This article was originally published in The Courier on 10th September 2022.
NEXT WEEK’S TV
Shetland – Wednesday, BBC One, 9pm
Time now for D.I. Jimmy Perez to bid adieu to TV’s most incident-packed Scottish archipelago. His final case, which began with a missing teenager and ended up with a radicalised local setting off bombs all over the principality, proved to be a decent send-off for the character.
Perez will never be regarded as one of the greatest ever made-up crime-solvers - he was no Columbo, Fitz or Tennison – but his quiet, hangdog integrity and compassion were appealing traits. Douglas Henshall, a sensitive actor, was perfectly cast in the role.
As you’d expect, the finale consists of a series of terse windswept confrontations and dramatic revelations. Plus the denouement is rather poignant.
Deepfake Porn: Could You Be Next? – Tuesday, BBC Three, 10pm
Deepfake technology is an increasingly sophisticated form of digital manipulation whereby images of people can be convincingly placed in an entirely different context. In this troubling documentary, presenter Jess Davies talks to three deepfake victims.
These non-consenting women suffered severe trauma when they were made aware of graphic mocked-up pornographic footage of themselves online. Davies reveals that there is no official legislation to protect victims of this devastating crime in England and Wales. There is nothing they can do.
She also encounters deepfake creators who, without any fear of legal action hanging over their heads, have no qualms about continuing with this abuse.
Storyville: Gorbachev. Heaven – Tuesday, BBC Four, 9pm
Originally released via iPlayer on 31st August, purely by chance just a few hours after its subject’s death was announced, this intimate documentary about Mikhail Gorbachev is being swiftly repeated for obvious reasons.
Filmed towards the end of his life, it shadows the frail former Soviet leader as he reflects upon his controversial legacy. Hailed by many in the west as a hero for his role in ending the Cold War – Gorbachev was the architect of Glasnost and Perestroika – he’s reviled by many in his homeland for destroying the Soviet Union. His policies had, to say the least, long-lasting consequences.
The film doesn’t ask us to feel sorry for Gorbachev, but he cuts a rather sad and lonely figure.
The Great British Bake Off – Tuesday, Channel 4, 8pm
The latest series of this sugar-coated juggernaut begins, as it always must, with Cake Week.
A fresh batch of contestants are tasked with producing 12 perfect mini cakes, a sumptuous sponge cake, and a mercifully scaled-down dessert facsimile of a home close to their hearts. Preview copies weren’t available, but this will obviously be business as usual. The Bake Off format takes care of itself, it needn’t ever change.
The main event is accompanied on Friday at 8pm by The Great British Bake Off: An Extra Slice, in which host Jo Brand and various celebrity chums cast – oh yes – a sideways glance at the week’s events. We also check in with the first ejected contestant.
Nadiya’s Everyday Baking – Wednesday, BBC Two, 8:30pm
If you weren’t fully sated by Bake Off’s return, then here’s the delightful Nadiya Hussein with more kitchen tips.
Her latest series is based around a simple mission statement: “baking for you, for me, and for the people we love.” Yes, it’s basically just your standard ‘busy parent’ cookery show - life hacks you can activate before that stressful school run! - but you’d really have to go out of your way to be pointlessly annoyed by it.
Nigella’s programmes, which revolve around the same premise, are admittedly more compelling because she has such a bizarre presentation style. They’re inadvertently funny parodies of an upper middle-class fantasia. Hussein is far more down to earth and relatable.
My Grandparents’ War – Thursday, Channel 4, 9pm
A wartime-focused version of BBC One’s Who Do You Think You Are?, this returning series follows various celebs as they find out more about the roles their ancestors played during World War One and World War Two.
The second series begins with Game of Thrones actor Kit Harington, whose grandfather served alongside James Bond creator Ian Fleming in Naval Intelligence. He was subsequently recruited by MI5 and MI6, and went on to commandeer one of the most notorious spying operations of the 20th century. Another one of grandad Harington’s colleagues? Kim Philby.
Young master Harington also uncovers a tragic romance. This, clearly, is not your standard family backstory. An eventful panoply of riches, no less.
LAST WEEK’S TV
How To with John Wilson – Sunday 4th September, BBC Two
This comic documentary series provides proof, if proof be needed, that irony and sincerity aren’t mutually exclusive. It’s an utterly charming confection in which the American filmmaker John Wilson provides gentle tutorials on how to get through life.
Wilson is a sweet-natured nerd with a nice line in droll understatement. He wanders his homeland in pursuit of people and their stories. Some of Wilson's interviewees are rather unusual, but he never mocks them. He's genuinely interested in what they have to say.
Episode one, which initially
presented itself as an amusing treatise on the art of small talk, ended up
being an affecting study of anxiety, loneliness and grief. A very special
little show with a generous spirit, I can’t recommend it enough.
