March 2008 Archives

Poppy Shakespeare (Monday 9pm, C4)

Poppy Shakespeare is a strangely touching piece of drama about two women who meet in a psychiatric day centre and form a close bond. Naomie Harris plays Poppy, a seemingly normal woman with a seemingly normal life. She is unexpectedly diagnosed with mental health problems and packed off to a day centre where she encounters N (Anna Maxwell Martin). While Poppy is determined to get out of her current situation and go back to living a normal life, N is quite happy staying where she is and dreads the day when she might be discharged. Excellent performances from the two leads make this a well-balanced piece of work. In different hands it could have keeled over into sentiment or come across as heavy-handed.

Dis/Connected (Monday 9pm, BBC3)

Dis/Connected will perhaps receive more attention due to the fact it’s the postponed addition to BBC3’s drama pilots season, held over due its sensitive subject matter in relation to the recent spate of teen suicides in Bridgend. Members of a sixth-form at an East End school are brought together following a classmate’s suicide. It’s a one-line premise, and sadly, Dis/Connected rarely breaks free of that constraint and doesn’t offer anything new that other dramas haven’t covered in recent times.

Damages (Monday 10.45pm, BBC1)

The end is nearly in sight - or is it? You never quite know where you are with Damages, despite the ending being revealed by degrees from the start of episode one. Just how does a blood-soaked Ellen end up running from a building, with a dead fiancée in the bath? As we head for the finish line of next week’s closing episode, things are starting to look a little clearer, but not by much. At the centre of everything is Glenn Close as Patty Hewes, one of the great creations of modern TV drama and played with typical perfection by this superb actress. Will I be able to last until next week?

EastEnders (Tuesday 7.30pm, BBC1)

Any long-standing fans of EastEnders will want to be there for tonight’s episode, tissues at the ready, as Walford says goodbye to Frank Butcher. This is a fitting tribute to the late Mike Reid, and it seems right and proper that EastEnders should give the legendary Albert Square character the send off he deserves. Typically, Peggy and Pat are locked in a battle of wills as the former wives, whose rivalry has never quite gone away, and there are some beautifully bittersweet moments throughout. This episode also marks the return of Sid Owen to the Square as Ricky Butcher, alongside sisters Diane and Janine. We know Ricky is staying, but the big question is: where’s Bianca?

Doctor Who (Tuesday 8pm, BBC3)

Ahead of Saturday’s rematerialisation of everyone’s favourite Time Lord for a new series, enjoy this repeat of David Tennant’s Doctor Who debut in The Christmas Invasion. You can catch the other Christmas specials throughout the week on BBC3.

*Hotel Babylon (Tuesday 9pm, BBC1)*

Must… resist… must… turn off… television… Oops, too late! I can’t help it; I’m just a sucker for those cheesy titles, the décor, and the torturous dialogue. Hotel Babylon is like a nice dessert that gets sickly after a couple of spoonfuls, but you just have to keep going to the last mouthful.

Later Live… with Jools Holland (Tuesday 10pm, BBC2)

A BBC2 institution gets a new, live slot, for those that aren’t in the mood for telly so late on a Friday night. Some might say it’s sacrilege, but you’ll still have the Friday outing with extra material to enjoy if you are so disposed.

The Apprentice (Wednesday 9pm, BBC1)

From fish to smalls - Sir Alan’s challenge this week to the most depressingly useless bunch of The Apprentice hopefuls ever, is to set up an overnight laundry. They must work through the night to wash a multitude of garments and return them intact to their owners. It’s like shooting fish in a barrel, isn’t it?

Hughie Green, Most Sincerely (Wednesday 9pm, BBC4)

The excellent season of tragic Curse of Comedy dramas continues with this tour de force performance from Trevor Eve as Hughie Green, legendary presenter of Opportunity Knocks. Having played shouty Boyd on Waking the Dead for so long now, it’s easy to forget what a good actor Eve is - his decision to turn his back on Shoestring, in hindsight, was perhaps the right thing to do. This piece focuses mostly on Green’s regrets over his daughter - a daughter he never knew. Her name? Paula Yates.

Mark Lawson Talks to Barry Cryer (Wednesday 10.50pm, BBC4)

One of my favourite personalities gets the Mark Lawson treatment this week as he talks to veteran comedy writer and performer Barry Cryer. Cryer is always great value in any venue, and the insights here are a delight.

Holby Blue (Thursday 8pm, BBC1)

Made you look!

House/Grey’s Anatomy (Thursday 9/10pm, Five)

When Holby Blue is the best thing on TV, there’s only one solution - settle down for a double bill of US drama on Five. Despite my misgivings about House, it’s still well made fare, and passes an hour without troubling the scorer. And at least you get Grey’s Anatomy straight after, which I seem to have developed quite a fondness for in my post-Holby hysteria. It’s very sweet, and has a wicked sense of humour, which can be quite surprising. And it doesn’t have any shouty policeman, for which we can all be thankful.

So here we go, the first live show. And while some of the prospective Nancies are familiar to us through the pre-recorded shows one and two, many were under-served by those programmes’ editing, so it would be unfair to have a favourite at this stage. Besides, I had one at this point last year, and that proved fatal. Won’t be making that mistake again.

Similarly, while there has been criticism of the way Francesca was put through despite being too ill to stay on in Nancy School (compounded by her recent professional engagement in Rent with judge Denise Van Outen), she deserves to be treated the same as her eleven fellow auditionees.

Clean slates all round, then, as we open with a rambunctious group rendition of I’d Do Anything. All twelve Nancies and a dozen cherubic Olivers fill out the Studio One stage. Over the next ten weeks, twenty of them will fall by the wayside, with only four making it to the Theatre Royal Drury Lane.

Update: UK users can now view the show performances again. Video after the jump.

Torchwood (Friday 9pm, BBC2)

A cracking episode of Torchwood that confidently displays just how much this series has grown throughout a massively improved second run. Jack, Owen, Tosh and Ianto are trapped in a building when a series of bombs are detonated. As Gwen searches for her team-mates, they each flashback to their respective inductions into Torchwood. It has to be said, the Torchwood of 1899 looks like great fun - the two women we see run rings round Jack as they blackmail him into working for them are fab and it’s hoped we might see more of historical Torchwood should there be a third series. These short character pieces work extremely well - we even get an origin for the pterodactyl that flies around the Hub - and sets things up nicely for the final episode next week.

Benidorm (Friday 9pm, ITV1)

I’m still at a loss as to why this got recommissioned, let alone got nominated for a Bafta over Gavin and Stacey. Okay, so it’s not all that bad (wait for 9.30 to see truly awful), but there’s a sense that ITV are clinging on to something that didn’t do embarrassingly badly first time out (unlike much of the channel’s drama output). But Benidorm is still something that, 20 years ago, would probably have never got made, God forbid nab a second series. The same rogues gallery of boorish holiday makers return for a second trip away to the sunshine, but the whole thing feels like reheated leftovers, with little effort to build on the things that worked first time round. And please, can his performance in Benidorm finally convince people that Johnny Vegas has been wearing the Emperor’s new clothes for much of his career. He isn’t that good!

