TV Column: THE APPRENTICE + BETTY DAVIS: GODMOTHER OF FUNK

This article was originally published in The Courier on 28th September 2019.

https://www.thecourier.co.uk/fp/lifestyle/entertainment/tv-film/paul-whitelaw-reviews/987879/tv-preview-the-apprentice/

NEXT WEEK’S TV

THE APPRENTICE

Wednesday, BBC One, 9pm

It is, I suppose, comforting to know that in these uncertain times, there will always be another conveyer belt of grasping buffoons for Alan Sugar to cast a jaded eye over. As series 15 commences, we’re required to play the usual game of assessing who this year’s breakout stars will be. Who will become the nation’s favourite laughing stock, only for them to eventually turn up on You’re Fired! to reveal that they’re actually more human and likeable than the edit made out? Candidates this year include a Shakespeare-quoting librarian, a cockney geezer and a Michael McIntyre clone who describes himself as “a pig in business”. Task one: set up a bespoke tour in the countryside around Cape Town. Heaven help us all.

WHAT BRITAIN BUYS AND SELLS IN A DAY

Monday, BBC Two, 9pm

Our trading relationships are about to face their biggest challenges in decades, but how much do we really know about the systems which enable Britain to import and export goods on such a massive scale? In this, to say the least, optimistic new series, Ade Adepitan, Cherry Healey and, yes, Ed Balls examine the ways in which Britain trades with the rest of the world. It begins with a hard-hatted Balls visiting the vast London Gateway port to find out more about where our fruit and veg comes from. Adepitan travels to Peru to reveal how our growing interest in healthy eating has had a positive economic impact on overseas communities, and Healey visits a busy trading centre responsible for securing global produce.

TINY LIVES

Thursday, BBC One, 9pm

The specialist neonatal unit at University Hospital Wishaw is dedicated to caring for seriously ill and premature babies. It’s the setting for this sensitive three-part series from BBC Scotland, in which amazing NHS professionals and anguished families deal with a variety of complex medical emergencies. Charlie was born at just 23 weeks, almost the earliest stage at which a baby can be kept alive outside the womb. “You’ve got to have hope,” says his tired young mother. “If you don’t have hope you don’t really have anything.” Tiny Lives makes for difficult viewing at times, but no one could fail to be moved by the abiding theme of kindness, love and courage in the face of adversity. It’s humbling.

BETTY DAVIS: GODMOTHER OF FUNK

Friday, BBC Four, 10:30pm

Pioneering funk musician Betty Davis vanished from the spotlight over 30 years ago. This unusual documentary tracks down, sort of, an enigmatic cult performer whose raw, raunchy stage persona paved the way for artists such as Prince and Madonna. She also inspired her late husband Miles to embrace jazz-rock fusion. He inspired her to write and perform. He also physically abused her. Davis, who remains unseen for much of the film, recounts her story via a narrator reading poetry inspired by conversations with the filmmakers. Betty Davis was an independent black woman who defied convention. She played a sexually-charged role to make a socio-political point, but the attendant controversy and her innate sensitivity couldn’t support the weight. A sad film, it will linger with you.

LAST WEEK’S TV

ARENA: NOMAD – IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF BRUCE CHATWIN

Saturday September 21st, BBC Two

Werner Herzog is one of the world’s greatest living filmmakers. An actual genius. As a documentary-maker, he’s been responsible for haunting films such as Grizzly Man. Once seen, never forgotten. This profile of the late, renowned adventurer Bruce Chatwin didn’t scale such heights, but it was typically idiosyncratic. Herzog, no stranger to fantastical adventures himself, collaborated with Chatwin during the last years of his life. They were kindred spirits. This affecting ode to their friendship was a dry-witted affair in which fond understatement said more than cheap sentimentality ever could. Herzog and Chatwin are inspiring figures. Life-affirming myth-spinners. Also, as all civilised people agree, Herzog’s none-more-Herzog style of narration is one of life’s eternal pleasures. He should be the voice of the BT speaking clock.

JAPAN WITH SUE PERKINS

Wednesday September 25th, BBC One

In the concluding chapter of her Japanese odyssey, Perkins confirmed that she’s one of the best celeb-orientated travelogue presenters. Like Palin and Connolly, she’s genuinely interested in the cultures under scrutiny. She makes witty asides whenever witty asides feels appropriate, but never sneers or hogs the limelight. She’s funny, sensitive, thoughtful. A surprisingly moving series at times, far removed from the bland, gawping norm.

