THE HUNT FOR THE WORLD'S END KILLERS | ROB BURROW: LIVING WITH MND | FRIDAY NIGHT LIVE

This article was originally published in The Courier on 15th October 2022.

NEXT WEEK’S TV

The Hunt for the World’s End Killers – Monday and Tuesday, BBC One, 9pm

45 years ago, the bodies of two young women, Christine Eadie and Helen Scott, were discovered six miles apart in East Lothian. They’d been brutally murdered. Close friends since childhood, they were last seen alive in the World’s End pub on Edinburgh’s Royal Mile. A major investigation ensued. 

Sensitively handled and impressively researched, this absorbing two-part documentary recounts an utterly tragic saga with far more depth and context than one usually finds in programmes of this nature. 

Bolstered by insightful contributions from various journalists, authors and retired police officers, it’s a rigorous piece of social history which, among many other things, covers some landmark developments in the support for female victims of sexual violence. An exemplary essay.

Rob Burrow: Living with MND – Tuesday, BBC Two, 7pm

Rugby League legend Rob Burrow was diagnosed with motor neurone disease in 2019. This intimate documentary follows Rob, wife Lindsey and their kids as they deal with the everyday reality of living with a degenerative condition. 

It’s a frank, tender portrait of a loving family doing everything within their power to get by.

The Burrows are abundantly nice, kind and decent people. Their love for each other is quietly inspiring. 

Life is awfully cruel, but if you’re lucky enough to have a devoted support network, well, that must never be taken for granted. It helps us to cope with all the other difficult things we’re sometimes forced to deal with. We endure. We have to.

Unapologetic – Wednesday, Channel 4, 11:05pm

I haven’t seen this topical talk show, but it sounds quite interesting. Hence why I’m flagging it up. 

Your hosts are Yinka Bokinni and Zeze Millz. Their M.O. is this: discussing nuanced subjects – in a light-hearted way - that public figures tend to avoid for fear of being ‘cancelled’. 

That’s an absolute minefield, obviously. I’m no fan of culture war mendacity, but bear in mind that Bokinni and Millz are people of colour. This isn’t yet another forum for middle-aged white celebrities to drone tediously on about how “you can’t say anything anymore.” 

Does that mean it’s any good? I’ve no idea. But you may be intrigued by some of the socio-political issues under discussion.

Aldi’s Next Big Thing – Thursday, Channel 4, 8pm

Anita Rani and award-winning grocer Chris Bavin host this new series in which small-scale British food and drink producers get the rare opportunity to pitch their products to Britain's fourth biggest supermarket chain, Aldi. The ultimate prize is a life-changing contract with those towering Gods of retail. 

So yes, it’s very much your standard competitive TV hootenanny. Dragon’s Den on a manageable budget. But that’s fine, it means no actual harm. 

Episode one throws a glaring spotlight upon two budding entrepreneurs who reckon that our tiny insect friends are the future of nutrition, plus some obsessive pie and sauce makers. 

This will never be mistaken for essential television, but it serves as a distraction.

Unreported World – Friday, Channel 4, 7:30pm

This week, investigative journalist Sahar Zand delves behind the scenes of Japan’s increasingly controversial Sumo wrestling industry. 

Sumo is a centuries-old tradition, an important and respected facet of Japanese culture, but in recent years it’s been criticised for failing to take care of the wrestlers who partake in it. 

Zand spends time with a 12-year-old boy, Kyuta, who hopes to become a grand champion. To achieve that goal, he’ll have to earn a place in the ‘Sumo stable’, an institution that’s shrouded in secrecy. 

Zand meets former wrestlers who describe life in the ‘stable’ as nothing more than servitude. Concerns are mounting for the physical and psychological health of these men.

Friday Night Live – Friday, Channel 4, 9pm

The Channel 4 alternative comedy showcase Saturday/Friday Night Live was a formative experience for myself and millions of other ‘80s comedy-crazed kids. 

We already loved The Young Ones and The Comic Strip Presents, Rik Mayall et al were our heroes, but this anarchic variety extravaganza also introduced us to the brilliant likes of Jo Brand, Julian Clary, Ben Elton, Harry Enfield, Fry & Laurie and Paul Merton. 

