June 2011 Archives

Leonardo CBBC, Monday 5.15pm

Okay, so you know I love this programme already. It does have its flaws — while it’s generally stronger when dealing with the emotional lives of the four young leads, when it does so the eponymous Da Vinci ends up being the least interesting character. That’s no discredit to Jonathan Bailey, who is a charismatic lead — but in recent weeks he and the rest of the cast have been eclipsed by Flora Spencer-Longhurst’s doe-eyed cross-dresser Lisa/Tomaso, who has become the real heart of the show.

It’s the penultimate episode this week, and Leonardo is tempted to join forces with Piero de’Medici when he reveals he’s had Leo’s designs built. But Piero has his own plans for Leonardo’s inventions that end up pitching Da Vinci against de’Medici…

Sirens Channel 4, Monday 10pm

Comedy drama starring Rhys Thomas, Kayvan Novak and Richard Madden as a trio of paramedics. Inspired by real-life exploits as documented by Brian Kellett in his blog (and later, book) Blood Sweat & Tea, the previews I’ve seen haven’t been all that promising, but the leads are charismatic enough.

Lead Balloon BBC2, Tuesday 10pm

I’ve been a bit disappointed with this series of Lead Balloon — the typical episode structure, where Rick’s publicity-hungry exaggerations and lies lead to his eventual humiliation, has seemed a little tired. So this week’s break from the format is welcome, as Rick is held hostage by a knife-wielding prisoner (Robbie Coltrane).

Liz Smith’s Summer Cruise BBC4, Wednesday 10.25pm

Another showing for Daisy Asquith’s emotional documentary following actress Liz Smith (The Royle Family) as she goes on her first real holiday, a cruise on the Adriatic.

Dance! The Most Incredible Thing about Contemporary Dance BBC4, Thursday 8pm

Contemporary dance can be one of the most maddening of arts disciplines. For me, when it works it can hit you right in the gut with intense emotion — but when it doesn’t, it just feels like a load of self-indulgent twaddle. Charles Hazlewood investigates the genre, immersing himself and participating in it, as well as interviewing some of the leading practitioners.

Leonardo CBBC, Monday 5.15pm

The best children’s drama in a long while took a few episodes to find its correct tone and pace, but with just three more instalments to go until the end of the 13-part series it has a confidence and allure that most shows for grown-ups should aspire to. This week, dippy Lorenzo is kidnapped when the girl he falls for turns out not to be the humble fishmonger he thought she was, and Lisa’s dual identity is revealed to the evil Piero de Medici…

The Tudors BBC2, nightly after midnight (times vary)

Slim pickings for drama and comedy highlights on telly this week, so we’ll take the opportunity to highlight some interesting repeats — starting with Jonathan Rhys-Meyers as Henry VIII in the much derided, but compulsively watchable retelling of Tudor history. BBC2 starts a nightly repeat of the series from the very first episode, but check schedules for more information: the actual time changes from night to night, and from country to country, with Scotland and Northern Ireland having to wait until 1.20am on some nights.

Agony and Ecstasy: A year with English National Ballet BBC4, Tuesday 8pm

Following the ENB throughout its 60th anniversary year, this three-part documentary exposes all the frantic work behind the scenes that goes on try and make each performance seem effortless. An essential watch.

Shameless US More4, Thursday 10pm

The US adaptation of Channel 4’s long-running series sees William H Macy take on the role of Frank Gallagher, the slobbish father of six smart kids who have to fend for themselves.

…The Matt Lucas Awards.

The BBC has made a TV pilot based on Radio 2’s And The Winner Is…, in which chair Matt Lucas proposes odd categories for awards, and three comedian guests make their suggestions for winners.

Normally, a not-for-broadcast pilot would be seen only by BBC executives, who would then decide whether to commission a full series. This time, though, the pilot episode has been released on the BBC Comedy website — and is also available below:

Glee E4, Monday 9pm

The final episode of Season 2, and the final episode for terrestrial television - Sky have bounght the rights for subsequent series. From what I gather, it’s a lacklustre conclusion to a season which has often struggled to display the quirky charm that made it so popular in its first series. It’s also rushed — anybody’d think this was intended to be an extra-length programme that then head to be edited down to standard length…

Luther BBC1, Tuesday 9pm

Idris Elba returns as British television’s most haunted policeman. Still plagued by the memory his estranged wife’s murder in the last series, he must turn his intuitive policing to solve the case of a killer who stalks London’s streets while wearing a Halloween mask. Ruth Wilson’s mad killer Alice also returns, although she’s now locked up in a secure facility.

