August 2008 Archives

The Tudors (Friday 9pm, BBC2)

A pivotal episode of my new favourite thing as the situation literally comes to a head for Sir Thomas More, who refuses to swear allegiance to his old friend the King. Not that Henry seems particularly bothered as he’s busy pulling peasant girls in the woods and luring them back to the royal bedchamber. As for Anne, things do not look good when there’s a problem with her pregnancy and H is still after a son and heir. With a season finale not too far away, who thinks Anne will be seeing season three? Bet now!

Comedy Connections (Friday 10.35pm, BBC1)

I’m amazed that Dad’s Army hasn’t been covered previously in this long-running series, but as it’s the 40th Anniversary of this most classic of sitcoms this year, it seems somewhat appropriate that they’ve finally got around to it now. Of course, we’re sadly fairly low on cast members to reminisce about their days in the Home Guard, but those still with us are all present and correct. Creators Jimmy Perry and David Croft are also on hand to provide some more behind the scenes insight into the genesis of Dad’s Army

Last Choir Standing (Saturday 6pm, BBC1)

This show hasn’t really done it for me, I’m afraid, but it’s proved an adequate diversion for a few million on a Saturday night, so it must be doing something right. I just haven’t been able to get past my irrational hatred for anything fronted by Nick Knowles (although on the plus side, he isn’t Matt Allwright). Who will be crowned the top choir of the competition in the public vote? Find out at 8.50pm!

The X Factor (Saturday 7.10pm, ITV1)

It’s business as usual once again as we’re still at the heat stage. Fun and games but not terribly exciting at this stage.

Dad’s Army (Saturday 8.40pm, BBC2)

After last night’s Comedy Connections, why not watch the real thing with a vintage episode of classic comedy in the company of the Walmington-on-Sea Home Guard. In Knights of Madness, Mainwaring and the boys stage a recreation of the battle between St George and the Dragon. Later, catch a repeat of Comedy Connections at 11.10pm on BBC2.

Gladiators: the Legends Return (Sunday 8pm, Sky One)

Old lags Wolf, Rocket and Trojan return to the Gladiators arena to take on their Noughties counterparts in a special episode of the revived series. I’m so pleased Ian Wright is now presiding over some quality, highbrow television and has left his court jester days on Match of the Day behind.

Fiona’s Story (Sunday 9pm, BBC1)

Thank goodness for some decent drama this weekend, but beware, Fiona’s Story is not an easy or comfortable watch. It’s powerful, intense, ambiguous and thought provoking. Gina McKee is housewife Fiona who occupies a seemingly perfect world with lovely kids and a brilliant husband in Simon (Jeremy Northam). That world is destroyed when the police turn up to arrest Simon for allegedly downloading images of abused children. McKee and Northam are superb as emotions and accusations fly, and this is heavyweight stuff. Heartbeat it ain’t…

Spooks: Code 9 (Sunday 9pm, BBC3)

This week the team tackle a group of eco-terrorists who are planning a bank heist to fund their activities and group leader Charlie is on an intelligence-gathering mission involving a nuclear scientist. I wonder if this is what The Famous Five would be like if Enid Blyton was writing today? Let’s face it, all that’s missing is Timmy the Dog and all that ginger beer.

The drought of summer is officially over as far as TV Today is concerned as our main television networks gear up for their autumn launches. There was great excitement this morning at TV Today towers as the trailer for BBC One’s new Saturday evening family drama, Merlin, launched on the net ahead of cinema and TV showings this weekend…

First thoughts? It’s a very well put together trailer, very fast and seems to sell the story effectively. The whole thing looks beautiful, with some striking sets and costumes, and a cast that takes in some bright young things and some old scenery chewing pros.

So I was at the press launch of Strictly Come Dancing today, which was structured so much better than last year’s event. Held at the Cafe de Paris, events kicked off with Bruce Forsyth seemingly confirming the rumours that this series, the sixth, would be his last — but delivered in a way which meant that no-one really knew if he was joking or not. Some really badly written banter between Brucie and co-host Tess Daly didn’t really help matters — but once all the professional dancers came out and treated us to a group jive, all was forgiven.

It was my first opportunity to see all the professional dancers performing ‘live’, and in the intimate venue it was thrilling to watch.

And then it was time to meet the contestants…

And to end the day, how about a bit of human interest with this charming news story about Gavin and Stacey co-creator and actress Ruth Jones being reunited with her pet tortoise, 55 year-old Tom.