TV Column: SEAHORSE: THE DAD WHO GAVE BIRTH + SCARBOROUGH

A version of this article was originally published in The Courier on 7th September 2019.

https://www.thecourier.co.uk/category/lifestyle/entertainment/tv-film/paul-whitelaw-reviews/

NEXT WEEK’S TV

SEAHORSE: THE DAD WHO GAVE BIRTH

Tuesday, BBC Two, 9pm

Freddy is a gay transgender man who wants to have a baby. Filmed over three years, this beautiful documentary from acclaimed filmmaker Jeanie Finlay follows him through the entire complex process. While searching for a sperm donor, Freddy swaps testosterone shots for folic acid tablets. He opens up about his anxieties and admits that he wasn’t fully prepared for the myriad physical and psychological effects of being able to conceive again. Freddy’s mother is fully supportive of his brave decision, but his father can’t come to terms with it. Finlay’s captivating, intimate film successfully challenges societal misunderstandings and expectations surrounding gender and parenthood. “If all men got pregnant,” says Freddy, “then my God, pregnancy would be taken much more seriously.”

HIGH SOCIETY: THE CANNABIS CAFÉ

Tuesday, Channel 4, 10:15pm

In the final episode of this gossamer thin confection – think First Dates, but cheerfully stoned - our British guinea pigs reflect upon what they’ve learned from spending time in Holland, where cannabis is legal. Café guests include some post-menopausal choir ladies, a bland young couple, a champion female boxer who’s considering gender reassignment – she meets up with former Lennox Lewis manager Kellie Maloney - and a woman who wants to convince her dad that medicinal cannabis use is beneficial. The point of the series is this: don’t people open up more when they’re high? Well, maybe. Possibly. They also spout a load of boring, meandering, self-involved blah, all of which is captured here for your enjoyment.

THE BIG HOSPITAL EXPERIMENT

Wednesday, BBC Two, 9pm

The NHS is understaffed and overburdened, but maybe – if the Tories don’t destroy it first – it can draw strength from an influx of trained volunteers. This commendable series tests the practicality of an idea which, if it succeeds, could eventually become standard practice throughout the UK. During their second week on the wards at the Royal Derby Hospital, the young team of volunteer nurses are beginning to appreciate the existential magnitude of caring for patients on a daily basis. Some cope better than others. While maintaining their outward compassion, nurses have to suppress their instinctive emotional responses to human suffering, which isn’t something that can be learned overnight. The Big Hospital Experiment reinforces the incalculable value of our NHS. It's underlying message, of course, is that enlisting dedicated unpaid workers is an utterly shameful state of affairs, but I doff my invisible hat to these volunteers.

HAIRY BIKERS: ROUTE 66

Thursday, BBC Two, 8pm

The hirsute motorcyclists hit the world’s most mythical rock and roll highway in this typically affable and pointless new series. Their culinary journey encompasses nine American states and over 2,000 miles of tarmac, during which they devour massive, sizzling portions of grub while, so they say, celebrating the cultural diversity and eventful history of the star-spangled land of the free and battle-scarred home of the brave. They don’t study this subject in any great depth, of course, as that’s beyond the featherweight modus operandi of their scripted banter personae. Instead they just bask in their surroundings while tenderising slabs of beef. Still, the unpretentious restaurateurs they meet are friendly, which is nice, and the easy riding scenery is quite something to behold.

LAST WEEK’S TV

THE DOG HOUSE

Thursday September 5, Channel 4

Well, this is just lovely. A series based in a home for abandoned dogs, it captures the tail-wagging highs and whimpering lows (the latter outweigh the former, thankfully) of picking up a pooch. The employees view themselves, quite rightly, as adoption agents responsible for matching canines with appropriate humans. Scruffy little Tiny meeting a young woman who struggles with depression was a particularly touching moment.

SCARBOROUGH

Friday September 5, BBC One

Derren Litten, the architect of Benidorm, is responsible for this sitcom set in the titular seaside town. It dutifully echoes the cadences of Alan Bennett and Victoria Wood dialogue, but never comes close to matching their immaculate turns of phrase. Litten is a harmless minor talent – a reliable hack - whose work amounts to little more than an inadvertent parody of lower middle-class comedy tropes. 

