24

I missed out on 24 when it was first shown. I presume that a combination of university, going to gigs, Mrs Wife (then known as Miss Girlfriend) and work meant that I never saw it.

This also happened with The Sopranos - I've never seen it. On the face of it, The Sopranos sounds like it would be my favourite show. My favourite movies include Goodfellas, The Godfather, Casino and Donnie Brasco. But again, I've never seen it, and I'm not sure why.

But back to 24. I recently invested in the first two series on DVD - purportedly 48 hours of non-stop TV. I know that each episode is only around 42 minutes long, but it's still a mammoth undertaking.

So, Mrs Wife and I have now begun ploughing through them. I knew roughly what to expect - lots of action, and a cliffhanger every 42 minutes. I'm just astonished at the complexity of the storylines and how the narrative is maintained throughout the series.

So far, we've reached 11am on "Day One". So there are still 13 hours of the first series left.

I know it takes months or years to film a Hollywood blockbuster, which typically lasts around two hours. So filming a 24-hour movie must be a massive undertaking.

But this massive undertaking must be made considerably harder by the fact that there has to be continuity in EVERYTHING. The actors' clothes have to stay the same, and in the same condition. The day must get progressively lighter and darker depending on the time of day. Cuts and bruises need to stay in exactly the same place.

Maybe I just notice all this because I tend to watch three or four episodes back-to-back - most people will see one a week.

But 24, now that I have finally seen it, has definitely been worth the wait.