Tom had been missing for five weeks and was found in a recycling centre after getting accidentally caught up in Jones’s recycling regime. There’s nothing to say on this story beyond “Awwwww”. I just thought it was sweet and wanted to share.

While I’m still hoping that we’ve seen off the worst that the summer schedules have to served up (although I may not hold my breath too much), I’m finding my viewing habits dominated in turn by an old favourite and a fairly new kid on the block…

The West Wing is, for many and varied reasons, one of my all time favourite TV dramas. Even in the dodgy years of late season four and most of season five, there was always something to engage me as a viewer, with few, if any episodes, falling short of the mark. Dialogue that fizzes with energy, direction that zips along with style and pace, and actors who rise to give the best material of their careers the justice it deserves all combine in one very potent brew.

My love for this show even goes beyond that of my beloved Doctor Who (and you know what that means to me) Last night my latest WW marathon reached the end of season two with the episode Two Cathedrals, and perhaps one of the greatest season finales ever broadcast. Hyperbole? Not a bit of it!

In this week’s print issue of The Stage, I talk to actor, writer and director Noel Clarke (Doctor Who, Kidulthood, Adulthood) about his career and his plans for the future.

That interview won’t be available online — but Noel has such a lot to say that there wasn’t room to include everything we talked about. So here on TV Today we present a Doctor Who Confidential-style interview containing some bits that also appear in print, and lots that doesn’t.

Scott Matthewman: How long did it take for you to get Kidulthood and Adulthood made?

Noel Clarke: I wrote Kidulthood in 2002. There were a few things around at the time that I didn’t think were as authentic as they could be. It wasn’t written out of anger, but it was just, “This is the way I think it is, this is the way that I’ve seen it.”

We shot it in November, December 2004 and it came out in March 2006, so that was about three and a half years in total. Adulthood was a lot quicker. That wasn’t written until Kidulthood came out, so that was May 2006.

Did you ever think you’d go back and revisit some of the characters?

That was never my intention. In a weird way, it was kind of forced upon me. With other ideas that I’d written, people would say, “Oh, the script is brilliant, but it’s not your voice.” And that kind of stuff would annoy me. But at the same time it was them trying to say, “We’re comfortable with you writing what you’ve written, and that’s a safe bet.”

So essentially I was forced to do it in a roundabout way. No-one actually told me to do it. But it was kind of like well, I can write rom-coms and I can write thrillers, but if people tell me it’s ‘not my voice’, then I might as well stick two fingers up and write something they think is my voice — but at the same time create a bit of history by making a sequel, which doesn’t really happen, and making it a bit more commercial.

So you’d like to branch out into other genres?

Ideally, that’s what I’d like to do. I’ve made a conscious choice that I don’t want to do something which is similar, or if I do then it has to go in a different direction. It’ll have to be a different genre. I’d rather not do anything than do the same film again, and get pigeonholed.

I just want to make films and take the audience that watch my films into different directions. So I can broaden my horizons — and hopefully theirs.

You were able to branch out into sci-fi with an episode of Torchwood [Series 1’s “Combat”]. Was that very different?

Yeah, definitely. It was a different sort of work — I usually write things on spec so I do what I want. But when you write for TV you have to fit within a certain structure or a certain series arc, especially with later episodes. Everyone’s kind of, “This has to happen because our relationships or our characters are here.” It can be a more difficult discipline.

It’s excellent news that the BBC has announced the commissioning of another series of popular detective show New Tricks, which ended its fifth series last night with a healthy 7.8 million viewers and an average share of 31%.

Part of the appeal of the fifth series has been Alun Armstrong’s ever-watchable turn as Brian Lane, the obsessive fact-hunter and social misfit who has struggled, and in last night’s episode failed, to stay on the wagon.

It was a typically downbeat end to a series which tends to walk an uneasy path between jocular slapstick and social realism. Given the quality of the central cast, it’s no real surprise that the whole show actually works better when the subject matter gives them something to get their teeth stuck into. The final moments of last night’s episode, as Brian’s wife (playd by Susan Jameson) found her husband completely intoxicated, was heartbreakingly played by both. In recognition, the end credits rolled with a suitably pensive sound track, eschewing the normal jauntiness of the New Tricks theme as sung by fellow cast member Denis Waterman.

And how much better that ending was. What a shame that the start and end of each episode is normally drowned out by the atmosphere-sucking rubbishness of that theme. It may suit a sitcom, but as an introduction to a drama which despite its lighter moments explores some really dark places, it is completely inappropriate.