Teenage Kicks (Friday 9.30pm, ITV1)

Adrian Edmondson returns to TV sitcoms in this eight part series based on the Radio 2 comedy of the same name. And to be honest, that wasn’t very funny either. There’s just something a bit too obvious about Vernon, an ageing rocker, who moves in with his kids following a nasty divorce with the missus. Sadly, the comedy isn’t at all obvious - as in: where is it? The script is poor, Edmondson is clearly better than this (go back to Holby City, you were good in that), and watching Teenage Kicks makes you realise just how good My Family is. No, really…

I’d Do Anything (Saturday 6.50pm, BBC1)

It’s crunch time as things move into studio for the live rounds. The 12 potential Nancys perform before Andrew Lloyd Webber, Denise Van Outen, John Barrowman (in his millionth TV appearance of the week) and Barry Humphries. As always, Scott will provide his round up of the night’s key events before the weekend is out. Following the pattern of Strictly Come Dancing, you can catch the result show on Sunday night at 7.30pm to discover who won’t be asking for more.

Love Soup (Saturday 9.30pm, BBC1)

The delightful froth that is Love Soup continues, and Alice’s romantic woes and excruciating misunderstandings are as entertaining as ever. This week there’s a collision with a handsome media mogul and his terrifying PA, while a cab driver is also in hot pursuit of our unlucky-in-love heroine. As always, the dialogue fizzes, and there are some typically brilliant moments from Cleo and Milly. If you’re home alone with a takeaway on Saturday night, this will brighten your evening no end.

Clay (Sunday 3.30pm, BBC1)

Chilling adaptation of David Almond’s children’s novel about a boy who makes spookily lifelike human figures out of clay. Set against a backdrop of 1960s Northumberland, there are undertones of Frankenstein here, and the whole thing is done with that effortless BBC style of years gone by.

Casualty 1907 (Sunday, 9pm, BBC1)

Following a successful one-off, Casualty 1907 returns for three new episodes, with Cherie Lunghi on stern form as Matron Eva Luckes. This is a surprisingly effective piece of work, with historical documentation being used to inspire cases and characters. There’s a documentary feel to things, but that’s all to the good, and the period detail is nicely realised, with some graphic moments that may test the mettle of the hardiest viewer. There’s only one disappointment - Charlie Fairhead is nowhere in sight, and that’s just wrong…

He Kills Coppers (Sunday 9pm, ITV1)

I hope the second episode of this brilliant drama does better in the ratings without The No.1 Ladies’ Detective Agency on the other side to lure the audience away. I’m not sure this has been given the best slot in the world, but the critical reception the first episode received will no doubt have pleased ITV no end. Billy Porter is on the run following the bloody climax to last week’s opener, with bent copper Frank on his tail (while also finding the time to romance his dead partner’s lady). It’s beautiful and tense, and come next year, the Bafta should be all but assured.

Gavin and Stacey (Sunday 9pm, BBC3)

If you’re not watching He Kills Coppers, then I fully expect to find you here. Tidy.

Hurrah! The Apprentice is back, and I think it’s fair to say that last night’s opener didn’t disappoint - it was perhaps the best first episode of The Apprentice to date. Battle lines have been drawn in the boys’ camp very early on, with a division forming quickly between the toffs and barrow boys. Or has Reaf would have it, the princes and the paupers. (He can talk to both, apparently).

The ladies, typically, are playing it much safer, taking their time to get the measure of their colleagues before the claws come out over the weeks to come. It does worry me how much vicarious pleasure I take from watching the development of the pack mentality, but perhaps that is what attracts us to the The Apprentice in the first place. Is it just human nature writ large and put on screen for 12 weeks for all to see?

And what did we learn from this piscine-themed first episode? Well, identifying fish is harder than it looks, lobsters don’t cost £4.90 each (you’d have thought one of the posh boys would have known that) and Sir Alan isn’t Mary Poppins. I’m relieved to have clarification on that point, because I was wondering.

It started life as Rogue Spooks, morphed throughout its development into Spooks: Trinity, and has now emerged with this week’s announcement from Auntie Beeb as Code 9. Yes, a younger, sexier generation of Spooks are ready to take BBC3 by storm later this year…

Erm… and I have to ask myself, what’s the point of linking this with Spooks beyond the fact that indie producer Kudos is behind both shows? The tone of Code 9 (it’s uncertain whether the Spooks brand name will be included in that title) sounds so completely different, judging by the press blurb…

Basically, it’s 2013, the world has endured a nuclear war, with much of London devastated and causing MI5 to set up field offices around the country. Code 9 will focus on the operatives recruited to set up Field Office 19 (what? Code 9, Field Office 19? It’s confusing already!).

In this week’s print edition of The Stage, vocal coach and former judge Zoe Tyler’s exclusive column continues with a critique of the second programme in the BBC series I’d Do Anything.

In the show, we saw actress Francesca Jackson, who had previously appeared in Rent alongside judge Denise Van Outen, being sent home from Nancy School to recuperate from illness. She was later put through to the next stage, a concert performance at which the judges selected which twelve girls would be selected for the lives show which start on Saturday.

In the end, Francesca won through to the live shows — but that was the wrong decision, says Zoe:

…after 14 years in the West End spent going through the audition process, she knows the score and it was not on to put her through. Lots of actresses — including me — have dreaded many final recalls because of having the flu and knowing full well you can’t go to the audition and say: “I have a bad throat, but you really should put me through.”

In my experience, you just get that one chance and if you blow it, you blow it — that’s showbiz.

For the rest of Zoe’s exclusive column, buy this week’s Andrew Lloyd Webber-themed issue of The Stage, priced £1.30.

Hotel Babylon (Tuesday 9pm, BBC1)

John Barrowman, eh? Gets everywhere doesn’t he? If it’s not looking after the Torchwood team and snogging Ianto, or popping up for a few episodes of Doctor Who, he’s getting in on the musical action on a Saturday night. Now he’s checking into Hotel Babylon as a difficult movie director who runs the staff ragged with his demanding ways. And you know, I’m not sure HB is strong enough to survive without Max Beesley as the lynchpin – if they’re clever enough, they’ll put Dexter Fletcher front and centre as Tony, but my hopes aren’t high for the future of this frothy little series.

Bionic Woman (Tuesday 9pm, ITV2)

I want to like this, I really do, but it’s just not doing it for me. Michelle Ryan is perfectly fine as Jaime Sommers, but the whole tone of the thing is what’s putting me off. This stuff needs some ironic humour to acknowledge that the premise is, when you think about it, just a bit silly. That po-faced tone works in Battlestar Galactica as there are spaceships and ray guns to offset the frowny stuff, but in a show set in the real world, you need something else. Still, Ryan acquits herself rather well, and I hope she gets another big project in the near future.

The Apprentice (Wednesday 9pm, BBC1)

Okay, calm down. Everything is going to be okay from now on – well, at 9pm on Wednesday it will be. Sir Alan Sugar jumps into his Roller once more and glides around the streets of London like a shiny black shark, ready to terrorise a new intake of gobby, stupid people for the next 12 weeks. I do worry about how much pleasure I take in watching these towers of arrogance being cut down with Sir Alan’s machete like wit, but once some dead wood has been cut out, I usually back a favourite by about week four. As always with The Apprentice, much of the pleasure comes from watching Alan’s sidekicks, the now legendary Nick and Margaret, in action. There’s nothing like a raised eyebrow from Nick to tell you the writing’s on the wall for one unlucky hopeful. Bliss. Adrian Chiles returns with The Apprentice – You’re Fired at 10pm on BBC2.