MORTIMER AND WHITEHOUSE: GONE FISHING

Friday September 6, BBC Two

In these harrowing times, we grasp for specks of comfort wherever we can find them. Exhibits B and P: two middle-aged comedians standing in some rivers. Every episode of this charming series was exactly the same, but it never wore out its welcome. When they exchanged presents at the end – and that really did feel like the end – I had something in my eye. Thank you, fellas.

TV Column: UNTOUCHABLE: THE RISE & FALL OF HARVEY WEINSTEIN + PEAKY BLINDERS

This article was originally published in The Courier on 31st August 2019.

https://www.thecourier.co.uk/category/lifestyle/entertainment/tv-film/

NEXT WEEK’S TV

A CONFESSION

Monday, STV, 9pm

Tim from The Office – aka the actor Martin Freeman – stars in this gritty shaky-cam factual drama from genre maestro Jeff Pope (if you’ve ever enjoyed a superior true-crime ITV drama produced within the last 20 years, Pope was almost certainly the man behind it). It recounts the unusual story of a senior police officer who, in 2011, breached protocol to catch the person responsible for abducting and killing a young woman. Meanwhile, a woman who lost her own daughter under similar circumstances begins to fear that the cases are linked. Jeff Pope probably has the words ‘truth is stranger than fiction’ on a framed macramé print above his desk, it’s a maxim upon which his impressive career is predicated.

RISE OF THE NAZIS

Monday, BBC Two, 9pm

In 1930, Germany was a liberal democracy. Four years later it was governed by a totalitarian regime of murderous criminals. “This,” intones the narrator of this grimly compelling new series, “is the story of how democracy died.” It is, like Laurence Rees’ classic series, a warning from history. Told via dramatic reconstructions and talking head contributions from expert historians, Rise of the Nazis examines the events of those four fateful years in forensic, granular detail. It’s a frightening illustration of how fascism can take hold of a nation. The far-right are still a highly visible threat in Europe and America. They’re still using the same techniques to stir up dissent, to mislead, divide and conquer. Be afraid.

UNTOUCHABLE: THE RISE AND FALL OF HARVEY WEINSTEIN

Monday, BBC Two, 11:15pm

How did the pathological sexual predator Harvey Weinstein get away with his crimes for so long? This thorough 90-minute documentary damningly exposes a culture that enabled the behaviour of this monstrous Hollywood mogul and others like him. Taking centre stage are devastating testimonies from some of his traumatised victims. Their evidence repeats the same pattern: they felt trapped, manipulated and intimidated by Weinstein’s heinous abuse of power. He faced numerous accusations of sexual misconduct throughout his reign, but always managed to suppress them. The film features contributions from guilt-ridden former colleagues who were aware of his reputation and those who tried in vain to expose him. The king has been dethroned, but the #MeToo fight continues.

THE CAPTURE

Tuesday, BBC Two, 9pm

The current glut of nervy TV thrillers hasn’t emerged by mere coincidence. Television, as always, reflects our fearful preoccupations. The zeitgeist, if you will. This new Line of Duty-esque drama follows a British soldier accused of needlessly murdering a member of the Taliban in cold blood. After he’s acquitted, he’s then accused of assaulting and kidnapping his barrister on the streets of London. Actual fake news? A violent incident apparently captured via CCTV triggers a dark, stark, uncomfortable piece – anyone who’s been foolish enough to follow my scribblings over the last 20 years will know that I’m a fan of dark, stark, uncomfortable pieces. It also boasts a tremendous cameo from that great, indispensable character actor, Paul Ritter. Recommended.

LAST WEEK’S TV

PEAKY BLINDERS

Sunday 25th August and Monday 26th August, BBC One

This sooty hokum has earned its promotion from BBC Two to BBC One. Its cult has grown to such an extent that it no longer belongs on its original home. People who criticise this gangster saga, this wild tumult of melodramatic pulp fiction, for being all style over substance are missing the point. It’s at ease with what it is. That’s why it works. Peaky Blinders is shamelessly entertaining, it juggles flash irony and solemn sincerity in roughly equal measure. Series 5 began with yet another controlled explosion of violent, quasi-poetic chutzpah. A classic? No. But it’s undeniably great.