Let’s cross our fingers and hope that when New Tricks returns for a sixth run, it can be heralded by some far more suitable music. Although I fear people have been wishing for that since its first series…

Holby City (Tuesday 8pm, BBC1)

It’s always worth checking in every now and then on the lives and loves of Holby General, and it’s pretty much business as usual this week with lots of corridor walking, inter-staff affairs and arguments over the operating table. The central story this week involves an enigmatic millionaire evangelist who offers to stump up the cash to have the conjoined twins separated. Ulterior motive? Probably…

Mutual Friends (Tuesday 9pm, BBC1)

A promising new comedy drama with a great cast, including Marc Warren, Keeley Hawes and Alexander Armstrong. A group of friends are thrown back together following the suicide of an old friend and they find their lives are not as solid as they thought. Warren is at the centre of things as Martin, with an unhappy wife (Hawes) and Armstrong as his ageing Lothario mate Patrick adding to his general confusion and impending mid life crisis existence. Mutual Friends is likeable in a very familiar kind of way and there’s some sharp dialogue that might just help this along as the TV schedules coast that downhill run into autumn.

The Last Word (Tuesday 10.35pm, BBC1)

Slightly more successful than last night’s outing in Hugo Blick’s series of new monologues, this second piece features rarely-out-of-the-tabloids Rhys Ifans as a farmer attempting to break free from a domineering mother, as always seeking the last word of the title. Ifans is a fine actor, his tabloid adventures taking away from the fact that he’s actually a master craftsman when given fantastic material. Thankfully this is one of those occasions.

Doctor Who (Wednesday 7.05pm, BBC3)

With the finale of the last series of Doctor Who still fairly fresh, cast your mind back to 2005 and the finale of series one that saw Eccleston morph into Tennant for a bit of compare and contrast. It’s an interesting watch given the distance of a couple of years, with a restraint exercised in Russell T Davies’s script that seems to evaporate in the coming years as the production team became more confident with what they could achieve (for better of worse in some cases). Platoons of Daleks flying through space and the Doctor making the ultimate sacrifice to save the universe and Rose make for an exciting finish, but it’s the arrival of Tennant that firmly sets this series on course to critical and popular acclaim. Fantastic!

My Zinc Bed (Wednesday 9pm, BBC2)

A sinister drama that adapts David Hare’s play on the nature of addiction that positively fizzes with rapier sharp dialogue and a couple of great performances from Jonathan Pryce and Paddy Considine. Pryce is multimillionaire Victor Quinn, who preys on his wife’s (Uma Thurman) vulnerability brought about by addiction. And then arrives alcoholic poet Paul (Considine) into their lives, and the game gets a new dimension. Thurman doesn’t quite fit this exceptional piece, and some of the inherent stage quality might put some people off, but My Zinc Bed is well worth a look despite this.

The Wrong Door (Thursday 10.30pm, BBC3)

BBC3 continues to court a younger, hipper audience and brings special effects and CGI trickery to the sketch show format to create a fun new comedy. It’s visually brilliant - I can’t remember a sketch show that ever had a velociraptor running around a park - but as with any sketch show, the actual mechanics of the comedy itself can be hit and miss. Thankfully there are more hits than misses here, and I’ll be back next week to see how things develop. And for any new sketch show, the very virtue of it not being the dire The Kevin Bishop Show raises things up a level before the first episode has even aired.

The Nominees (Thursday 10.30pm, FX)

After the well-deserved success of Chris Lilley’s brilliant Summer Heights High on BBC3 earlier this summer, it was only a matter of time before somebody picked up the Australian comedian’s 2005 forerunner. And here it is, with more of the same style of comedy following the lives of a disparate collection of characters that are all up for the award of Australian of the Year. If you didn’t get Summer Heights High, you won’t get this, but it’s just as good, if not better, than Lilley’s international breakthrough.

The Tudors (Friday 9pm, BBC2)

Henry isn’t a happy little king this week (although as a rule of thumb it’s usually hard to tell). His beloved Anne Boleyn is on a downer following the birth of Elizabeth, which has taken the wind out of H’s sails a bit, not to mention Sir Thomas More sticking his oar in on the royal child’s baptism. It’s all enough to drive a king to distraction, but it’s surely only a matter of time before he’s back on his game - he’s still got a few more wives to get through, after all. Entertaining, stylish and hopelessly inaccurate on historical detail - I love it!