Hancock and Joan (Wednesday 9pm, BBC4)

I was pondering on the virtue of a new biopic of Tony Hancock, considering that Alfred Molina donned the hat and jowls so memorably in a Screen One film back in 1991. But that film, excellent though it was, veered away from touching on Hancock’s affair with Joan Le Mesurier, wife of his close friend John. Ken Stott may seem like odd casting for the comedy great, but there are moments when he is hauntingly on the money and shows he was possibly wise in choosing to step down from Rebus. This reminds us just what a great actor he is, and playing opposite Maxine Peake as Joan, he couldn’t hope for a better co-star. Like The Curse of Steptoe before it, this is tragic and poignant for all the right reasons.

Dexter (Wednesday 10.35pm, ITV1)

Dexter is so sublimely dark that you are left at the end of every episode shaking your head in bewilderment as to why you enjoy it so much. It’s about a serial killer, who is also the hero of the piece, and the fact Dexter remains so likeable throughout is a masterstroke of writing and acting. This week, Dexter (a breathtaking Michael C. Hall) is gearing up for another killing (look, he only offs bad guys, so it’s okay), while also juggling his emotionally draining relationship with Rita, which is a problem when you don’t have much emotion to drain in the first place. Sublimely brilliant.

Mark Lawson Talks to George Cole (Wednesday 11pm, BBC4)

Mark Lawson talks to a legend of TV and film comedy. What more do you need to know?

Holby Blue (Thursday 8pm, BBC1)

What can I say, I am weak and frail. I know it’s bad for me, but I just can’t resist Holby Blue. I may have made the Pot Noodle analogy before with this series, but it still works. Just add water and wait for two minutes.

Ashes to Ashes (Thursday 9pm, BBC1)

Has it really been eight weeks since we were introduced to DI Alex Drake and welcomed Gene Hunt back into our lives with open arms? Blimey, doesn’t time fly when you’re having fun? And that’s exactly that what this series is: fun. Ashes to Ashes doesn’t always hit the nail on the head, but when it does, it’s with a certain amount of style. In tonight’s closing episode, we are 24 hours away from the death of Alex’s parents, and she thinks that by saving them, it will open the door to her route home. Yeah, yeah – with a second series in the works, do we really think that’s going to happen? Tonight also sees a guest appearance from Geoffrey Palmer, which is always worth a look.

As promised, here are the twelve finalists for the main Oliver! role being cast via television. As we’ve previously noted in our week 1 and week 2 reviews, several of the girls who have got through are professional actresses — not a bad thing, in my view.

As with last year’s Any Dream Will Do finalists, we’re going to take a quick look over each of the candidates to see just how much experience they have already chalked up.

In compiling this list, I’ve found out that six of the twelve actresses already have entries in Spotlight. At this point last year, only three Josephs had. Is that because more established professionals were going up for the casting? Or because casting director David Grindrod had a bigger role in selecting the prospective Nancies this year? I suspect the truth is that it’s a bit of both — but it should ensure that the West End gets a capable Nancy, while the TV public gets a very entertaining ten weeks of Saturday night entertainment.

After last week’s auditions and callbacks, this week saw the intensive weekend of workshops dubbed Nancy School, with the surviving actresses going on to perform in a one-off concert.

Because of the dual format this year, we also had to put up with being shown the twelve prospective Olivers acting surprised when being told that they had got through to the studio rounds. Not that the presence of a TV crew would have tipped them off, of course…

But back to the main business of finding a suitable woman to play Nancy. And just as with Maria School and Joseph School before it, I did find that this episode felt rushed. By the end of just one hour’s TV, the intake of 42 had been reduced to the final twelve who will be in the live TV studio next week. There was a lot to get through, and I did feel that some of the prospective Nancies were ill-served by the breakneck pace.

Yes, that’s right. Come on, let’s get this pun out of the way so I never have to use it again. I did feel like asking the BBC schedulers, “Please sir, can I have some more?”

The No.1 Ladies’ Detective Agency (Easter Sunday, 9pm, BBC1)

A drama premiere that’s tinged with sadness as Anthony Minghella, director of The No.1 Ladies’ Detective Agency, passed away earlier this week. Now commissioned for a 13 part run following this feature-length pilot, Minghella had attempted to bring Precious Ramotswe, the delightful heroine of Alexander McCall Smith’s hugely popular books, to the screen for years, and his efforts have paid off. Jill Scott is Precious, who decides to set up Botswana’s one and only private detective agency. Gentle is the order of the day here (as it is in the books), and the producers have wisely decided not to tamper with the elements that make Smith’s books so charming. Of note amongst the guest cast is Idris Elba, aka Stringer Bell in the cult HBO show The Wire, making a welcome return to British screens.

He Kills Coppers (Easter Sunday 9pm, ITV1)

I had to check twice to make sure I hadn’t got my channels mixed up for He Kills Coppers. This adaptation, from Ecosse Films and director Adrian Shergold, of Jake Arnott’s second novel is beautiful, stunning and elegant. Those are three words that haven’t been associated with an ITV drama in decades, yet here we have a prime time show from the channel that has struggled to find credible drama showing its peers just how to do it. It’s complex – the story follows the lives of three disparate players against the backdrop of 1966 London: bent Flying Squad copper Frank Taylor (Rafe Spall), small time criminal Billy Porter (Mel Raido) and seedy journo Tony Meehan (Steven Robertson). Their lives collide through a shocking event that will criss-cross back and forth over the coming weeks. And if it wasn’t enough that He Kills Coppers was this good already, it’s rendered just about perfect by the porcelain beauty of Kelly Reilly as prostitute Jeannie. If ever the camera loved an actress, here she is – and she has the talent to back it up. The whole piece is shot with such brooding economy by Shergold, adapted by Ed Whitmore with alchemic powers that do the book justice while possessing its own identity, and performed with verve by each cast member that you’ll be weeping by the close of episode one. Why weeping? Because you know that, once the remaining two episodes have played out, we’ll rarely have it this good again. Hyperbole? Maybe, but it’s still damn good.

Gavin and Stacey (Easter Sunday 9pm, BBC3)

I won’t lie to you, you know what we think about Gavin and Stacey here at TV Today, so there’s no point in going into any more detail at this stage. Just watch it, cos it’s brilliant, okay? Tidy.

Pulling (Easter Sunday 9.30pm, BBC3)

BBC3 bolsters its position as the strongest channel around for comedy with the first of a new series of Pulling. Sharon Horgan (who also co-scripts the series) returns as Donna, along with her gaggle of 30-something mates who head out to seize the day. Or something. It’s ever so slightly seedy, but in a very honest, almost nice way.

The Colour of Magic (Monday 6pm, Sky One)

Beginning last night (but with the drama cup running over, there wasn’t much room for anything else) this latest adaptation by Sky of a Terry Pratchett novels is a perfectly passable bit of fluff for a Bank Holiday weekend. The Colour of Magic is the the first of Pratchett’s Discworld novels, and having been there from the beginning, I’d hazard it’s not the friendliest of books for a TV audience. There’s much better fodder further up the canon, and I’m not even going to point out that they got the wrong Trotter brother as Rincewind – Pratchett’s hapless wizarding hero was, if I recall correctly, based on Rodney. But that’s by the by – this looks great and is perfectly entertaining.

The Fixer (Easter Monday 9pm, ITV1)

John Mercer and the team are charged by Lenny with destroying the business of a recently arrived Albanian gangster. As always, things don’t go according to plan and Rose is kidnapped, so Mercer has to sort it out. Soppy idiot, doesn’t he realise this would be a much better show without Tamzin Outhwaite? Just leave her to her fate and go out and shoot some bad guys. Job done.

