Dancing with the Stars (Friday 8pm, UKTV Gold)
With Strictly Come Dancing limbering up for a new season, UKTV Gold brings us the American spin on this ever-popular format. Among the celebs you’ll find Jane Seymour (still looking fabulous), 90210 refugee Jennie Garth, Marie Osmond (gasp!) and Melanie (Scary Spice) Brown.
The IT Crowd (Friday 10pm, C4)
I’ve enjoyed this series much more than first time out, so I’m sad to see it leave the schedules at the end of the second series. There’s a lesson to be learnt here that just because something is rubbish at first, doesn’t mean the producers can’t learn from the experience and put out a decent second attempt. Will Jen leave the boys behind when she gets appointed as Douglas’s PA and, more importantly, will we get a third series?
Not Going Out (Friday 10pm, BBC1)
Work with me here, eh? Until the impending arrival of Ugly Betty and the new series of Rebus next week, I’m casting about for something halfway decent to watch tonight. And this is about the best I can do – sadly, reheated French and Saunders doesn’t quite cut it.
Strictly Come Dancing (Saturday 6pm, BBC1)
Tess and Brucie are back, but things don’t start properly until next week as this is a preview show of the contest ahead. There’s lots of backstage stuff here, and profiles of the celebrities taking part this year.
Casualty (Saturday 8.35pm, BBC1)
Surely this uprise in the fortunes of Casualty can’t last. The start of this series has made me remember just how great this show used to be, and it goes beyond the new, darker look to proceedings. Casualty has actually started concentrating on drama and story again, and this week, we focus on Guppy who has some decisions about the future to make when he is involved in an accident on a train. Good stuff, but not as good as Holby. Obviously!
The National Movie Awards (Saturday 9.30pm, ITV1)
Eh? Can somebody please explain the point of this, please? ITV has been trying to get an annual movie awards show off the ground for years, and it always stalls. I don’t see this improving the situation any. It all seems so pointless, even with the smooth Alexander Armstrong on hosting duties. We have the Baftas, so can we file this under Redundant as soon as humanly possible?
Bremner, Bird and Fortune (Sunday 7pm, C4)
An hour seems an overly long stretch for Bremner and co’s particular brand of satire – a half hour slot would sharpen the bite somewhat. However, this is always going to be well-written, well-observed stuff, and in the current political climate, a welcome return to the schedules.
Celebrity Wife Swap (Sunday 8pm, C4)
I was hoping that RDF might have secreted some footage of the Queen in here, but sadly it was not to be. Instead we get Pete Burns and partner, Michael, swapping places with ex-footie star Neil Ruddock (aka Razor) and his other half. With hilarious results. The term celebrity being used here in the loosest sense of the word.
Agatha Christie’s Marple (Sunday 9pm, ITV1)
Look, it’s quite simple. Poirot is called Poirot, right? Miss Marple is called Miss Marple. Stop trying to franchise Christie, okay? Despite the fact this naming misnomer irritates the hell out of me, these adaptations of the Miss Marple stories are great fun, although they never approach the greatness of the Joan Hickson outings. Ordeal by Innocence features the sleuth attending a wedding, but naturally, as events unfold, she finds a houseful of secrets and danger. Denis Lawson, Alison Steadman and Jane Seymour guest-star.


Although it came after
Expect the hype for new TV channel Virgin 1 to start ramping up over the next week, in preparation for its launch next Monday, October 1.


After the competition to







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