This one-off revival, hosted by Elton of course, won’t pack such a punch, it’s an exercise in nostalgia, but I suppose it’ll be quite nice to revisit the format. 

The bill includes the aforementioned Brand, Clary and Enfield, plus some young, current circuit comics.

Am I Being Unreasonable? – Friday, BBC One, 9:30pm

We’ve reached the penultimate episode of this delightfully dry and eccentric comedy thriller about a village-dwelling wife and mother (co-writer Daisy May Cooper) whose already complicated life becomes even stranger when she befriends a woman (co-writer Selin Hizli) with a mysterious past. 

Am I Being Unreasonable? is one of those addictive shows that takes you completely by surprise. A gut-punching sleeper hit. Thanks to the excellent This Country, we already knew that Cooper was a talented writer/performer, but this is a more striking piece of work as far as I’m concerned. 

And I hope it’s a one-series deal, as next week’s finale is perfect. A sequel might dilute its impact.

LAST WEEK’S TV

Our Dementia Choir Sings Again with Vicky McClure – Monday 10th October, BBC One

Four years ago, the actor Vicky McClure formed a choir of people living with dementia. Like so many of us, she’s lost a loved one to that illness. The therapeutic power of music proved to be very effective. 

In this poignant sequel to her original programme, McClure reconvened with various members of the choir. Inevitably, some of them aren’t in great shape. 

Hats off to McClure, her choir and their family members/carers for refusing to hold back on the fundamental point of this endeavour: people with dementia require so much more support from a system that’s skewed against them. 

An uplifting show tempered with deep-seated despair, this is public service broadcasting at somewhere near its best. The series concludes on Monday 17th October.

Rise of the Nazis: The Downfall – Monday 10th October, BBC Two

The final series of this estimable documentary project began in December 1944. Hitler’s regime is in freefall, they’ve clearly lost the war. Hitler, of course, refuses to accept reality. 

As always, the purpose of this series is to examine the psychology, not only of Hitler and his chief enablers, but also that of the German footsoldiers and everyday citizens. It’s a grimly fascinating study of what happens when fascism prevails over a nation. 

As strange as this may sound, it offers some hope: fascist dictatorships will always fail because they are, by their very nature, chaotic cults founded on the monomaniacal obsessions of ‘charismatic’ yet utterly insane bigots. 

This episode, and the previous six, are available on iPlayer. Highly recommended.  

BEING MUM WITH MND + THE TERROR + THE OTHER ONE

This article was originally published in The Courier on 30th April 2022.

NEXT WEEK’S TV

Being Mum with MND – Tuesday, BBC Scotland, 10pm

Lucy Lintott was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease (MND) at the age of 19. Doctors told her she would never be able to conceive. Lucy and her fiancé, Tommy, are now the proud parents of two young children. 

She is believed to be one of the few people with MND to have given birth twice. It’s also highly likely that she might be the youngest person in Scotland to have been diagnosed with MND. 

This touching documentary allows Lucy and her family to reflect upon their situation. She talks candidly about living with a degenerative condition, but she’s almost always upbeat. That’s her inherent nature. It’s also a beautiful love story. Lucy and Tommy are good, kind, inspiring people.

DI Ray – Monday to Thursday, STV, 9pm

This is not your standard ITV cop drama in the sense that it has an interesting, socially conscious point of view. It hits all the necessary beats of a thriller while exploring an important issue: the systemic racism, whether casual or overt, that exists within society.

DI Ray is a highly capable Asian-British police officer who is dismayed to learn that her recent promotion to the homicide department was based on her supposed suitability for “Culturally Specific Homicides”. It’s a racially insensitive box-ticking exercise. 

While investigating two Asian brothers accused of murder, she’s forced to confront the stark realities of working inside an institution that’s prone to making harmful assumptions based on ill-informed cultural stereotypes.