Bear Grylls: Mission Everest (Easter Monday 9pm, C4)

Harry Hill be praised, Bear Grylls is back! Any suggestion that this great, inspiring man might occasionally bed down in a Travelodge will be given the contempt it deserves.

The Frost Report is Back (Easter Monday 9pm, BBC4)

Showing as part of the Curse of Comedy season, this retrospective celebration of David Frost’s influential sketch show is a rich run-down of the launch pad of some giant sized comedy careers. John Cleese and Ronnie Corbett, amongst others, reminisce about the two series of The Frost Report and how it changed their lives. And of course, Sir David himself is there, having a grand old time of it.

High School Musical 2 (Good Friday 4.05pm, BBC1)

A TV Today favourite gets a very welcome airing on BBC1 to help while away a long, lazy Good Friday. This sequel is just as much fun as the delightfully cheesy original, with exuberant performances from all concerned to raise it above being a run of the mill cash-in on the huge success of the original. For more HSM2 treats, see Scott’s piece from earlier in the day.

EastEnders (Good Friday 8pm, BBC1)

Ooh, if there was ever any doubt that EastEnders was back on blinding form after a couple of years in the wilderness, then this slice of life from Albert Square should win round any remaining naysayers. Big, bold and brilliantly silly plots are what ‘Enders does best, and this culmination of events between Tanya, Max and Sean is as big, bold and silly as they come. Tanya has been playing something of a long game over recent weeks, and tonight she gets Max right where she wants him. This could be a plot from CSI, and I won’t spoil the details, but it’s a corker!

Moving Wallpaper (Good Friday 9pm, ITV1)

The great experiment comes to an end as the first series of Moving Wallpaper closes. Echo Beach (still with an uncertain future in the real world) has completed its first series and the team await the news of renewal from them upstairs. Jonathan is forced to cut costs and fire one of his stars, and that brings with it some great moments for Ben Miller’s fabulous creation. At least we know Moving Wallpaper will be back for a second season, so sit back and enjoy, knowing we’ll be seeing this often-brilliant show again.

Dirty Sexy Money (Good Friday 9pm, C4)

Channel 4 unveils a promising new family saga from across the pond, most excitingly starring Peter Krause off of Six Feet Under and Donald Sutherland off of… well, pretty much everything. Krause is squeaky-clean lawyer Nick George who is coerced into working for the Darling family by Sutherland’s patriarch, Tripp. It’s all very exuberant and everybody has several skeletons in the cupboard to make an entertaining, if somewhat silly, drama.

The Mighty Boosh Night (Easter Saturday 9.05pm, BBC3)

They might be an acquired taste, but The Boosh certainly have their charms (and a legion of fans to boot). This evening of themed programming for the holiday weekend is centred on The Mighty Boosh – a Journey Through Time and Space, a documentary charting the rise of Julian Barrett and Noel Fielding to cult comedy gods. Following this will be six of the lads’ favourite episodes. Not a bad evening’s entertainment by anybody’s standards.

Love Soup (Easter Saturday 9.30pm, BBC1)

It’s Saturday, and if you’re at home there’s only one place to be at 9.30, and that’s in the agreeable company of Alice, Cleo and Milly. I love the lightness of touch in this show, and the way the supremely talented Tamsin Greig can play comedy and cringing tragedy with such seesaw deftness. All this, and being in The Archers on Tuesday – how does she do it?

Richard the Lionheart (Easter Saturday 10pm, BBC2)

Stephen Waddington must have something kingly about him, as it was only at the end of last year that we saw him play Richard the Lionheart at the climax of Robin Hood. This is a rather rousing piece of historical docudrama full of shouting and boisterous battle sequences, following Richard on his third Crusade in the Holy Land. There are power struggles, skulduggery and more shouting throughout, and it almost makes you want this to become a weekly series. Although the shouting would get a bit tedious after a while.

There will be another Square Eyes easter Update on Saturday

This Friday sees the terrestrial premiere of Disney’s ultra-successful TV movie High School Musical 2 (Good Friday, BBC1, 4.05pm). Back when it first aired on Disney Channel UK, TV Today had a week of HSM-related features, and they’re still online. So, experience a week in a day with the following links — plus an additional treat that’s not been online anywhere else before!

While we’re going to be dissecting every episode of I’d Do Anything here on the blog, I did also promise that we’d be extending our coverage into the print edition as well.

That coverage starts with this week’s issue, as we welcome our new columnist who will be charting the ups and downs of all the would-be Nancys and Olivers throughout the series. No stranger to the Saturday night judges’ panel herself, vocal coach Zoe Tyler will be writing exclusively for The Stage print edition each week.

So if, like me, you regret that this year’s judging panel will only consist of performers, have no fear — The Stage will be on hand to offer considered expert opinion, in print as well as online.

• The Stage is on sale in most high street branches of WHSmith as well as many other newsagents every Thursday, price £1.30

Oh, this one could run and run. Basil Brush, a racist? You are having a laugh, Mr Mark, aren’t you? Well actually, no. Yes, the little fella, much loved by generations of children, is on the run from a braying pack of hounds called political correctness. An episode of The Basil Brush Show made six years ago, and repeated recently, contains an alleged stereotypical depiction of a gypsy, coupled with some derogatory lines of dialogue from Basil that could be construed as bordering on racist.

I’m trying to be considered about this, not to jerk my knee in reaction and bray against the forces of political correctness, which is my default stance. Blimey, I even found myself nodding sagely and almost agreeing with Richard Littlejohn’s piece on the story this morning in the Daily Mail. It is indeed a dark day when that happens (and please note, I did say “almost”).

In the offending episode, Basil’s friend, Mr Stephen, has fallen under a gypsy’s spell that makes him attractive to women. So far, so good, not in itself dodgy or courting controversy. It’s when Dame Rosie Fortune turns up at the door, selling pegs, followed by Basil’s line about once having his wallet nicked by a fortune teller, where things get a little, shall we say, heated.

If, like me, you’ve been broadly enjoying BBC3’s run of drama pilots, you’ll be pleased to know that the delayed Dis/Connected, which was due to have been shown on 25 February, is now back on the schedules.

Originally postponed due to the sensitive nature of its content, the suicide of a teenager, Dis/Connected will now air on Monday 31 March at 9pm.

My friends at the BBC press office tell me that no edits have been made to the programme since its postponement.

A Shine production, Dis/Connected is written by Howard Overman (Hotel Babylon).

Gradually, us UK users of Apple’s iTunes Store are getting a decent catalogue of TV shows to choose from. After BBC Worldwide launched some shows last month, now Channel 4 has got some of its key shows available to download.

There’s a definite skew to comedy in the first tranche of programmes, including Black Books, Spaced and Peep Show, while the drama series Skins, Shameless and Teachers all have leanings towards the comedic end of spectrum to varying degrees.

Which all makes David Starkey’s documentary series Monarchy stand out all the more.

• Channel 4 shows on iTunes

Sad news coming through — respected film director Anthony Minghella has died, aged 54.

Although he became a household name directing Hollywood films including The English Patient and The Talented Mr. Ripley, he preceded this with a career in theatre and television, his small screen writing credits including episodes of Grange Hill and Inspector Morse. His big screen break really came with Truly, Madly, Deeply, a BBC film that gained huge cinema success.

His latest project will air on Sunday — a BBC/HBO adaptation of the Alexander McCall Smith novel, The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency.

