IT has been three weeks now and the series link function on my Sky HD box has remained sadly neglected (apart from its use in my wife's devotion to Strictly Come Dancing) because the fact is, nothing really compares to The Sopranos.

After six seasons, eighty-six episodes and numerous whackings the greatest TV show of all time is now 'sleeping with the fishes'.

I will miss the shoulder-shrugging of Silvio, the temperamental Paulie, the musings of Dr Melfi and the whining of Anthony Jr....
But most of all I will miss the angst, charm, brutality, wit, greed, chauvinism and gluttony of Tony Soprano - surely the most multifaceted character ever to appear on television.

The end of The Sopranos has left a void in my life that is yet to be filled.
Not even the flavour of the month show 'Heroes' has done the job.  Despite being fairly compelling and original, it does give me the feeling that the producers and writers are making it up as they go along, which makes me feel conned.

I had the same feeling with Lost which I eventually lost interest in half way through the second season.
A friend of mine who works in television says that series such as Lost and Heroes are the future; TV dramas that don't really progress.
They are scripted and structured as such that you feel that the characters are developing and the plot is progressing but it actually isn't really going anywhere.
They will go on and on and on, as TV executives sell more and more adverts but in the end the finality offered by a film is never there.

The Sopranos side-stepped this problem by having several strands and mini stories within the show running simultaneously.
Plots such as Tony's best friend, Salvatore "Big Pussy" Bonpensiero 'ratting' on the crew, and Tony's authority being challenged by rivals such as Ralph Cifaretto and Richie Aprille were successfully introduced and concluded - in memorable fashion - as each season progressed.

However, Lost and Heroes are both entertaining and well produced enough, as are other American dramas such as 24, Grey's Anatomy, House and Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip - to name just a few.

It would be wonderful to think that a British drama could fill the void left by The Sopranos - but this seems unlikely.
American dramas trounce British ones in many ways; from the quality of script-writing to the amount of money spent on the sets to the calibre of actors signed up.

Unfortunately, going into TV is seen by British actors as career death wish.
If Keira Knightley were to take a break from Hollywood to star in Bad Girls her career would be finished.
I tried to get into 'edgy' British dramas such as Hustle, Spooks and Bodies but the acting always seems a bit hammy and the writing a bit cliched.

Is there a vacuum of original ideas in the creative departments of British TV?

Perhaps the BBC could give Jonathan Ross a year off, take the £6 million salary he reportedly pockets, use it to poach HBO's sharpest thinkers and give us a drama series we deserve!

Until then I will have to make do with watching season one repeats of The Sopranos.