Comedy Connections (Friday 10.35pm, BBC1)

In the great pantheon of the sitcom, Sorry! is not one that generally finds its way to the lips of televisual scholars (aka your mate down the pub). But this Ronnie Corbett vehicle that ran throughout the 1980s is more beguiling than its reputation suggests, full of character, wit and some brooding subtext bubbling beneath the surface of Corbett’s timid librarian Timothy Lumsden. Corbett often loses out to his more feted colleague, the late Ronnie Barker, in the comedy stakes thanks to Porridge and Open All Hours, but in Sorry! he was note perfect, and this edition of Comedy Connections quite rightly celebrates those qualities. Language Timothy!

Z Cars (Friday 10pm, BBC4)

It might feel a little odd sitting in on a Friday night watching Z Cars, but there isn’t much else on, and this, also shown last Tuesday, is a little bit of TV history and pure gold. It’s the first episode (and beautiful quality) of the classic BBC series that brought a new style of production to the police procedural. Detective Inspector Barlow and Detective Sergeant Watt recruit four feisty PCs to man the new unmarked crime cars to patrol the towns of Seaport and Newtown - Z-Victor 1 and Z-Victor 2 - the Z Cars. After nearly 50 years, this is still brilliant, vibrant stuff, with a great cast pulling it all together, with Stratford Johns proving a magnificent figurehead as Barlow, a character who, along with Watt, would outlast the original show that spawned him. Watch and wonder why we can’t make them like this any more.

Doctor Who Weekend (Sci-Fi Channel Saturday/Sunday/Monday)

In the absence of any new Who until Christmas, the Sci-Fi Channel dusts down some gems from the “classic” series, featuring Tom Baker, Peter Davison, Colin Baker and Paul McGann, with Patrick Troughton hitching a lift in The Two Doctors. The best of the weekend’s viewing are The Ark in Space on Saturday, seeing Baker, T taking on the insect Wirrn on a space station in the far future, and The Caves of Androzani on Sunday, Peter Davison’s swan song in the role and a contender as finest outing for the original run. Takes me back…

Last Choir Standing (Saturday 6.30pm, BBC1)

We’re at the semi-final stage of this talent show that, personally speaking, has lacked a certain sparkle.

The X Factor (Saturday 7.30pm, ITV1)

Week 2 and The X Factor juggernaut is in Birmingham and London to laugh and point and subject people who really don’t deserve it to some ritual humiliation. And don’t tell me that they didn’t have to audition - Simon Cowell’s terriers in the early selection stages before contestants even get to see the Four Who Rule should be ashamed of themselves for picking hopefuls on laugh value rather than talent. Of course, there are the arrogant, deluded coves that really do know better, but it’s the cruel elements of this show that have started to make me feel uncomfortable. There is entertainment to be had here, but I sometimes wonder at what cost.

Takin’ Over the Asylum (Saturday 10pm, BBC4)

A Bafta winning tour de force for all concerned, Takin’ Over the Asylum, rarely seen since first transmission, receives a long overdue dusting down. My word, it’s one of the best things ever shown on this little box we call TV. Ken Stott is wonderful as down at heel aspiring DJ Eddie McKenna, who takes on the challenge of bringing back a radio station to the drab and miserable corridors of a Glasgow psychiatric hospital. It’s a touching, poignant and funny depiction of a difficult subject, and writer Donna Franceschild works miracles. The series is also notable for an early role for a young fella called David Tennant as manic-depressive Campbell, who becomes McKenna’s enthusiastic sidekick in his battle to keep the station on air. A breathtaking piece of television genius.

Olympics 2008: Closing Ceremony (Sunday 12 noon, BBC1)

Oh god, Boris Johnson is out in Beijing to accept the flag in the handover to London for the 2012 games. Be afraid, be very afraid. Still, the closing ceremony should be a good bun fight if the opening ceremony was anything to go by - just watch out for the lip-synching…

Last of the Summer Wine (Sunday 7.05pm, BBC1)

A nostalgic episode of the sitcom that bravely soldiers on, seeing Clegg and Truly cast their minds back to old friend Compo and the scrapes he used to get into. I still have a great fondness for this old warhorse - I loved it as a kid, and this serves as a nice little tribute to the late Bill Owen who passed way in 1999.

Spooks: Code 9 (Sunday 9pm, BBC3)

London destroyed blah blah… new breed of terrorists blah blah… younger MI5 operatives blah blah… mole in the team blah blah… new world blah blah… new rules blah blah… When are Harry and Adam coming back, please and thank you?