Update: The full news story is now up on our News pages

Today sees the publications of the nominees for each of the main Bafta Television Awards.

Mostly the winner will be selected by the Academy itself. As every year, though, there is one category where the audience gets to decide. This year, thanks to the sponsorship of a certain PVR manufacturer, it’s known as The Sky+ Audience Award, and you can vote your favourite at http://www.bestonthebox.com from the following shortlist:

• The Apprentice
• Gavin and Stacey
• Strictly Come Dancing
• Andrew Marr’s History of Modern Britain
• Cranford
• Britain’s Got Talent

So get your voting fingers out, and make sure that you vote for your favourite. Personally, it’s a toss up between Gavin and Stacey and Strictly Come Dancing — but if Harry Hill’s TV Burp had been in there I’d have been voting for that.

The full list of the nominees in other categories is after the jump…

The Passion (Monday 9pm, BBC1)

You see, the thing about Judas is, you just can’t trust him. No sooner has Jesus started to earn a name for himself, than Judas heads off to dob his leader in to High Priest Caiaphas, who is becoming increasingly worried about the effect of Jesus’ words. The Passion looks great, and it’s good to have a new interpretation of the rise and fall of Jesus, however traditional it might be.

The Fixer (Monday 9pm, ITV1)

It’s the second episode of The Fixer, and this is the one that counts. If the ratings take a fall and ITV can’t make a hit out of something that’s clearly got a lot going for it, then there really is no hope. Our dour hero John Mercer, an ironic one-liner always locked and loaded, is ordered to protect an informant. Things go a bit wrong, however, when the informant dies and Mercer is put in a very difficult position. An ITV drama that has some bite to it – who would have thought?

The Things I Haven’t Told You (Monday 9pm, BBC3)

Elizabeth Day stars as Aisling in this latest drama pilot from the lip smacking, thirst quenching brand new BBC3. It seems that Aisling was killed in a car accident while searching for her missing mother, and her words are coming from the grave. It’s a good, edgy mystery yarn that hits the mark more than it misses. Andrew Lincoln also stars.

The Great British Menu (Tuesday 6.30pm, BBC2)

It’s no Masterchef, but there’s still fun to be had in this clash of kitchen egos as some of the country’s finest chefs compete to be selected to cook for a prestigious event. Although, this year’s prize of getting to cook for Heston Blumenthal does seem a bit odd.

Holby City (Tuesday 8pm, BBC1)

Rejoice, for Holby Blue is back on our screens! But before you get all of a quiver at this, settle down and watch this episode of Holby City that sees Jac Croft in the frame for an assault on a man who attacked her last year. With the police involved, that can only mean one thing – it’s cross over time, and this story is taken up in the first episode of Holby Blue on Thursday. Oh! Be still my beating heart…

The Diets Time Forgot (Tuesday 9pm, C4)

Volunteers step up to test out diet plans from days gone by. Isn’t TV brilliant?

Nip/Tuck (Tuesday 10pm, FX)

A new season of the colourful and generally entertaining US drama about plastic surgeons Sean and Christian. It’s relocation, relocation in this new run as the surgeons take their business to Los Angeles and the potentially lucrative celebrity market. It’s still a decent series, although one can’t help but think that after one more series, Nip/Tuck might be in need of some surgery itself.

Torchwood (Wednesday 9pm, BBC2)

PJ Hammond, creator of Sapphire and Steel, pens this week’s episode of the vastly improved Torchwood, and that’s a recommendation in itself. There’s a lovely atmosphere to this creepy story of ghosties stalking the streets following the reopening of an old cinema. This showcases a drama that is becoming supremely confident by each passing episode. In the last series of Torchwood, I wasn’t that fussed if I missed one – now it’s appointment TV!

The Curse of Steptoe (Wednesday 9pm, BBC4)

I am rubbing my hands together with glee at the prospect of the first of BBC4’s season of biopics of some of the most tragic comedy stars of days gone by. Writer Brian Fillis showed his mettle with the excellent Fear of Fanny last year, and in this beautiful piece he turns his attentions to the spiky relationship between Harry H Corbett and Wilfred Bramble during the making of Steptoe and Son. Jason Isaacs plays Corbett, while Phil Davis takes on the mantle of Bramble, and both actors give it their all. This is cracking stuff, tragic and revealing throughout. Essential viewing.

Dexter (Wednesday 10.35pm, ITV1)

It’s a stretch to stay up until pushing midnight to keep up with Dexter, but when an import drama is this good, it somehow seems worth it.

Mark Lawson Talks to Galton and Simpson (Wednesday 11.05pm, BBC4)

Mark Lawson, as the title says, talks to the giants of TV comedy who created Steptoe and Son. They provide a fascinating insight into their work and a friendship that has lasted for 50 years.

Holby Blue (Thursday 9pm, BBC1)

Who’s that walking cliché lumbering into shot in the first episode of a new series of Holby Blue? Oh, of course, how could we forget. It’s shouty copper on the edge DI John Keenan, who breezes into the conclusion of the story from Tuesday’s Holby City with all the subtlety of a large brick. Bless. Jac is under suspicion when nobody believes her story about the attack, which leaves the officers at Holby South with much furrowing of brows. I’ve lost all sense of whether Holby Blue is actually any good or not. It’s probably best I don’t go any further than that!

House (Thursday 9pm, Five)

House returns for a new season of improbable medical diagnosis, minus some familiar faces. What’s that? No, I think his accent is fine…

After Saturday’s first show, various people around the interwebs have been noticing that some faces are, like last year, familiar from elsewhere. Blackpool lass Jodie, who talked on the show about having lost weight in an effort to be considered for more roles, did so on Living TV’s The Biggest Loser, according to The Sun.

Over on the Digital Spy messageboards, eagle eyed viewers spotted that Katie Rowley-Jones made it through to the Lonodn callbacks, even though she’s currently already in the West End as Nessarose in Wicked.

Naturally, you get some people complaining, saying that a show like this should be about finding undiscovered talent. But you know what? I don’t care. More than talent, you need trained ability — and if that means someone who is currently in a supporting role applies to a televised open casting for a leading part, then good luck to them.

And on a related note, did anybody catch the official BBC trailer for the show?

I’ll admit there was a point at which, while watching the first episode of I’d Do Anything, I just thought, “Bugger it. I might as well rerun last year’s Any Dream Will Do week 1 review, as it’s really exactly the same show.”

Which, after all, is exactly what this show is. Okay, there are some changes, the first noticeable one being a very odd and somewhat muted title sequence that has neither the humour of Marias fighting one another on the mountains above Salzburg, nor the technicolor exuberance of last year’s effort. And of course, we do have plenty of shots of last year’s winner, Lee Mead, just to keep the squee quotient from the Loppies quite high. Thirdly, alongside the main event of finding a Nancy, we have the simultaneous quest for three moppets to portray Oliver himself.

At heart, though, we’re looking for a single headline performer, and the audition and callbacks are structured here exactly as they were one year ago. There is, however, one big difference — a major new star who made this first show in the series a big improvement on last year. Someone who has shown all the makings of being a huge television personality should they so choose.

I am, of course, talking about casting director David Grindrod. He may have the voice of Dale Winton and look like Reg Holdsworth, but he was the most charming thing about Saturday’s episode.

