BOOK REVIEW: Box of Delights: The Story of BBC Children's Television – 1967-1997

This article was orginally published in The Big Issue in February 2026.

Box of Delights: The Story of BBC Children's Television – 1967-1997, Richard Marson, out now, Ten Acre Books, £29.99

During his downtime while recording episodes of Play School, Johnny Ball would sometimes cheerfully drop-kick Humpty through the round window.

That's just one of the many vivid details contained within Richard Marson's Box of Delights: The Story of BBC Children's Television – 1967-1997, which serves as both a celebration of and elegy for a lost epoch of creativity pioneered by a colourful gang of mavericks, eccentrics and ideologically dedicated professionals.

A former editor-in-chief of Blue Peter, Marson has authored several excellent books about the 'golden age' of British TV, but this may be his magnum opus. It isn't a nostalgic list-based reference tome – not that there's anything wrong with those – it's a meticulously-researched, narrative-led piece of history examining the politics and culture of the BBC at a time when the in-house Children's Department was more or less left to its own ingenious devices.

Marson emphasises the important fact that so many of the brilliant producers who thrived during that era were women. He provides detailed character studies of all the key players while also finding room for information on seemingly every single programme the department produced during its heyday.

The epic narrative is anchored by all the behind-the-scenes drama of cornerstones such as Blue Peter, Grange Hill, Jackanory, Newsround, Record Breakers and those Saturday morning live behemoths, the latter of which basically invented a brand new form of TV presentation.

Marson's mission is ably abetted by an often delightfully indiscreet cadre of interviewees, including Johnny Ball, Zoe Ball, Russell T. Davies, Sarah Greene, Chris Packham, Andi Peters, Phil Redmond, Michaela Strachan and Anthea Turner. Their frankness is one of the book's key assets; at this stage in their lives and careers they clearly have nothing to lose by telling the unfiltered truth as they see it.

There's no point denying the gossipy allure of a book in which a certain beloved children's TV presenter – not one of those mentioned above - is accused of being an insufferable egomaniac. And some of the more hair-raising anecdotes were, as Marson and his interviewees are quick to acknowledge, very much the product of 'different times'. To examine the past truthfully, outdated attitudes must occasionally rear their ugly heads.

But this is, fundamentally, an affectionate tribute to the vast array of gifted people who devoted their professional lives to making high-quality television steeped in those core Reithian values: inform, educate, entertain.

We will, for various maddening executive-led reasons, never see their likes again.

CONSENT | PUTIN vs THE WEST | THE REAL NOLLY

This article was originally published in The Courier on 4th February 2023.

NEXT WEEK’S TV

Consent – Tuesday, Channel 4, 10pm

This standalone drama takes place at an elite private school. 

It’s a breeding ground for future leaders, where obnoxious male students do whatever they want without fear of being held accountable. Female students are constantly subjected to sexual harassment ‐ or “banter”, as their toxic abusers call it. 

Archie seems different, however. He’s more sensitive. Archie has fallen for Natalie, and the feeling is mutual. Archie was born rich, whereas Natalie has won a scholarship. At a drunken party, Archie is peer‐pressured into sleeping with Natalie. She doesn’t consent. 

What follows is an acutely angering study of victim‐blaming and institutional corruption. An important piece, Consent is based on hundreds of testimonies from both the state and private school sectors.

Food Fest Scotland – Monday, BBC Scotland, 8:30pm

Those old Radio 1 compadres Edith Bowman and Colin Murray are the hosts of this genial time‐passer, in which they visit some of Scotland’s most popular food festivals. 

We find ourselves vicariously enjoying the Peebles Show in episode one. Bowman’s encounter with a world‐renowned chocolatier is among the gentle highlights. 

Meanwhile, off the coast of North Berwick, chef Julie Lin goes fishing for mackerel. She explains why this relatively inexpensive Scottish superfood should be a nutritious cornerstone of all non‐vegetarian diets. 

Lin also provides some sound snacking advice for people, such as your humble correspondent, who work every day from home. There’s more to life than crisps, apparently.

Putin vs the West – Monday, BBC Two, 9pm

In episode two of this typically authoritative essay from documentarian Norma Percy, Russian President Vladimir Putin asserts his presence in the Middle East. 