Agatha Christie’s Marple: Why Didn’t They Ask Evans? ITV1, Wednesday 8pm

Julia McKenzie’s spinster detective gatecrashes another Agatha Christie novel which managed to survive perfectly well without her. Still, at least the cast list is something to be admired: Richard Briers, Samantha Bond, Freddie Fox, Rafe Spall, Rik Mayall, Warren Clarke, Sean Biggerstaff, Helen Lederer… Another promising sign is that the adaptation is by Patrick Barlow (National Theatre of Brent).

The Shadow Line BBC2, Thursday 9pm

The final episode of Hugo Blick’s crime drama, which has managed to combine astonishgly beautiful visuals with subpar dialogue. Still, the performance of most of the cast makes up for the words in their mouth, especially Stephen Rea’s superhuman Gatehouse, Freddie Fox’s mischievous rent boy Ratallack and Chiwetel Ejiofor’s Jonah, the quiet centre around so much madness has been revolving.

Channel 4’s Comedy Gala Channel 4, Friday 9pm

A marathon evening of stand-up performed in aid of Great Ormond Street Hospital, with performers including Alan Carr, Chris Moyles, Sarah Millican, Dara O’Briain And Lee Evans. Last year’s gala also saw comedians gatecrash various adverts during the commercial breaks — a good way to encourage the audience to watch the things, I guess…

So You Think You Can Dance BBC1, Saturday 7.15pm & 10pm

The grand final of a series that has so underwhelmed me I stopped watching. Sorry. Unfortunately, so has pretty much everybody else so it doesn’t look like SYTYCD will be back. The results show sees a music performance from Jennifer Lopez.

Camelot Channel 4, Saturday 9pm

Packed with British acting talent but made in the US, this is the Arthurian myth given a Tudors-style makeover. Jamie Campbell Bower (Sweeney Todd) plays Arthur, while Joseph Fiennes’ Merlin is a scheming puppet master.

Moving On BBC1, Sunday 10.25pm

I missed the start of this repeat run last week, for which my apologies (if you hurry, you can catch episode 1 on iPlayer). This ten-part series of self contained plays, all focussing on people whose lives are on the cusp of change, originally ran in BBC Daytime. This week’s episode, Skies of Glass by Nick Leather, sees a childless couple (Claire Skinner and Shaun Dooley) struggle to cope when an abandoned baby is left on the backseat of their car.

If you were listening to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Monday morning, you might have heard a segment talking about a forthcoming stage production of The Ladykillers, which was originally an Ealing comedy starring Alec Guinness and Peter Sellers.

What was significant about the short item was the fractious nature of the piece, a three way discussion between Today presenter Justin Webb, Guardian theatre critic Michael Billington and writer Graham Linehan, who has taken on the task of adapting the film so that it works for a live theatre audience.

The segment started out easily enough, with Linehan talking about how he has changed the story slightly so that all the action takes place within the one set, and how that frees up time that would otherwise be taken up with scene changes to explore characters in more depth.

But that changed under Webb’s stewardship, as he brought Billington in to dispute the merits of adapting any film for the stage.

Injustice ITV1, Monday-Friday 9pm

Anthony Horowitz (Foyle’s War) scripts this five-part psychological legal drama, scheduled nightly this week. James Purefoy stars as a barrister who, after recovering from a nervous breakdown, sees a figure from his past which threatens to reopen old wounds. At the same time, he is asked by a friend to defend him from a murder charge. Dervla Kirwan costars as Purefoy’s wife — read Matthew Hemley’s interview with her.

Glee E4, Monday 9pm

The penultimate episode of the series, and there’s a death and subsequent funeral to cope with — while New Directions also have to finish their preparations for Nationals, and enlist help from a familiar face.

Psychoville BBC2, Monday 10pm

If you’ve been following the ever-darkening comedy series from Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton, take note: for the final episode this series, the BBC have rescheduled it from Thursday to Monday. Crazy. The finale itself promises to be as dark, funny and gruesome as we’ve come to expect.

Angry Boys BBC3, Tuesday 10.40pm & 11.10pm

Chris Lilley’s Summer Heights High combined sharply observed satire with a great line of sharp dialogue. For this follow-up series, Lilley has turned his attention away from high school and onto the disaffect youth of smalltown Australia. As before, Lilley plays multiple characters, from identical twins Daniel and Nathan to Ruth, a warder in a young offenders’ institution, and an American rapper called S Mouse.

In with the Flynns BBC1, Wednesday 8.30pm

BBC1’s latest studio-based family sitcom is loosely based upon US comedy Grounded for Life. Will Mellor and Niky Wardley star as the young parents of three children whose life never seems to be anything but chaotic.

The Shadow Line BBC2, Thursday 9pm

In the penultimate episode, pieces start to fall into place. Gabriel beings to piece together his missing memories, while Glickman and Gatehouse continue to circle one another.