Sport Relief (Friday, from 7pm, BBC1)

It’s for charidee, so we’ll give this BBC fund-raising extravaganza a thumbs up. Of note to regular readers are Sport Relief editions of Strictly Come Dancing, but personally, I’ll be popping in for the conclusion of Sport Relief Does The Apprentice. Sir Alan goes up against former editor of The Sun, Kelvin McKenzie, in the boardroom showdown. Bliss!

Space: 1999 (Friday 7pm, ITV4)

The crew of Moonbase Alpha encounter some frozen humans. In space.

Coronation Street (Friday 7.30/8.30pm, ITV1)

Devilish David Platt is up to his old tricks again, which is fine by us as we were getting worried the troubled lad was starting to reform. He has a nice girlfriend, looks a bit more groomed, and he was almost fitting into society. Well, it’s back to business as usual for the teen who routinely drives cars into canals for a laugh when he pushes poor old Gail down the stairs. It seems he’s not happy about his mam colluding with Tina over an abortion, and he leaves her for dead. Is this the moment our little tearaway comes unstuck for good?

The Passions of Girls Aloud (Friday 10pm, ITV2)

Erm…

Harry Hill’s TV Burp (Saturday 6.40pm, ITV1)

Isn’t it about time Harry Hill was knighted for his services to television? TV Burp is one of those rare pleasures that comes along every now and then and becomes true appointment TV for all the family. There’s no swearing, no phone lines, no CGI. Just a bloke in a studio saying and doing funny stuff that will have you belly laughing for half an hour on a Saturday night. And we love it, don’t we?

The Culture Show (Saturday 7.10pm, BBC2)

One to watch tonight as on offer will be a contribution from James Corden and Ruth Jones ahead of the new series of Gavin and Stacey on Sunday. There’s also a look at the making of The No.1 Ladies’ Detective Agency which airs on Easter Sunday, which was commissioned for a run of 13 episodes earlier this week.

I’d Do Anything (Saturday 7.30pm, BBC1)

Who would have thought when the search for a new Maria began that BBC1 would find itself with a new, reliable brand for a Saturday night? Well, with Connie Fisher and Lee Mead having been propelled to stardom thanks to How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria? and Any Dream Will Do, the search for West End talent now turns to a new production of Oliver! Over the coming weeks, we’ll be looking for a new Nancy and three new Olivers, as always under the watchful gaze of Andrew Lloyd Webber and the regular panel. Graham Norton provides his usual graceful hosting skills, and additions to the judging panel this time round are Cameron Mackintosh and one-time Fagin Barry Humphries. And you’ll be pleased to know that TV Today will be providing our usual in-depth commentary on all the episodes. I’m sure we’ll be asking for more after this show (sorry)!

Love Soup (Saturday 9.30pm, BBC1)

Easily one of the best things on TV at the moment, it’s a shame Love Soup can’t hold a bigger audience. That being said, it would appear that 3.5 million on a Saturday night is sufficient to win the slot, so it’s far from a disaster. Tonight’s slice of life from our favourite makeup counter girls features a guest appearance from Sanjeev Bhaskar as an old school friend of Alice’s who she suddenly finds herself attracted to.

Dancing on Ice – the Final Skate-off (Sunday 7pm, ITV1)

A two-hour extravaganza to finish the series off.

The Passion (Sunday 8pm, BBC1)

BBC1 gets out the sandals to mount this perfectly reasonable pass through some of the most debated events that history has to throw at us. Joseph Mawle is Jesus in a drama that surely needs no introduction. It’s quite a sumptuous affair, with able support in the ranks of disciples from Dean Lennox Kelly, and Paul Nicholls on good form as Judas. However, it’s James Nesbitt who gets most of the attention for a rather fine turn as Pontius Pilate. The Passion continues and Monday and concludes over Easter weekend.

Lewis (Sunday 9pm, ITV1)

Am I the only one to find it funny that Rebecca Front plays Chief Supt Innocent in Lewis? Um… Probably. This second series of the Morse spin-off comes to a close with a tale of yet more murder in the cloisters and back streets of Oxford. With its decent ratings, I would think ITV rather wish Lewis and Hathaway could be on the beat all year round, but don’t worry. The Royal or something will be along anytime soon.

Gavin and Stacey (Sunday 9pm, BBC3)

Forget anything else that’s on this weekend. There’s only one place the discerning TV viewer should be, and that’s BBC3 at 9pm on Sunday for the first two episodes of a new run for Gavin and Stacey. TV Today was praising this show to the heavens long before it was fashionable, and we’re very pleased to see it return. The superb cast are all back where they should be, and the script is as pithy and loveable as ever. For a more detailed run down of these first episodes, see Scott’s First Look from earlier this week.

Just a day to go now until the BBC launches its latest assault on the West End casting process. As you’ll notice from the various images running on our website, we’ll be covering every episode of the show, starting with tomorrow’s first auditions.

I’ll be on hand to blog each episode, of course, and I expect that plenty of you will be joining me in the comments thread of each review, as happened with Any Dream Will Do last year. And as the series progresses into the live studio rounds, we’ll expand our coverage into our weekly paper. More on that as the time approaches.

In the meantime, the BBC has released some new information: not only on how the three Oliver Twists will be decided upon, but also they have just released ticket booking information. Read on for more…

I imagine there was a cautious shout of “Hurrah!” over at the troubled ITV when its new Monday night drama, The Fixer, firmly hit target and romped home with 6.2 million viewers. As you may recall, we First Looked The Fixer around this time last week, and declared it to be the most promising drama to come out of the beleaguered network. (Come to think of it, I wonder when we’re going to run out of adjectives to describe ITV?)

Of course, this premiere audience figure is to be applauded, but I’m afraid we must sound a cautious note, while not meaning to pop ITV’s ratings balloon in the process. Any success should be celebrated, of course, but let’s cast our mind back a few months. Amanda Redman vehicle Honest debuted with a healthy 6 million, an audience that soon eroded to an embarrassing 3 million a little too quickly. To be fair, Honest wasn’t particularly great; it was trying to be one of those brassy, salt of the earth type dramas, an At Home with the Braithwaites for chavs. At a time when ITV is seeking to develop a different type of drama, this just wasn’t the one to showcase a new direction.

As we exclusively revealed two weeks ago, the female members of the cast of Mistresses had confirmed to me that the series would be returning.

At the time, the men I was interviewing said they had yet to hear. You can hear the whole conversation in the BBC Showcase edition of The Stage Podcast, which is best heard/downloaded through iTunes.

Now the official release has come through, and it’s been confirmed that the male regulars — Raza Jaffrey, Adam Rayner, Patrick Baladi and Adam Astill — are all returning.

Down the pub the other night (yes, your faithful TV Today correspondents do get out sometimes), conversation turned, as it invariably does, to television’s days of yore. This time up for discussion were some of the great television theme tunes we’ve had over the years.

On my iTunes, I have a playlist which gets updated quite regularly with TV themes as and when I can get my hands on something new. Anything is fair game, from a classically epic Space: 1999 (with associated anomalies. In space), to the jolliness of White Horses. I’ve never actually seen White Horses, but I do know I like the theme tune.

Yes, I am a bit of a theme tune daftie – even ones sung by Dennis Waterman. And here’s the rub – where have all the theme tunes gone?

The first series of Gavin & Stacey has won pretty much every award going, and pretty deservedly so. Its presence on BBC3 broke the stranglehold that Two Pints of Lager had on the channel’s comedy image. By turns sweet, touching, acutely observed and raucously hilarious, writers James Corden and Ruth Jones (who also appear as Gav-lah and Stace’s best friends Smithy and Ness) faced a real challenge: making a second series that at the very least doesn’t disgrace the memory of the first.