The Arab Spring uprisings encourage leaders in the West to enlist Putin as a much‐needed peacemaker. David Cameron feels he’s struck up some sort of mutual agreement with Putin, they seem to be getting somewhere. Putin then declares his support for Assad. 

If you’re unfamiliar with Percy’s style, it basically boils down to this: she weaves morally complex narratives populated by powerful politicians whose accounts she doesn’t necessarily endorse. But we seldom see them talk so ‘openly’ on camera. 

The Shamima Begum Story – Tuesday, BBC Two, 9pm

At the age of 15, Shamima Begum ran away from London to join the terror group IS. Four years later, while pregnant with her third child, she desperately wanted to come home.

Begum had shown very little remorse for her time spent with the group, so the British authorities regarded her as an ongoing threat to national security. They revoked her citizenship. Begum’s lawyers argued that she was a victim of human trafficking, and should therefore be protected by the country of her birth. 

In this documentary, which wasn’t available for preview, she recounts her story in the company of an investigative journalist who’s been trying to get to the bottom of it all for nearly a decade.

Bradley & Barney Walsh: Breaking Dad – Tuesday, STV, 9pm

As their Costa Rican hi‐jinks continue, ‘Bradders’ and ‘Barn’ attempt to climb some 132ft trees in a cloud forest. Avid dog lovers, they also visit a sanctuary that’s home to 2000 free‐roaming canines. 

A journey into the countryside puts them in contact with a former Olympian, who facilitates a father‐and‐son kayak slalom, but that’s a small hill of beans compared to their encounter with a gentleman who shot to fame when he befriended a crocodile. 

Breaking Dad is a charming little show with zero pretensions. Bradley Walsh, a nice man, has some daft contrived adventures with Barney Walsh, a nice lad. Programmes of greater depth are available, but that’s not what this is for.  

Ghislaine: Partner in Crime – Thursday, ITVX

ITV are marketing this four‐part series as the definitive account of the relationship between convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell and the paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. 

I’ve only seen episode one, but it immediately struck me as a dubious exercise in which testimonies from Maxwell and Epstein’s victims are spliced with adamant counterarguments from two of Maxwell’s siblings. 

Why are ITV giving these people a platform? They’re unreliable sources who refuse point blank to accept that their sister could’ve committed those heinous crimes. Their contributions don’t provide journalistic ‘balance’, they actively undermine the voices of the abused women who have chosen to come forward. 

Watch the far superior House of Maxwell instead, it’s still available on iPlayer.  

Travel Man: 48 Hours in Split – Friday, Channel 4, 8:30pm

Much like Bradley & Barney Walsh: Breaking Dad, this chummy travelogue doesn’t pretend to be anything other than an inoffensive scenic detour. 

Joe Lycett’s latest travelling companion is the comedian, actor and writer Aisling Bea. They’re in the Croatian city of Split, which must surely be the coolest name for a city in the entire history of human existence. Face facts, Las Vegas. 

Lycett and Bea don’t like fish, but they gamely rustle up a piscine dish under the tutelage of a local chef who’s determined to teach them the culinary ways of “a Croatian grandma”. Our hosts also investigate a maze of alleys and squares, and a museum full of stuffed frogs. They’re way ahead in Split.

LAST WEEK’S TV

The Real Nolly – Thursday 2nd February, ITVX

A companion piece to Russell T. Davies’ excellent drama about Crossroads star Noele Gordon, this documentary didn’t really add anything, but it was nice seeing footage of the actual Nolly in action. 

As Davies discovered during his research, Nolly was a showbiz all‐rounder of the old school who cared deeply about her work. Crossroads may have been a silly little soap opera, but it was a silly little soap opera that brought pleasure to millions. And she was adored by her colleagues, some of whom turned up to pay tribute. 

I find it rather pleasing that, such is Davies’ benign power within the industry, he’s got us all talking about this versatile trouper forty years after her heyday. 

Building Britain’s Superhomes – Wednesday 1st February, Channel 4

Guy Phoenix is renowned for creating colossal palaces for the mega‐rich. He’s not a qualified architect or interior designer, but by God he gets results. As he never tires of reminding us. 

This relentless migraine of a series follows Phoenix as he oversees ambitious builds while effing and jeffing like a try‐hard teenage rebel. I’m all for swearing, just as long as it’s delivered with some wit and proficiency. Phoenix is a dullard.