A BLACK AND WHITE KILLING: THE CASE THAT SHOOK AMERICA

Sunday 25th August and Monday 26th August, BBC Two

Three years ago, in Portland, Oregon, a white supremacist gang-member got behind the wheel of his jeep and killed a black man. The killer insists that his crime, which was captured on CCTV, wasn’t racially motivated. In this depressing two-part documentary, Asian British journalist Mobeen Azhar travelled deep into the scrofulous heart of American far-right politics. Portland is renowned as one of the most liberal cities in America. It’s also home to at least 21 white supremacy groups. Trump is their hero. These people are monumentally stupid, sad and hateful. But hey! Things will get better soon, right?

TV Column: JADE: THE REALITY STAR WHO CHANGED BRITAIN + THIS WAY UP

This article was originally published in The Courier on 3 August 2019.

https://www.thecourier.co.uk/category/lifestyle/entertainment/tv-film/

NEXT WEEK’S TV

JADE: THE REALITY STAR WHO CHANGED BRITAIN

Wednesday, Channel 4, 9pm

Channel 4 is responsible for fomenting the late Jade Goody’s pyrrhic fame, so this series charting her cautionary rise and fall carries a whiff of hypocrisy. Or is it a mea culpa? Either way, it’s a grimly compelling account of the birth of celebrity culture and vicious public shaming. Prepare to despair: it peers under the ant-infested stone of media chicanery with horrifying candour. Insight is provided by her mother and former Big Brother execs, one of whom claims that, when he told Goody she’d been selected for the show, he thought, “This is either going to be the best thing that’s ever happened to you, or it’s going to be a complete disaster.” Hindsight is a wonderful thing.

BORN FAMOUS

Monday, Channel 4, 10pm

An unofficial companion piece to the Goody epic, this new series focuses on various celebrities who came from humble beginnings. Their children have never known anything other than a life of luxury. Do they realise how lucky they are? There’s only one way to find out: send them back to where their parents were brought up (for a week). The first specimens are Gordon Ramsay and his teenage son Jack. Chef Ramsay is a working class Scot who was raised on numerous council estates. When Jack materialises in one of dad’s old haunts, he learns a valuable lesson. He’s a nice lad who doesn’t flaunt his privilege, so this study of social mobility and inequality transcends its gimmicky premise.

THE SECRET TEACHER

Thursday, Channel 4, 9pm

This is one helluva week for uplifting social experiments on Channel 4. What’s going on? Cynical answer: they scored a hit with The Secret Millionaire, so here’s its sequel. More positive answer: it’s nice watching self-made entrepreneurs, some of whom were told that they’d never amount to a hill of beans, visit schools in the guise of support workers. Their mission is to encourage kids with untapped potential. For six weeks, undercover agents assist several harassed pupils and teachers. A certain amount of tidily tied-up TV happiness ensues, but this is ultimately a covert political statement. The government, not television, should be taking care of this problem. Still, we’ll all have a nice cry at the end.

THIS WAY UP

Thursday, Channel 4, 10pm

Now this is good. Very good indeed. A sitcom written by and starring the comedian Aisling Bea, about a woman readjusting to life in the wake of a nervous breakdown. It’s the vehicle Bea has been waiting for – so much so, she constructed it herself. She’s a very funny, smart, likeable, insightful person. All the adjectives. Her show understands, as anyone who’s been through something similar understands, that humour can be mined from the direst of circumstances. The performances, the dialogue, are natural and warm. It’s a sitcom mired in pain, but it doesn’t dwell on lazy Gervais-esque awkwardness for laughs. This Way Up is better than that. Also, Sharon Horgan plays Bea’s sister. Are you sold? I hope so.

LAST WEEK’S TV

ANIMALS AT PLAY

Sunday July 28, BBC Two

If Stanley Kubrick taught us anything, it’s that all work and no play makes Jack an axe-wielding homicidal maniac. Fortunately, our animal friends aren’t so easily distracted. This fascinating series began by spending social playtime in the presence of dolphins, chimps, bears and canines. Their sophisticated games are among the most advanced in the natural world. It’s only a matter of time before they conquer Scrabble.