Dexter (Sunday 10pm, FX)

Now if you want edgy, stylish drama but with grown ups on a Sunday night, then look no further than the wonderful Dexter, the second season of which is proving just as tense and exciting as season one, if not more so. Every episode appears to be taking our eponymous serial killer hero a step closer to being unmasked, and as we hit the final third of this second series, who knows where it could go? To a third season, that’s where…

Masterchef: the Professionals (Monday 6.30pm, BBC2)

Saints be praised, a new spin on the Masterchef format that sees Gregg Wallace preside over the trials of a group of young professional chefs who want to take their cooking to the next level. There are no enthusiastic amateurs here, no ill-considered chocolate fondants, and no waspish observations from John Torode. What?! No Torode? Sadly not, although we’re fairly sure he’ll be back for the common or garden Masterchef next year. Gregg’s co-judge for this competition that runs Monday to Friday, is the revered chef Michelle Roux Jr. Will this competition just get tougher? Probably…

New Tricks (Monday 9pm, BBC1)

Final episode of what has proved to be an excellent fifth series for the veteran coppers. The team are up against MI5 spooks and the MoD when they investigate the death of a soldier that may have links to a secret army medical lab. It’s as pithy as always and a great finale to the series, but rest assured, the team will return in a sixth series in the not too distant.

The Last Word Monologues (Monday 10.35pm, BBC1)

First in a three part series of monologues written, produced and directed by Hugo Blick. Sheila Hancock stars in this first piece as a terminally ill woman who prepares for a final conversation with her husband before she takes the path of euthanasia. It’s not quite as powerful as it could be, lacking the depth and honesty of Alan Bennett’s Talking Heads, but it’s still an engaging piece with a great performer. The series continues on Tuesday and Wednesday with monologues from Rhys Ifans and Bob Hoskins.

So QI, the quirky panel game hosted by Stephen Fry, is set to move from BBC2 to BBC1 is it? Can I ask who thought this was a good idea, because frankly, it isn’t, far from it.

Why does the BBC’s premier channel insist on cherry picking the best shows from it’s more specialist channels like some bully who gets the class swot to do his homework and then give it to the teacher as their own work? I admit that this has worked in some cases - The Apprentice is a case in point and has been even more successful following the move from BBC2. But I argue that The Apprentice as a format is right for BBC1, and should probably have been on that channel from the start. But QI just isn’t a BBC1 one show, and I don’t see how it can be.

So the BBC Entertainment division has announced it has commissioned Initial Television to produce a new game show, Wipeout. Which now means I’ve got the Beach Boys song running round my head. Thanks, BBC.

Initially, I did wonder if the BBC were bringing back one of its back catalogue of gameshows from the early 1990s, hosted by Paul Daniels (see this video) and, in its later daytime years, Bob Monkhouse.

But no. Oh no, this Wipeout is very different indeed. A preview from the American version is available after the jump…

As you may have read in our main news section, I’d Do Anything winner Jodie Prenger is to make her West End debut next week. But not in Oliver!, which does not start previews until December. Instead, she is to join the ensemble cast of Les Miserables at the Queen’s Theatre for a three or four-week run.

Unlike Connie Fisher and Lee Mead, who were both thrown into breakneck-speed rehearsals before their respective West End shows opened within weeks of their BBC talent show wins, Jodie has had several months in between conquering the public vote and her opening night. In the meantime, she’s also gone on a summer school course at RADA, while also occasionally performing — this coming Bank Holiday weekend, she’ll be at Bryn Terfel’s Faenol Festival with John Barrowman and fellow talent show alum Daniel Boys, currently going great guns in Avenue Q.

It seems to me that both the RADA course and this move are absolutely the right move for Jodie, as they would be for any actor in her situation. If she’d had the few weeks’ rehearsal time that Connie and Lee were given, I’ve no doubt she would have been able to rise to the challenge more than effectively. But given the six-month gap between winning and first night, it’s good to see her use the time to ensure that her first performance in a leading role on the West End stage is as good as it possibly can be.

Talking recently to some ardent fans of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, that popular old warhorse of CBS’s schedules in the US and Five here in Blightly, they were definitely of the opinion that the show has come dangerously close to “jumping the shark”. In fact, one acquaintance complained that in a recent episode, characters were discussing the very concept of jumping the shark, which he considered dangerous in a drama that was sailing very close to the wind in that regard, grumbling something about: “Be careful what you wish for”.