The good news is, they’ve managed not only to do that, but to surpass it in nearly every way. On the strength of its first two episodes (which air in a double bill this Sunday, 16 March), Gavin & Stacey could be on its way to becoming one of the best BBC series of any genre in recent years.

Delia (Monday 8.30pm, BBC2)

Delia Smith is back and this time she’s teaching us how to cheat at cooking. Oh. I prefer it when she poaches eggs to be honest. Will the original domestic goddess show us she’s still gorrit, or will we be the ones left cheated? The jury is out!

White Girl (Monday 9pm, BBC2)

A beautiful addition to BBC2’s White season. Abi Morgan’s film stars Anna Maxwell Martin as the mother of a young teen who starts to attend prayer meetings at the local mosque. The girl, Leah, is trying to make sense of a chaotic upbringing with an alcoholic mother and an abusive step dad, and her involvement with the mosque helps her find solace and peace. It’s an engaging and thought-provoking piece, with a superb performance from young Holly Kenny as Leah. This could be a young actress to watch very, very closely.

The Fixer (Monday 9pm, ITV1)

We previewed this last week in a First Look, and our judgement remains the same. The Fixer is a promising drama thriller from ITV, and that in itself is something to be cherished. There are some faults (chiefly Tamzin Outhwaite), but the dialogue is taught and funny and, as first episodes go, this is not a bad effort at all. Considering it replaces The Palace, it couldn’t be much worse, could it?

W10 LDN (Monday 9pm, BBC3)

Continuing BBC3’s season of new dramas, W10 LDN is written by Noel Clarke (who also appears) and set on a London estate populated by some well-drawn teen characters.

10 Days to War (Monday 10.30pm, BBC2)

Following White Girl comes another thoughtful piece of drama from BBC2 this evening. This is the first of eight 10-minute dramas covering diverse moments in the lead up to the war in Iraq. Here, Juliet Stevenson plays a Foreign Office lawyer who resigns over legal issues relating to the invasion. These 10-minute dramas are difficult to do, but this seems to succeed quite effectively.

Bionic Woman (Tuesday 9pm, ITV2)

It’s probably been cancelled by now across the pond, but that’s no reason not to check out our very own Michelle Ryan in her first major US TV role. It’s not a bad start, so one has to wonder what went wrong to decimate the ratings. This new Bionic Woman perhaps tries a little too hard to avoid camp, and Ryan’s accent is a little hard to take. But those are minor quibbles in an exciting, punchy opener that also features Battlestar Galactica’s Katee Sackhoff on villainous form.

Sport Relief Does The Apprentice (Wednesday 9pm, BBC1)

One of last year’s TV highlights was Sir Alan Sugar’s little show hooking up with Comic Relief for a celebrity themed version. This year, it’s the same deal, only this time it’s for Sport Relief, but expect the same mix of tantrums, asides to camera and grumblings from Sir Alan that we’ve seen many times before (and are hungry for more, it seems). This comes ahead of the imminent new series of The Apprentice.

Torchwood (Wednesday 9pm, BBC2)

Oh my, Torchwood does comedy and gets away with it. How marvellous! After the last few bleak (but high quality episodes), it’s good to see Torchwood can get in touch with its lighter side and not lose any momentum. It’s Gwen’s wedding Day, but a Torchwood operation has left her with a bite from a shape shifter and a very odd bun in the oven. And do I spy the legendary Nerys Hughes in the guest cast. Well yes, I do. God, I think I really might love this show.

Rock Rivals (Wednesday 9pm, ITV1)

Well, we do love an underdog here at TV Today, so it seems only polite to give this second episode a thumbs up, even if it is because we just feel a bit sorry for Rock Rivals.

Waterloo Road (Thursday 8pm, BBC1)

After a mammoth 20 episode run, this likeable series comes to an end, so well worth a look to see just where it’s at now. Waterloo Road is a much different beast these days, but still enjoyable and a solid addition to the BBC’s strong drama portfolio.

Ashes to Ashes (Thursday 9pm, BBC1)

It’s still not perfect (but then, was Life on Mars?) but Ashes to Ashes has settled down into a thoroughly satisfying piece of TV drama with a bit of everything. Sexy leads (Glenister and Hawes), great dialogue, fun characters and some good, solid crimes to solve. It’s more fanciful than its forebear, but could we have really coped with more of the same?

Space: 1999 (Friday 7pm, ITV4)

This week, the crew of Moonbase Alpha encounter a doomed planet. In space. Well, at least it makes a change from an anomaly. In space.

Email is Ruining My Life (Friday 7pm, BBC2)

We’re all in thrall to our inboxes whether at home or in the workplace, and in this entertaining little piece, Libby Porter investigates some of the staggering statistics behind the simple act of sending and receiving an email. I wouldn’t normally recommend something like this, but rich pickings for your viewing pleasure are thin on the ground tonight, so let’s take what we can get.

Last Orders (Friday 9pm, BBC2)

As a died in the wool Yorkshireman (albeit one who speaks with a naturalised southern accent and drinks beer brewed by trappist monks), the tradition of the working men’s club is one I am very familiar with. This documentary that kicks off the BBC’s White season focuses on the trials of the Wibsey Working Men’s Club, near Bradford. It’s an area I know well, and so Henry Singer’s film has double resonance as it charts the crisis facing the decay of a way of life in these hallowed halls. Poignant stuff.

Moving Wallpaper (Friday 9pm, ITV1)

Ah, so this is the team-bonding-weekend-trip-away episode, and I’m surprised Moving Wallpaper hasn’t served this one up before now. Good to see this fizzy little has been given a second series, so hopefully Moving Wallpaper should be able to start building something of an audience – it really is good, you know.

Monk (Saturday 3.55pm, BBC2)

The fifth season of this brilliant and enjoyable detective drama kicks off in a slot that is an insult to Monk’s quality. Still, I’d rather BBC2 showed it somewhere than not at all, so let’s be thankful for small mercies.

Casualty (Saturday 8.40pm, BBC1)

It’s a night of departures and returns for old faces in tonight’s Casualty. After six years striding the corridors of Holby A&E, Harry Harper (the always thoroughly likeable Simon MacCorkindale) says goodbye. The naughty would be MP has leaked pages of Ruth’s diary to the press, and lives to regret it. Elsewhere, we catch up with series legend Charlie who has been working in a cushy clinic since last we saw him. Can anything persuade him to return to his natural home?

Love Soup (Saturday 9.30pm, BBC1)

Tamsin Greig can’t be anything but utterly charming in this delightful sitcom that TV Today is pleased as punch to see back for a second series. There is so little television that goes out of its way to be simply likeable, and Love Soup achieves it (Gavin and Stacey is the only other show that springs to mind in this category). Brilliant performances and brilliant dialogue make this a fitting tribute to the late Verity Lambert, who produced the series.

The Cult of Sunday (Sunday 8pm, BBC4)

Oh joy! One of the greatest Sunday night dramas ever gets the Cult Of… treatment tonight. Shoestring really did make people sit up – it had a funky theme tune, an engaging star and was a move away from the usual BBC costume dramas of the era (which are fine in their place). With an episode of the high-rating drama beforehand, settle down for the usual array of vintage clips and talking heads contributions from cast and crew.