HOLD THE SUNSET

Friday August 2, BBC One

Series two of this – there’s no other way to describe it – gentle sitcom began with retirees Edith (Alison Steadman) and Phil (John Cleese) continuing their quest to get away from it all. I wish I could muster a more interesting opinion about Hold The Sunset than this: it’s nice seeing Cleese, Steadman, Jason Watkins, Joanna Scanlan and Rosie Cavaliero in the same programme, isn't it? But I can’t.

TV Column: KEEPING FAITH + LOUIS THEROUX: SURVIVING AMERICA'S MOST HATED FAMILY

This article was originally published in The Courier on 20th July 2019.

https://www.thecourier.co.uk/category/lifestyle/entertainment/tv-film/

NEXT WEEK’S TV

KEEPING FAITH

Tuesday, BBC One, 9pm

The first series of this BBC Wales hit was compared favourably to series one of Broadchurch. The latter famously lost the plot completely after that inaugural outing, so let’s hope the comparison doesn’t persist. The excellent Eve Miles (who coincidentally starred in Torchwood, which was helmed by Broadchurch and incumbent Doctor Who showrunner Chris Chibnall) stars as a solicitor whose partner disappeared under mysterious circumstances. The story continues 18 months after his eventual return, with occasional flashbacks filling in the gaps. While Faith struggles to make sense of everything her family has been through, she takes on the case of a farmer accused of murdering her husband. A web of vaguely Nordic noir-influenced intrigue ensues. It’s a promising return.

I AM NICOLA

Tuesday, Channel 4, 10pm

This new female-led anthology series kicks off with a standalone drama starring Vicky McClure as a woman searching for the perfect relationship. Unfortunately, she’s stuck in a dysfunctional rut with a partner who doesn’t remotely live up to her romantic ideal. Preview copies weren’t available, so I’m afraid I can’t tell you if this semi-improvised experiment pasts muster, but McClure is always worth watching and writer/director Dominic Savage is known for curating raw, compelling character studies developed in conjunction with his actors. Then again, his working methods have also resulted in some aimless, self-indulgent tedium from time to time. Your guess is as good as mine, folks, but this does sound potentially interesting.

ANIMAL BABIES: FIRST YEAR ON EARTH

Wednesday, BBC Two, 9pm

The ‘aww’ factor is higher than the sun in this beautiful new series. Three wildlife camera operators and various conservationists set their benign sights on six infant animals as they develop the fundamental skills required to survive in this big bad world of ours. It begins with a family of African elephants gathering to protect a vulnerable new arrival. She gradually learns how to use her trunk while becoming au fait with the intricate ways in which pachyderms communicate. Meanwhile, some baby hyenas bond with their dedicated mothers, a faltering sea otter comes to terms with life in a dangerous human-made environment, a wrinkled little macaque gains a degree of independence, and a rare mountain gorilla navigates treacherous treetop life.

BROKE

Thursday, BBC Two, 9pm

In the UK today, a third of those in gainful employment have less than £500 in life savings. They work hard, yet struggle to stay afloat. The cost of living rises every year, while wages remain in stasis. This humane and hugely vital series follows nine families from all walks of life as they explain what it’s like to just about scrape by. We meet a father and son who’ve been left homeless due to direly unforeseen circumstances. Dad is signed up to a precarious zero hours contract. The future looks bleak. In Wales, a steelworker supports his family on just £300 a month. In London, an ageing Uber driver with no pension barely survives. Britain is one of the world’s richest countries. Utterly scandalous.

LAST WEEK’S TV

TV’S BLACK RENAISSANCE: REGGIE YATES IN HOLLYWOOD

Saturday 13th July, BBC Two

Recently, a new generation of African-American artists has examined the black experience with a frankness never before seen on television. This revealing documentary sent a positive message: the uncompromising wit and insight of shows such as Donald Glover’s Atlanta (which I urge you to watch) aren’t anomalous. They’re part of a growing reaction against endemic racism in an oppressive society governed by rich, white bigots.

LOUIS THEROUX: SURVIVING AMERICA’S MOST HATED FAMILY

Sunday 14th July, BBC Two

Thirteen years after his first encounter with the notorious Westboro Baptist Church – a fundamentalist Christian ministry and anti-gay hate group – Theroux returned to find out how the 2014 death of twisted leader Fred Phelps has affected its members. He also investigated rumours that Phelps had been excommunicated in his final days after supposedly renouncing his vile beliefs. This led to another round of tense exchanges with indoctrinated church members, including one where the usually unflappable interlocutor almost lost his temper. 