But is there a ray of hope on the horizon for the original incarnation of the expansive franchise, that also has CSI: Miami and CSI: New York in its stable? Certainly the announcement that Oscar-nominated actor Laurence Fishburne is to take the lead in the Las Vegas based show once William Petersen (aka Gil Grissom) departs partway through the next series, appears to have been met positively.

It seems anything can be turned into a game and/or reality show these days. Singing in a choir? Check - Last Choir Standing is currently dovetailing with The X Factor on Saturday nights. Cabin crew? Check - CelebAir is coming soon as part of ITV2’s new season.

The BBC has recently been expanding into other areas, with Maestro going down really well on Tuesday nights on BBC2. That’s due in part to the judging process being in the hands of professionals rather than the great unwashed and their premium phone lines. Hopefully, it’ll also be true of the latest venture, which sees the Corporation’s Entertainment division team up with the world-renowned Natural History Unit.

To the Ends of the Earth will, apparently, follow eight wannabe natural history film-makers as they compete for a place at the prestigious NHU.

The candidates have to track down and film extraordinary animals in extraordinary places. Each week they will face ever tougher physical, mental and emotional challenges.

They will be judged on what footage they get and, just as importantly, how they get it.

I wonder — will it be allowed to fake footage of foxes in the rain, or not?

You can tell that Autumn’s coming, as the channels start trumpeting their new shows. And it seems that every year there’s at least one channel that also takes the opportunity to rebrand — or at the very least give their existing one a little makeover.

This year, it seems, is ITV2’s turn. The channel’s existing logo has been given a 3D look which will probably come across better on screen than it does on the web. The ITV2 website itself has also been reworked, now working as a Netvibes-powered collection of widgets and gizmos. Visitors are encouraged to add their own widgets to the page, so in theory you can check your email or your Facebook status from the same page. Which is fine, but as far as I can see it’s the wrong way round — ITV should be putting its information out in a way where I can add it to my portal of choice, whether it’s my Facebook page, my iGoogle home page, or whatever. To its credit, ITV is also moving in this direction, with its Flickr streams and Twitter feeds — but you wouldn’t necessarily know that from the ITV2 homepage.

But even in these days of online interactivity, the broadcast channel is still where it’s at. And on the strength of the videos ITV2 have released as part of the launch, I think they’re getting it right. See what I mean after the jump.

ITV has unveiled a brand new variety show for its autumn schedule, with series producer Glen Middleham insisting that the traditional entertainment format can still appeal to a modern TV audience.

Scheduled for a prime time weekend slot, For One Night Only will consist of three 60-minute live shows and one pre-recorded Christmas special, each with a fully professional line-up featuring comedians, West End performers and international singing stars.

The show is the first series using a variety format to be commissioned for such a high-profile slot in some years, but Middleham is confident that audiences are ready for a programme that will be “traditional but glossy”.

“It’s all about how we present it to the audience, so they feel like they are getting something fresh and exciting, when really some of the acts have their roots in times long gone,” he told The Stage. “I don’t think you can ever deny the fact that variety has been going since year dot, so the new show is all about clever casting and the juxtaposition of different acts on the bill. It is also about collaborations people would not necessarily see elsewhere.”

He added: “It is to do with how we present it. I have a very ambitious set that gives a nod to old variety, but is also very modern and slick.

“It gives the show a modern edge, whilst not turning our back on what variety is.” That ITV should be leading the way in launching a new variety show for television is no surprise given its entertainment heritage.

Indeed, it was current executive chairman Michael Grade’s uncle, Lew Grade, who established ITV hits such as Sunday Night at the London Palladium, which ran on the channel from 1955-67.

June 2008: The Stage exclusively reports that Suranne Jones is to play an ex-convict in a new Sally Wainwright drama for ITV1, to be produced by Red Production Company.

August 2008: Stories from Digital Spy, Metro, C21.

How nice of them to keep up! :-)

If you want to be truly up-to-date in your broadcasting news, remember to keep The Stage at the top of your reading list.

It’s horribly compulsive watching, even if at times it does seem to be on a par with a daytrip to Bedlam to point and laugh. Yes, The X Factor is back, and we have weeks of audition shows left before the competition proper gets underway.

Watching last week’s show, though, it struck me that there is something to be learnt from the show, even (or especially) when some of the acts who don’t have a chance are on screen.

And so, in the grand TV Today tradition of starting semi-regular features that end up appearing only once, here we bring you 10 things we learnt from… The X Factor.

Audition tip 1: Know what to expect

Let’s face it, this is the fifth series of The X Factor. You’d think by now that people would have worked out what’s in store for them, but every year we get stories about contestants who feel they’ve been treated badly by Simon and his fellow judges. It’s become quite clear that the acts who get the most success out of the process are the sort of acts that pop impresarios like Simon Cowell know how to package.

