg Film Festival – Sweden, January 24th
- International Film Festival Rotterdam – Netherlands, January 30th
- Ostend Film Festival – Belgium, January 31st
Upcoming Movies January
- Hamnet – 9th
- Giant – 9th
- 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple – 14th
- Mercy – 23rd
- Primate – 30th
- Shelter – 30th
- Rabbit Trap – 30th
Shelter
A recluse on a remote Scottish island rescues a girl from the sea, unleashing a perilous sequence of events that culminate in an attack on his home, compelling him to face his turbulent history.
–Shelter, IMDb–
Still here? Great, I just wanted to give a little update about the whole writing thing. I have decided to set aside the novel writing for a while -Long Undead will remain unfinished, as I have spent far too many years trying to get it right and fighting it. And instead, I am going to focus on the screenwriting. I’m giving myself 2026 to go hard, to find my creativity in this medium that I love and see if I can do anything with it (you know, get a movie made). I’m starting out with a Hallmark style Christmas movie, the idea popped into my brain in November and stuck around. And I’m hoping to write 4 scripts this year -doable, right? I may or may not share bits of that journey on here, so feel free to pipe up if you have any tips at any stage of this mad journey I’m setting out on. And any scripts I do finish, I will add to the scripts tab at the top of the page. I will be sharing more of how I’m getting on with it on my @relinquarry tiktok (which is very small and mostly about documenting to keep me accountable, feel free to give me a follow on there if you want to see more of this crazy 2026 goal).
Right, I’m off to curl up with my laptop and be inspired by the snow. I hope you’ve had a wonderful Christmas, however you might have celebrated, and that 2026 brings you good health, prosperity, and massive creative breakthroughs.
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