They seemed broken, tired, their unspoken yet palpable fear being that if Phelps was a fallible human being, then maybe their hate-fuelled martyrdom has been meaningless. On this occasion, they came across as almost pitiable; victims of their extremist ideology. But it’s hard to feel sorry for an organisation that has caused people so much pain. It’s their own hell-bound fault. 

Meanwhile, a bittersweet sliver of uplift was provided by long-serving member Megan, who’d escaped the church and now spreads a message of tolerance. Megan has lost her family, who refuse to communicate with her, but I hope she finds some comfort in the real world.

TV Column: GAMEFACE + A NIGHT IN WITH BROS

This article was originally published in The Courier on 13th July 2019.

https://www.thecourier.co.uk/category/lifestyle/entertainment/tv-film/

NEXT WEEK’S TV

STARGAZING: MOON LANDING SPECIAL

Monday, BBC Two, 9pm

The 50th anniversary celebrations of the Apollo 11 moon landing – face facts, conspiracy theorists, it happened – continue with this 90-minute excavation hosted by those friendly faces of popular TV science, Professor Brian Cox and Dara O’Briain. They travel to Cape Canaveral to mark that, to say the least, historic achievement while shedding light on the future of human space travel. However, it’s largely devoted to examining the fascinating step-by-step details of launching Armstrong, Aldrin and Collins into space. It’s packed with tremendous nuggets of trivia: did you know that astronauts, for luck, urinate on the back wheel of the bus that ferries them to the Launchpad? Crude, maybe, but humbling in a way. One giant wee etc.

NADIYA’S TIME TO EAT

Monday, BBC Two, 8pm

In which top TV cook Nadiya Hussain breathlessly proclaims “These days, we all seem to be rushed off our feet!” While I will never be in any danger of being mistaken for a stunningly perceptive social historian, nor indeed a normal person with an actual life, I daresay comfortably middle-class people aren’t more harried now than they’ve ever been. Keeping up with all these aspirational lifestyle guides can’t be easy, though. That is their exhausting curse. Anyway, this harmless new series finds the likeable Bake Off winner showing us how to rustle up “cheeky” stress-free meals for the working mum on the move. She begins with some of her favourite time-saving recipes, including pancakes, noodles and omelettes.

GAMEFACE

Wednesday, Channel 4, 10pm

The excellent Roisin Conaty will be familiar to viewers who made it through Ricky Gervais’ deeply boring, inane and inept After Life. Thankfully, this self-penned starring vehicle shows off her talents to better advantage. It’s a sitcom in which she plays a jobbing actor going through therapy. Don’t let that synopsis put you off, it’s not self-indulgent at all. Conaty is funny, smart and likeable. In the first episode of this second series, she goes for a driving test and purposefully fails so she can see her slightly weird yet handsome instructor again. If you like good things, you'll probably like this unpretentiously insightful series.

A NIGHT IN WITH BROS

Friday, BBC Four, 10pm

When Matt and Luke Goss, formerly best known for their 18 months of pop idol fame in the late ‘80s, agreed to participate in a ‘comeback’ documentary last year, they couldn’t have anticipated the overwhelming response. That’s because Matt and Luke are a pair of endearing bozos whose Spinal Tap-esque pronouncements are hilarious in ways they will never truly understand. Good luck to them, I say, they mean no harm. They’ve had the last laugh? During this no doubt immaculately curated evening they’ll be capitalising on their unlikely second wind with a roster of newly filmed backstage clips and archive snippets from the artists who inspired them, plus, inevitably, a repeat of that extraordinary documentary. You’d have to possess a heart of sludge to begrudge them this ‘ironic’ resurgence.

LAST WEEK’S TV

IMAGINE… EDNA O’BRIEN: FEARFUL AND FEARLESS

Sunday 7^th, BBC One

One of the greatest and most influential writers of her generation, O’Brien caused cassock-clutching scandal in her native Ireland when, in the ‘60s, she dared to publish books declaring that women had sexual thoughts and impulses. Now aged 89, this brave, bold, brilliant woman led a mercifully unobtrusive Alan Yentob through a fascinating saga during which she survived shameful prejudice. A hero for the ages.