Mock the Week BBC2, Thursday 10pm

A tenth series for the topical panel game, which this series loses Russell Howard and opens up a new seat for guest comedians. Sadly, the series opens with yet another all-male panel. Why can Radio 4 find female comedians who can be topical and funny, but television can’t?

Saturday Play: Little Platoons Radio 4, Saturday 2.30pm

A satire by Steve Waters, focussing on the coalition government’s “free schools” initiative, which allows groups of parents to set up their own school.

Take It From June Radio 4 Extra, Saturday 9am, 7pm

Celebrating 60 years in radio comedy and drama, June Whitfield talks about her career and shares some of her favourite performances, from Take It From Here to The News Huddlines and also including one of her Miss Marple outings. Whitfield also crops up

BBC New Comedy Awards Radio 2, Saturday 10pm

The BBC’s search for new stand-up talent has been through ten (unaired) regional heats, and now reaches the semi-final stage. The 12 finalists will present their acts over two weeks, with the best six going forward to the final on June 18.

Drama on 3: Flare Path Radio 3, Sunday 8pm

As part of the celebrations of Terrence Rattigan’s centenary, Radio 3 adapts his drama set in a hotel near a WW2 airbase. Be warned, though, this isn’t the same cast that’s currently on stage at the Theatre Royal Haymarket. Instead, we get a (similarly top notch) cast of Rupert Penry-Jones, Ruth Wilson, Rory Kinnear, Una Stubbs and more.

The Rattigan Versions Radio 4, Monday-Friday 3.45pm

Continuing the Rattigan theme, Mark Lawson talks to five people who had a close connection with the playwright.

Afternoon Play: A Monstrous Vitality Radio 4, Tuesday 2.15pm

A chapter of Margaret Routherford’s life is explored in a drama by Andy Merriman, who has also written a biography of the actress. June Whitfield, who played Miss Marple (that character which secured Rutherford’s on-screen legacy) on radio, plays Rutherford as she falls for one man while still married to fellow actor Stringer Davis.

Afternoon Play: The 40-Year Twitch Radio 4, Wedneday 2.15pm

When Yvonne (Paula Wilcox) loses her job, she starts to see her husband’s (Philip Jackson) birdwatching hobby as a threat to their marriage. Daniel Thurman’s comedy also stars Anne Reid.

Friday Night is Music Night Radio 2, Friday 8pm

A special edition of the show sees the BBC Concert Orchestra, under the conducting baton of Roderick Dunk, celebrating 50 years of the Royal Shakespeare Company. Musically, the programme features music from ballets, film, operas and stage works that have adapted the Bard’s plays, while RSC members also perform some soliloquies.

The Graham Norton Show BBC1, Friday 10.35pm

Liza Minnelli joins Graham on the sofa, along with actors James McAvoy and Jack Dee.

Doctor Who BBC1, Saturday 6.40pm

So — SPOILERS if you haven’t watched last week’s episode yet (repeated tonight, Friday, on BBC3 at 7pm) — Amy wasn’t Amy at all, and hasn’t been for some time (I have my own theories as to when). In a twisting, turning episode that is the last before the series takes a summer break, River Song finally reveals who she is, the real Amy has a baby, Rory dresses as a Roman again and there are old monster costumes galore.

And National Theatre Wales actress Catrin Stewart guest stars as a character with a very familiar name…

Britain’s Got Talent Final ITV1, Saturday 7pm, 9.30pm

I have to say that the standard of acts that got through to the semi-finals stage has been pretty low this year, although there have been quite a few good quality ones in there. As a result, the final should be fun, if not quite as must-see as the first couple of years.

Popstar to Operastar ITV1, Saturday 9pm, Sunday 8pm

A half-hour extended trailer on Saturday precedes Sunday’s opening of the second series of ITV’s celebrity singing show, as pop singers learn the techniques to be able to sing opera-style arias. That the show takes the term “opera” loosely is shown by the current trailer, which shows judges Rolando Villazon and Katherine Jenkins blasting out Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody…

Case Histories BBC1, Sunday 9pm

The Beeb launches its latest crime series in the now-familiar two-episode-per-story format that we’ve come to know from shows like Waking the Dead and Silent Witness. Based on Kate Atkinson’s novels, Jason Isaacs plays Jackson Brodie, an Edinburgh-based private investigator. In this first story, which concludes on Monday, sisters Fenella Woolgar and Natasha Little commission Brodie to track down their sister, who went missing 30 years previously.

Scott and Bailey ITV1, Sunday 9pm

During last week’s first episode, I tweeted that this show was “exactly how I’d expect a Sally Wainwright police drama to be”. I did mean this as a compliment of sorts — it puts quirky, flawed female characters to the fore, the police department is very tastefully decorated (all turquoise walls and red roller blinds) and Murray Gold’s score is rather nice. All a little twee, but with signs of a harder edge underneath — not a bad trick to be able to pull off.