Davina McCall: Sex, Mind and the Menopause – Monday, Channel 4, 9pm

During the production of this documentary, Channel 4 carried out a survey of premenopausal and menopausal women. Their findings were shocking. Natural symptoms such as vague memory loss are being used against women in the workplace. People have lost their jobs as a result of losing their hormones. 

Davina McCall wants to find out if anything can be done to challenge this injustice. She also investigates some of the latest advances in hormone therapy, while meeting with experts who have studied the complex neurological effects of the menopause. 

I haven’t seen this programme, dear reader, it wasn’t available for preview; I’m basing my recommendation on McCall’s previous and entirely responsible documentaries about the memopause.

Married to a Psychopath – Monday, Channel 4, 10pm

Malcolm Webster is one of the most notorious psychopaths of recent times. He murdered his first wife, Claire, in 1994. He attempted to murder his second wife, Felicity, in 1997. He also had a series of bigamous relationships with women who he psychologically abused for his own financial ends. 

Webster, who was finally imprisoned in 2011, is a hideously dangerous man. This two-part documentary is primarily told from the perspective of one Charles Henry, a rural Scottish detective with time on his hands who proved instrumental in the case against Webster. Henry’s efforts were tireless. Admirable. 

I recommend watching this in conjunction with The Widower, an above-par 2014 TV drama starring Reece Shearsmith as Webster. 

The Terror – Friday, BBC Two, 9pm

You may recall that the first series of producer Ridley Scott’s supernatural anthology revolved around the real-life mystery of a lost Arctic expedition in the mid-19^th century: historical fact combined with speculative fiction. Series two follows suit. 

It’s set in California during World War Two, when thousands of Japanese-Americans were incarcerated in concentration camps. They were law-abiding citizens who posed no threat to anyone. Their internment was a heinous human rights violation entirely borne of racial prejudice. 

The cast includes George Takei, who resided in one of those camps when he was a child. He also serves as a series consultant to ensure accuracy. Episode one is intriguing, eerie and, needless to say, sensitively handled.

The Other One – Friday, BBC One, 9:30pm

Series two of Holly Walsh’s sitcom continues the eventful story of two adult sisters, Cathy and Cat, who only found out about each other’s existence following the death of their father. 

They’ve become quite close. They’ve also just discovered that they might have a half-brother. Cathy snogged him a few hours before anyone concerned was aware of their kinship. Hardly ideal. 

We also catch up on the developing relationship between their mismatched mothers. This is a sharp, dry-witted yet ultimately rather warm farce populated by likeable, well-drawn characters. It revels in silliness and nice little details. A great cast too: it’s a proven fact that you can’t go wrong with Siobhan Finneran and Rebecca Front.

LAST WEEK’S TV

Peacock – Monday 23rd April, BBC Three

I was quite impressed by episode one of this new sitcom. Allan ‘Seapa’ Mustafa, the co-creator of People Just Do Nothing, stars as a personal fitness trainer in his mid-thirties. 

Peacock is stuck in a rut. Single, lonely and riddled with anxieties, he’s fallen for a ridiculous notion of What It Means To Be a Man; but he’s clearly far too sensitive to embody that futile Alpha Male fantasy. 

The writers have a solid handle on their hapless protagonist. He’s an innocent, unworldly fool who means no harm, but his posturing need to be seen as something he’s not gets him into trouble. And from thence the humour and pathos arises. There’s a lot of promise here.

Searching for Michael Jackson’s Zoo with Ross Kemp – Wednesday 25th April, STV

Yep, I know. That title sounds like one of Alan Partridge’s ridiculous programme pitches. But Kemp’s documentary actually exposed some appalling animal cruelty. 

Michael Jackson’s Neverland zoo was always controversial. Even during his lifetime, investigations revealed that his ‘pets’ were treated unethically. Kemp’s M.O: whatever happened to the animals who survived? A dispiriting search ensued. 

Kemp is an inherently silly yet well-meaning man, but even in its clumsy tabloid TV way, the programme did tacitly confront the (pun half-intended) elephant in the room: Jackson’s love of animals was part and parcel of a calculatedly innocent Peter Pan image. You can join the dots from there.