This article was originally published in The Courier on 6th June 2020.
NEXT WEEK’S TV
SITTING IN LIMBO
Monday,
BBC One, 8:30pm
Inspired
by the unforgivable Windrush immigration scandal, this relentlessly angering drama tells the true story of Anthony Bryan. In 2016, four years after David
Cameron’s coalition government introduced their hostile environment policy,
Anthony decided to visit his ailing elderly mother in Jamaica. He’d never needed
a passport since moving to the UK in 1965. After filling in the paperwork he
was shocked to discover that there was no record of him as a British citizen.
He immediately lost his job and, without any official explanation, was stripped
of his rights to use the NHS and claim benefits. Written by Anthony’s brother, Stephen S. Thompson, Sitting in Limbo follows him through the
nightmare ordeal of having to prove his residential status. It couldn’t have
arrived at a more apposite time. Do not miss.
I MAY DESTROY YOU
Monday
and Tuesday, BBC One, 10:45pm
I
wouldn’t normally recommend a show involving young metropolitan media types
struggling with deadlines, but this new series from actor/writer Michaela Coel
of Chewing Gum renown isn’t remotely
smug or self-indulgent. This is no carefree celebration of living inside a
sexy, solvent London bubble; the occasional moment of dry humour aside, it’s a
stark and queasy drama about a woman dealing with severe trauma. Coel plays Arabella,
an author with a hit debut novel under her belt. Her life is pretty much
perfect. Then, during a night out with friends, she’s drugged and raped. At
first, Arabella can’t fully recall the exact details of what happened, but she
gradually pieces it together. I May
Destroy You cuts deep.
STAGED
Wednesday,
BBC One, 10:45pm
Michael
Sheen and David Tennant are, like all sensible people at the moment, in lockdown. They were, in
this semi-fictionalised version of reality, due to appear in a West End
production of Six Characters in Search of
an Author, but the Coronavirus pandemic put the kibosh on that. Written and
directed by Simon Evans – who also plays himself – Staged consists of Skype conversations between the bored Thesps as
they struggle to remain sane while rehearsing for no reason whatsoever A
six-part series of 15-minute episodes in which two famous actors bicker and
knowingly mock their fragile egos, Staged
stirs inevitable echoes of Brydon and Coogan in The Trip. It’s nowhere near as funny or pointed as that show at its
best, but Sheen and Tennant have undeniable chemistry.
WHAT WE DO IN THE
SHADOWS
Thursday,
BBC Two, 10pm
This
likeably silly sitcom about cohabiting vampires is unique in that, despite
being an American show, its principal cast are British. Matt Berry, Tash
Demetriou and Kayvan Novak are very funny people, so their cult ‘Stateside’
success is almost enough to make you feel vaguely patriotic. Sure, Berry can
only do one thing – a burgundy-throated caricature of a ripe English ac-tor –
but it rarely fails to amuse. In season two (it’s ‘season’ for American shows,
‘series’ for British shows: them’s the official rules, folks), the 21st
century Munsters search for new human slaves. Pedants such as myself will never
be able to fully accept quasi-documentary sitcoms which don’t adhere to the
rules of actual documentaries, but that’s a crucifix I have to bear.
LAST WEEK’S TV
ALAN CARR’S EPIC GAME
SHOW
Saturday 30th May, STV
Whenever
he gets overexcited, Alan Carr sounds exactly like John Lydon singing This Is Not A Love Song. That’s the most
insightful observation I can muster about this harmless bowl of froth in which
Carr revives various classic game show formats. It began with a tribute to
Brucie and Play Your Cards Right. Celebrity
couples competed for charity. It was overlong, but no distress was caused. Carr is a likeable,
nimble-witted pro and this is the comfortably-upholstered vehicle he’s been
chasing for years.
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