You should always go into an audition knowing exactly what to expect. For most jobs it’ll be more about the job at the end of the process, but you should also be clear what is required of you.

Audition tip 2: Have an appropriate audition piece prepared

R’n’B vocal harmony group JLS did the right thing, choosing a song and arrangement that showcased each band member’s talents, as well as illustrating how they worked together. Whether you’re doing a singing audition or an acting one, your choice of material should put you and your abilities in the best possible light.

Also make sure your material is appropriate: if you’re up for a part in a Ray Cooney farce, you wouldn’t audition with a soliloquy from Hamlet. An audition for a part in a chart-based boyband or girl group isn’t going to go well if you go in with your favourite show tune, with all jazz hands blazing.

It’s like Vordermangate over at Coronation Street at the moment it seems, with veteran cobble-walkers having their six-figure salaries slashed, and being paid on a by scene basis…

This began a few weeks ago when it broke in the papers that queen of the mini-skirt, Beverley Callard (Liz McDonald) was taking a salary cut and being paid per episode, which could lose her a reported £50,000 per year. And now the Sunday Mirror has reported that some of the longest serving talent on Coronation Street will be now be employed on a play and pay basis. According to the paper, this august list includes Malcolm Hebden (Norris), Betty Driver (Betty), Barbara Knox (Rita) and, William Roach aside, the soap’s longest serving performer, Eileen Derbyshire (Emily).

Some of these actors reportedly earn up to £250,000 a year, and it is believed this new system of pay will seriously reduce their pay packets, with a supposed ITV insider saying:

The Hairy Bakers (Monday 8.30pm, BBC2)

And with one quick change of a vowel, The Hairy Bikers find a new lease of life as The Hairy Bakers, riding around Great Britain in search of the best baking the country has to offer. This week the lads are looking at bread, and there are some great recipes on offer. That’s the main problem with this format, the food is fantastic, but the banter between the lads becomes wearing after a few minutes, especially Si King who I dearly wish would just SHUT UP and cook!

New Tricks (Monday 9pm, BBC1)

A veritable oasis after a tedious weekend of telly, New Tricks can always be relied upon to deliver the goods on a Monday evening. The team are drawn into the lives of a commune that appears to be at the centre of their most recent investigation. This gives Brian some solace from his usual demons and problems and the always-welcome chance for Alun Armstrong to demonstrate that he’s the best thing in New Tricks. Watch out for guest turns from Lorcan Cranitch and Sylvia Simms.

Crime Thriller Season (Monday 9pm, ITV3)

Tying in to this year’s Crime Thriller Awards, ITV3 commences a season showcasing some of the best detective drama put out by the broadcaster, starting with Ian Rankin, creator of the enduring Inspector Rebus series of novels (and one of my favourite writers). The author talks about his career, his love of Edinburgh and his famous creation. Following this interesting profile you can catch a repeat of The Falls, the first TV outing for Ken Stott as Rebus.

Liverpool on the Box (Tuesday 8pm, BBC4)

As part of the Liverpool season, this clip show charts the high and lows of the city as depicted on our TV screens, with usual suspects Boys from the Blackstuff, Brookside and Bread mixing in with segments from Z Cars. Nicely nostalgic and one for the TV history buffs.

Maestro (Tuesday 9pm, BBC2)

This engaging reality show continues as the celebrities crack on with the quest to conduct the BBC concert orchestra at the Proms. This week, the remaining hopefuls must endure a live performance at Television Centre to see if they have what it takes to go the distance. Good stuff.

Call the Cops (Tuesday 10pm, BBC4)

Sticking with BBC4 for more TV history, this documentary series continues with a look at the legendary and long-running Z Cars. It’s a show that everybody knows, but is little-repeated, and cast members James Ellis and Brian Blessed, amongst others, recall their time with this pioneering series. As the BBC cast about for a successful police procedural series after the death of Holby Blue, it surprises me that some bright executive hasn’t toyed with the idea of bringing back the show.

Trawlermen (Wednesday 8.30pm, BBC1)

It’s basically Deadliest Catch in all but name, but the BBC spin on the Discovery Channel hit is no less compelling or watchable. The Peterhead trawlermen head out into treacherous conditions to bring home a haul of fish that will put money on the table for their family. It’s a thankless task, but these guys put their lives on the line with good humour and tenacity that makes you think twice about your cod and chips on a Saturday night. Not that we should be eating cod, mind.