The Last Enemy (Sunday 9pm, BBC1)

Ah good, I can settle down for a nice little sleep while this is on, as clearly there’s not much to miss. The Last Enemy started off with a bit of promise, but really, it’s time to just get over it.

Mad Men (Sunday 10pm, BBC4)

This supremely stylish drama continues as Don must confront some unusual issues at home. Few dramas hit all the right buttons, but Mad Men makes it look easy.

In the midst of more woes for ITV, I was today expecting to scribble something on how rubbish the world of TV is – again. But instead, I find myself turning to TV’s past for a story that made me smile this morning.

I thought this piece from the Guardian was rather sweet really. It seems a nice gentleman has discovered a possible method of restoring colour to episodes of series that now only exist in grainy old black and white.

Back in the day and long before the dawn of digital technology, master tapes of TV shows were junked to cut down on archiving expenses and space. As we know, some of these programmes are forever lost. However, some shows were transferred to black and white 16mm film for overseas sales to countries where colour television was not yet being used.

When will people learn? Under no circumstances should Tamzin Outhwaite ever be cast as a femme fatale. There, now that’s out of the way, I can get on with casting an eye over the first episode of The Fixer, a new ITV/Kudos thriller.

Okay, the name ITV stamped on the press pack for a new drama series is one that fills even the most hardened of TV journalists with horror, but let’s give it a chance, eh? ITV needs all the help its share price can get at the moment. And I’m going to go out on a limb and say that The Fixer is perhaps the most promising, satisfying piece of drama to come out of ITV in a very long time. It works, despite a thumbnail premise probably written on the back of a beer mat, and that’s an astounding achievement in ITV terms.

After last week’s news that Barry Humphries is to join the judges’ panel of I’d Do Anything, the BBC’s new Saturday evening theatre talent search, comes more information about the revamped format for the show.

As Matt reports over in our News section, Zoe Tyler is no longer involved, after two years as a vocal coach and judge on predecessor shows Hoow Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria? and Any Dream Will Do.

This may please some of our Loppies, who never really forgave Zoe for describing a performance by Lee Mead of Alright Now as ‘a bit rubbish’. I may risk incurring their wrath by pointing out that she was right (it wasn’t his best week, even taking the throat problems he’d been having that week into account)…

It’s easy to get depressed about the state of British television these days – the corridors and cloisters of TV Today frequently sound with tortured moaning after one of us has watched an episode of Hotel Babylon.

But then the nominees for a prestigious awards ceremony like the Royal Television Society awards are released and you suddenly realise that everything’s okay, everything’s going to be all right. Because in the line-up announced by the RTS, it’s easy to see, certainly in isolated circumstances, that here in Blighty, we still make some of the best television in the world.

The Palace (Monday 9pm, ITV1)

Weep with joy as the long-awaited coronation of King Richard IV arrives. Then, weep with sadness as this is the final episode of The Palace and, let’s be honest, the chances of this getting another series are slimmer than a size zero model. It’s an utter mess of a drama series, but as we’ve said before, it’s a charming utter mess. Life without The Palace scarcely bears thinking about, but I’m sure we’ll cope.

Damages (Monday 10.35pm, BBC1)

Alongside the stylishly elegant Mad Men and Dexter, Damages displays that our cup runneth over with the best the USA has to offer in the drama stakes. This Glenn Close starring series is so much more than just another legal drama. In tonight’s episode of the twisty-turny thriller, there are moments of brilliance and tantalising plot twists that point to major developments yet to come. Ingenious and addictive.

Hotel Babylon (Tuesday 9pm, BBC1)

What can I say, I’m weak.

Lily Allen and Friends (Tuesday 10.30pm, BBC3)

Okay, so four episodes in, and it might be worth checking out the show that wants to define the new BBC3. Is Lily Allen’s little show getting any better or is it fine as it is and has just been cruelly overlooked? Louis Walsh is one of tonight’s featured guests, and he’s always good value, so it’ll be worth giving this a look just for that. Perhaps it’s time Square Eyes gave Lily Allen and Friends another chance.

The Hard Sell (Tuesday 10.30pm, BBC4)

More iconic moments from the history of advertising, this week centring on cigarettes and alcohol. Hamlet cigars have a lot to answer for!

Mad Men (Tuesday 11.20pm, BBC2)

A terrestrial showing for this fantastic new drama from the States. Watch it, you know it makes sense. Episode 2 will be on BBC4 next Sunday.

Rock Rivals (Wednesday 9pm, ITV1)

The jury is out on this new series from Shed Productions, those purveyors of fine drama like Footballers’ Wives and Bad Girls. With Moving Wallpaper already mining a seam of post modernism, is Rock Rivals a step too far beyond that? Soap refugees Sean Gallagher and Michelle Collins play the husband and wife judges of a show not unlike The X Factor. When Malcolm (Gallagher) is caught with his pants down backstage, Karina (Collins) launches all out war on her wayward hubby both on screen and off. At the end of the series, the audience will be able to vote for the winner of the fictional series within the series. A little too tricksy? Time will tell…

Torchwood (Wednesday 9pm, BBC2)

A Torchwood well worth making some time for tonight. In Joseph Lidster’s A Day in the Death, Owen is having difficulty with the fact that he’s dead. Well, you would, wouldn’t you? Intercutting between Owen on a roof with a suicidal girl and a mission to investigate an enigmatic millionaire, this covers some fairly heavy themes that will hopefully leave you thinking beyond the closing credits. And there’s no space whale (or much of Captain Jack) to spoil things.

Dexter (Wednesday 10.35pm, ITV1)

Dexter receives a frozen hand in the mail, a token sent by the Ice Truck Killer. Now that the set-up is taken care of, this excellent series can start to get on with the matter in hand. Brilliant.

Ashes to Ashes (Thursday 9pm, BBC1)

Okay, I am slowly starting to give Ashes to Ashes an easier ride. It doesn’t take itself half as seriously as Life on Mars, which I’m starting to find quite refreshing. Clearly Keeley Hawes needs to relax and start putting in the work we know she’s capable off. There’s far too much eyes and teeth on display – just let the Gene Genie do the work, and the rest will slot into place. This week, Ashes to Ashes will be brought to you by the socially relevant backdrop of a gay nightclub, so cue lots of ironic use of period slang.

That Mitchell and Webb Look (Thursday 9pm, BBC2)

This second series of the award winning sketch show is definitely a more consistent affair than first time around, which is a feat in itself as the hit rate wasn’t bad in series one. The skewed sense of reality is what makes things work, but everything is anchored to the real world firmly enough to make things utterly logical. There are more pops at reality TV this week, and the Helivets have a new case. I miss the snooker commentators though.

Channel 4 sitcom Spaced, which ran for two series in 1999 and 2001, has always been something of an acquired taste. Several friends profess to never ‘getting it’, but I could never get enough of the quirky cultural references, subversion of cliche and the general recognition that spending days on end playing video games while heading towards your thirties may not be cool, but could still be bloody good fun.

Quite how a US version, a pilot of which has been commissioned by Fox, will be able to match that is unsure.

But remaking a sitcom for US audiences isn’t necessarily a problem. The Office is the latest in a line of British concepts that have been subtly reworked to great effect. The problem, say original series director Edgar Wright and co-writer Simon Pegg (via fansite Peggster.net), is that their names are being used to promote the remake pilot, despite having absolutely no involvement whatsoever.

Simon Pegg’s full statement is after the jump. As the man himself says, feel free to skip to the end…