This is yet another tone deaf commission from our bubble‐dwelling TV overlords, who don’t understand that the last thing any of us want to see right now (or ever) is an aggressive celebration of extreme wealth. These programmes rub our noses in it, they’re an insult.

NOLLY | EMILY ATACK: ASKING FOR IT? | HOTEL PORTOFINO

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

NEXT WEEK’S TV

Nolly – Thursday, ITVX

A huge star in her day, Noele ‘Nolly’ Gordon ruled Crossroads for almost twenty years. She was affectionately known as Queen of the Midlands. 

But in 1981, Nolly was sacked without any warning or rational explanation. She was bereft, Crossroads was her life. A public outcry ensued. Why had she been treated this way? This stellar drama from Russell T. Davies teases that peculiar mystery until the very end. 

Told with his characteristic wit, warmth and verve, Nolly is a heartfelt paean to the people who make soaps and the viewers who love them. 

Helena Bonham Carter and co deliver pitch-perfect performances in simpatico with Davies’ sparkling material. Clearly a labour of love, the whole thing is delightful.

Putin vs the West – Monday, BBC Two, 9pm

This absorbing three-part series from that estimable documentarian Norma Percy tells the story of Vladmir Putin’s tumultuous march towards war. It begins in 2014 when Putin first attacked Ukraine and seized the Crimean peninsula. 

As always, Percy examines a complex political situation with acuity. 

She never fails to populate her projects with big name contributors, all of them keen to provide their own insider versions of events. On this occasion we hear from the likes of David Cameron, Francois Hollande, former Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and, in later episodes, Boris Johnson. 

These world leaders were divided with regards to how to best deal with Putin, who in turn succeeded in exploiting that tension for his own political gain.

Emily Atack: Asking for It? – Tuesday, BBC Two, 9pm

Every day without fail, the actor, presenter and comedian Emily Atack is, like so many women, sexually harassed online. She’s bombarded by men sending her unsolicited explicit images and messages. 

In this thoughtful documentary, Atack asks why so little is being done to protect women and girls from such abuse. Why do some men behave in this way? Because they think they’ll get away with it. Most of them do. Their disgusting behaviour leaves women feeling fearful and ashamed. 

Atack’s interviewees include psychologists, activists, her own parents, and a group of schoolgirls who confirm that the authorities - and by extension society at large - aren’t doing enough to either understand or confront this issue.

The Magical World of Moss – Wednesday, BBC Four, 9pm

I felt a bittersweet pang of nostalgia when I spotted this programme in the listings. It’s not a repeat, but it harks back to the days when BBC Four showcased esoteric documentaries as a matter of course. 

Three years ago, the BBC announced that Four would gradually cease to originate new programmes, becoming instead a repository for archive content. I can only assume that The Magical World of Moss was one of the last new shows to slip through the net. 

As you’ve doubtless already gathered, it’s a study of mosses and their many remarkable properties. Various moss-obsessed scientists pop up to explain why this fuzzy green plant is so important to our ecosystem. A charming programme.

Eat the Town – Thursday, BBC Scotland, 8:30pm

Darren ‘Dazza’ Dowling and Natalie Erskine are the affably irreverent hosts of this culinary travelogue, in which they discover what various Scottish towns have to offer food and activity-wise. First stop, Forfar. 

They enjoy a healthy café breakfast, a sizeable bridie lunch, and some dinner at a pan-Asian restaurant. They also visit a sheep and alpaca farm, before embarking upon a cocktail-making challenge at a local distillery. 

Dowling and Erskine are clearly having fun with this gentle deconstruction of standard TV conventions. Nothing too radical, you understand, but they sometimes acknowledge the crew and the script they’re all working from, a bit like a pair of young, sober Keith Floyds. If you can imagine such a thing.

Bill Gates: Amol Rajan Interviews – Friday, BBC Two, 7:30pm

Famously, the billionaire Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates has pledged to donate much of his fortune to urgent global causes. Poverty, disease, gender inequality and climate change being chief among them. BBC journalist Amol Rajan meets up with him in Kenya. 

Mild highlights include Gates airing his concerns about social media’s deleterious impact on nuanced discourse, and the ways in which it incubates dangerous conspiracy theories. He’s a diplomatic pro, but he obviously has no time for Trump and Musk. 