CLASSIC ALBUMS… THE CRICKETS: THE ‘CHIRPING’ CRICKETS

Friday 12^th, BBC Two

Here’s a concept for Richard Curtis to chew on: imagine a world in which Buddy Holly’s first album didn’t exist. There would be no Beatles, no Rolling Stones, no, heaven forbid, Ed Sheeran. This pleasant documentary traced the origins and growth of a band who basically defined the classic guitar/bass/drums template. Contributors included original Cricket Jerry Allison and awestruck acolyte Cliff Richard.

TV Column: DARK MONEY + 8 DAYS: TO THE MOON AND BACK

This article was originally published in The Courier on 6th July 2019.

https://www.thecourier.co.uk/category/lifestyle/entertainment/tv-film/

NEXT WEEK’S TV

DARK MONEY

Monday and Tuesday, BBC One, 9pm

This timely drama from award-winning playwright and screenwriter Levi David Addai (Damilola, Our Loved Boy) is inspired by the ongoing scandal involving sexual abuse within the entertainment industry. When Isaac, a British teenager, travels to Hollywood to star in a science fiction blockbuster, it should’ve been a dream come true. However, upon returning home he reveals that he was abused by the film’s producer. Isaac’s parents (the excellent Babou Ceesay and Jill Halfpenny) are told that British police have no legal jurisdiction over crimes which took place in America. Then the producer’s legal team get in touch with a jaw-dropping offer. It’s an angering indictment of an unjust system which protects the rich and powerful at all costs.

EXTREME TRIBE: THE LAST PYGMIES

Monday, Channel 4, 9pm

In the Congolese rain forests lives a Pygmy tribe largely cut off from the outside world. As any seasoned TV-watcher knows, remote African tribes are always being politely bothered by western documentary crews. They presumably enjoy the fleeting novelty of welcoming the likes of chirpy filmmaker Livia Simoka into their fold. Simoka produced and directed the similarly warm C4 series The Tribe, which also sought to dismantle foolish preconceptions by presenting jungle-dwelling communities as, you know, ordinary people just like you and I. Her five-month visit is an emotional log flume ride. Do bear in mind, however, that it includes scenes of dead animals being dismembered. It doesn’t flinch, nor should it.

8 DAYS: TO THE MOON AND BACK

Wednesday, BBC Two, 9pm

The Apollo 11 space mission, the most famous and important in history, lasted for a total duration of eight days, three hours, 18 minutes and 35 seconds. The world and beyond would never be the same. In this fascinating feature-length documentary, we’re granted declassified access to the extensive audio recordings taped inside the capsule during that epochal journey into the unknown. Dramatic reconstructions and archive footage also assist in creating an immersive account of what it must’ve actually been like for Armstrong, Aldrin and Collins, those great NASA pioneers, as they carried out a feat of remarkable human endeavour. The sheer scale of their achievement is put into fresh perspective by this beautiful film. “Houston? The eagle has landed.”

LAST WEEK’S TV

HOW THE MIDDLE CLASSES RUINED BRITAIN

Saturday 29^th, BBC Two

Right-wing comedian Geoff Norcott – an anomaly if ever there was one – comes from a working class background. He strongly believes that left-leaning middle class people are Remain-voting hypocrites. The problem with his argument in this confused polemical piece was that it relied on stereotypes to prove its point, thus being entirely hypocritical in itself. Still, hats off to the Marxist BBC for allowing a dissenting voice.

JOHN McENROE: STILL ROCKING AT 60

Sunday 30^th, BBC One

Sue Barker travelled to the NYC home of the erstwhile Superbrat for this entertaining profile of a legendary athlete who is almost as renowned for his angry, youthful outbursts as he is for his prowess on the court. He’s mellowed, of course. The McEnroe that Barker met was on typically droll, affable form as he led her on a stroll through his colourful life and career.

ANNA: THE WOMAN WHO WENT TO FIGHT ISIS

Wednesday 3^rd, BBC Two

In 2017, 25-year-old activist Anna Campbell from Sussex arrived in Syria to join an all-female Kurdish militia in their fight against ISIS. She had no previous military experience. A year later she was killed. In this eloquent documentary, Anna’s father attempted to make sense of her decision by meeting her comrades. A sad, searching study of a grieving family struggling with severely conflicted emotions.