Who Do You Think You Are? (Wednesday 9pm, BBC1)

Considering tonight’s subject is Boris Johnson, I think this is a question many people would rather like answered.

House of Saddam (Wednesday 9pm, BBC2)

Gripping conclusion to a truly magnificent drama documenting the true story of the rise and fall of Saddam Hussein. There’s a more reflective air to this closing segment, with Saddam a fugitive in his own country, hiding out from coalition forces. He’s a broken man and this is a stark contrast to the proud and powerful creature we have seen throughout this series. And then you remember that the whole thing really happened, and that snaps you back to reality. Sobering.

Harley Street (Thursday 9pm, ITV1)

Back in 1998, when legendary sitcom Seinfeld came to an end in America, the nation vibrated under an onslaught of anguished cries from the populace. I anticipate much the same reaction in the UK when Harley Street heaves to an end on Thursday. Never more Suranne Jones’s plum-in-the-gob accent, ta-ra to the nice coats, and bye bye dialogue that would make the script editor of Bonekickers blush (still can’t resist having a dig at Bonekickers…)

The Cup (Thursday 9.30pm, BBC2)

A promising new comedy in that mockumentary style that’s so difficult to get right - this succeeds to an extent, but I’m not sure if it can sustain six episodes, but we’ll see how it goes. Steve Edge is obsessive dad Terry, whose son plays in a junior footie team that the documentary team is following. Much of the comedy revolves round competitive parents, and I get the feeling that is going to wear thin, but on the whole, this first outing for The Cup more or less succeeds.

It was a nice touch to hear Paul Jackson, ITV’s Director of Entertainment and Comedy, open the press launch for series 5 of The X Factor with a tribute to his mentor, the late Bill Cotton, although I suspect that the reference went over the heads of the assembled hordes of celebrity magazine journalists in attendance.

I wouldn’t like to guess how Sir Bill would have felt about The X Factor, a programme which, for the first few weeks of programmes, delights in finding as much entertainment value in humiliating members of the public as in uncovering new singing talent from the unlikeliest of people. Still, there’s no denying its unrelenting popularity, and this year it’s back and bigger than ever.

The on-screen captions tell us that 180,000 applied this year — although Jackson told us that ‘just under 100,000’ auditionees were seen at the initial production level, implying that nearly half of all applicants don’t even make it to that first, unseen, stage. To emphasise how much bigger it is, we’re shown sweeping crane shots of football stadia and concert arenas packed to the gunnels with wannabes.

And the bombast just keeps on coming.

The Tudors (Friday 9pm, BBC2)

Somebody’s playing the assassination game in tonight’s tale of everyday Tudor folk as they take a pot shot at Anne Boleyn. Poor Anne, nobody seems to like the girl, from the British public to the Pope (a fabulous Peter O’Toole). And Henry is sure to go off her pretty soon, even though she’s pregnant and all around are hoping for a bouncing baby boy… One feels there might be disappointment on the way. History has to play a small part in the narrative somewhere along the way. Doesn’t it?

Comedy Connections (Friday 10.35pm, BBC1)

Lifting the lid on another classic comedy. This week the long-running Rab C Nesbitt gets the connection treatment, full of the usual talking head interviews, revealing stories and clips galore. It’s not one of my favourite comedies ever (I prefer Still Game), but its place in the annals of comedy history are assured - there’s even a very early appearance from a young David Tennant in there somewhere…

The X Factor

It’s that time of year when The X Factor returns and the mammoth slog to Christmas begins in earnest. Of course there are well-publicised changes this year - Sharon is out, to be replaced Girls Aloud pop starlet Cheryl Cole (and you won’t find any complaints from me on that score). Also, over on The Xtra Factor on ITV2 straight after the main show, Holly Willoughby takes over from Fearne Cotton. Oh well, we can’t have everything. No doubt Louis will quit halfway through the run, only to be persuaded to come back by Simon in a flurry of tabloid scuttlebutt, but by now, it’s all just part of the fun. As always we start off with the heats, commencing in Manchester. Let the fun begin! (And come back to TV Today tomorrow for our review — Ed.)

Sleepers (Saturday 8pm, BBC4)

A shining beacon in a dull Saturday evening schedule (The X Factor aside), this frothy comedy thriller from the early 90s concludes. Our lovable Russian spies, played consummately by Warren Clarke and Nigel Havers, evade the covert forces of both the KGB and MI5 in a mad