Monday 19 January 2015

TV Picks: 19-25 January 2015 - Catastrophe • Cucumber • Banana • The Eichmann Show • The Jonathan Ross Show • Mr Selfridge • Top Gear • Wolf Hall

Monday 19 January 2015

Below are my picks of the most notable new shows, returning or premiering on UK screens over the next 7 days...

MONDAY 19th
Winterwatch (BBC2, 9pm) Series 3 of the wildlife programme. Presented by Chris Packham, Michaela Strachan & Martin Hughes-Games. (1/4)
Catastrophe (Channel 4, 10pm) New comedy about an American man and an Irishwoman who fall in love. Starring Rob Delaney, Sharon Horgan, Ashley Jensen & Mark Bonnar. (1/6)


TUESDAY 20th
The Eichmann Show (BBC2, 9pm) Drama about the American producer Milton Fruchtman and blacklisted filmmaker Leo Hurwitz, who recorded the trial of holocaust organiser Adolf Eichmann. Starring Anthony LaPaglia, Martin Freeman, Rebecca Front, Andy Nyman & Nicholas Woodeson.
Hidden Killers (BBC4, 9pm) Series 2 of the property show, looking at the hidden dangers of Tudor period buildings. Presented by Suzannah Lispcomb.
The Mysteries of Laura (5USA, 9pm) Season 1 of the U.S comedy-drama about a New York homicide detective. Starring Debra Messing & Josh Lucas. (1/22)
Paul O'Grady's Animal Orphans (ITV, 9pm) Series 2 of the wildlife show where the comedian travels to Africa to help look after orphaned animals. (1/3)
Excluded: Kicked Out of School (BBC3, 9pm) Documentary following the staff and pupils of an alternative provision facility, where kids have been excluded from mainstream schooling. (1/3)


WEDNESDAY 21st
The National Television Awards (ITV, 7.30pm) Live annual awards ceremony, voted for by the British public. Hosted by Dermot O'Leary.
Pets – Wild at Heart (BBC1, 8pm) New series shedding new light on the nation's pets. Narrated by David Tennant. (1/2)
North Pole Ice Airport (Channel 5, 8pm) Documentary about the temporary ice base Barneo in the Arctic. (1/3)
Wolf Hall (BBC2, 9pm) New historical drama focusing on Henry VII during the time of his marriage to Katherine of Aragon. Starring Damian Lewis, Mark Rylance, Claire Foy, Jonathan Pryce, Bernard Hill, Anton Lesser & Mark Gatiss. (1/6)
Up the Women (BBC2, 10pm) Series 2 of the period comedy about a group of suffragettes living in the 1910s. Starring Jessica Hynes, Judy Parfitt, Emma Pierson, Ryan Sampson, Vicki Pepperdine & Georgia Groome. (1/6)


THURSDAY 22nd
Cucumber (Channel 4, 9pm) New drama exploring gay life in the 21st-century. Created by Russell T. Davies. Starring Vincent Franklin, Cyril Nri, Julie Hesmondhalgh, Freddie Fox, Fisayo Akinade & Con O'Neill. (1/8)
Bangkok Airport (BBC3, 9pm) New documentary series looking at the Bangkok International Airport in Thailand. (1/6)
Ross Kemp: Extreme World (Sky1, 9pm) Series 4 of the documentary series looking at dangerous places in the world. Hosted by Ross Kemp. (1/7)
Best and Final Offer (More4, 9pm) Documentary looking at different experiences of people selling a house.
Josie: The Most Hated Woman in Britain (Channel 4, 10pm) Documentary about Josue Cunningham, who became infamous for having a breast enlargement on the NHS in 2009.
Banana (E4, 10pm) New drama looking at individual stories of gay people in the 21st-century, interlinking with Cucumber on Channel 4. Created by Russell T. Davies. Starring Vincent Franklin, Fisayo Akinade, Freddie Fox, Letitia Fox, Zoe Ndlovu & Steve Toussaint. (1/8)
Tofu (4OD) YouTuber Benjamin Cook explores modern sex in all its variety in this exclusive online series, interviewing members of the public and the cast of dramas Cucumber and Banana.


FRIDAY 23rd
Tough Young Teachers (BBC3, 9pm) Documentary series about six new graduate teachers who start work at three of London's toughest schools. (1/6)

SATURDAY 24th
The Jonathan Ross Show (ITV, 9.20pm) Series 8 of the chat show. Guests are Colin Firth, Taron Egerton, Caroline Quentin, Katherine Ryan & Take That. (1/11)

SUNDAY 25th
Nature's Boldest Thieves (BBC1, 4.05pm) Documentary exploring why seagulls, foxes and badgers have adapted so well to stealing human food.
Top Gear (BBC2, 8pm) Series 22 of the motoring magazine and entertainment show. Hosted by Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond & James May. (1/10)
Dragons' Den (BBC2, 9pm) Series 12 of the business contest continues. (7/12)
Mr Selfridge (ITV, 9pm) Series 3 of the drama based on the life of retail magnate Harry Gordon Selfridge. Starring Jeremy Piven, Zoe Wannamaker, Amanda Abbington, Tom Goodman-Hill, Kara Tointon, Amy Beth Hayes, Aislng Loftus & Ron Cook. (1/10)


For a look at what the rest of the year's going to bring,