Rajan also asks Gates about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. “In retrospect I would’ve been much smarter to never even talk to him at all,” he says, clearly discomfited by the subject. “I only met him a few times…”

Hotel Portofino – Friday, STV, 9pm

ITV are clearly hoping to replicate the success of Downton Abbey with this glossy new period  drama.

Set in 1926, it revolves around the owners and guests of a luxury hotel on the Italian Riviera. This fine establishment is run by a thoroughly modern and awfully decent Englishwoman. While taking care of business, she frets over her son, a physically and psychologically scarred World War One veteran. She’s also shackled to a philandering husband. 

Hotel Portofino is an entirely middling affair, it doesn’t make much of an impression. Pretty hats, pleasant scenery, no substance. It’s one of those shows you just gaze at idly from afar while thinking about how nice it would be to go on holiday.

LAST WEEK’S TV

Fight the Power: How Hip Hop Shaped the World – Saturday 21st January, BBC Two

Partly curated by Chuck D, this tremendous series places the origins and impact of Hip Hop in detailed sociohistorical context. 

He's joined by an insightful array of talking heads, all of whom emphasise that Hip Hop has always been an explicitly political movement. It emerged as a reaction against systemic social injustice, the vital sound of young working-class African-Americans speaking truth to power.

Chapter one examined its roots in the poverty-stricken neighbourhoods of 1970s New York, whose residents had been callously abandoned by the white ruling classes. 

This new art form was an expression of anger and defiant celebration; in Chuck D’s words, “A pot of cultural get-down.” 

All four episodes are available on iPlayer.

Deep Fake Neighbour Wars – Thursday 26th January, ITVX

Whenever I tell people what I do for a living, they sometimes say, “You must have to watch some rubbish!” Well, not really. I tend to avoid obviously awful things, both for my sake and yours. It’s a waste of time. 

But this, dear reader, is without doubt one of the worst television programmes I have ever seen, and I feel compelled to stress that. Consider it a public service.

It’s an utterly depressing, mirthless sketch show in which impressionists embody celebs via deep fake technology. It makes the failed Spitting Image revival look like an incendiary satirical triumph. There are no actual jokes, the unsettling gimmick is everything. 

Imagine if Idris Elba lived next door to Greta Thunberg! Right, and then what happens? Nothing. Stella Street must be spinning in its grave.

What to Watch in 2023: NOLLY | SUCCESSION | DOCTOR WHO and more...

This article was originally published in The Courier on 7th January 2023. 

Nolly – ITVX, February

Written by the redoubtable Russell T. Davies, this factual drama covers a particularly tumultuous period in the life of soap doyen Noele Gordon (Helena Bonham Carter). 

Nolly, as she was affectionately known to her friends, became a TV superstar thanks to her show-stealing turn as Meg Richardson in Crossroads. In 1981, while still riding high after 17 years at the top, Gordon was unceremoniously sacked without any warning or explanation. She was utterly devastated. 

Gordon was a fabulous showbiz trouper of the old school, they really don’t make ‘em like that anymore. Her story encapsulates the fickle, cutthroat vagaries of fame. 

The cast also includes Mark Gatiss as Gordon’s dear showbiz chum, Larry Grayson. What’s not to love?

Without Sin – ITVX, available now

ITV’s rebranded streaming service, ITVX, hasn’t scrimped on Major New Drama output since it launched last month. 

The obvious highlights so far are David Tennant in Litvinenko, plus Damian Lewis and Guy Pearce in A Spy Among Friends, both of which can be watched for free in their entirety. The same goes for Without Sin, which ‘dropped’ just after Christmas. 

A stark psychological thriller, it stars Vicky McClure as the grieving mother of a murdered teenager. In an attempt to rebuild her shattered life, she decides to visit her daughter’s killer in prison. 

The killer is played by Johnny Harris, an actor with whom McClure shared several harrowing scenes in the TV spin-off from This Is England.

Welcome to Chippendales – Disney+, January

A canny entrepreneur, Somen "Steve" Banerjee dreamed up that male striptease phenomenon the Chippendales in 1979. He was later found guilty of being an accessory to murder. 

This drama, which received mostly positive reviews when it premiered in America recently, delves into his murky saga. If you’re not familiar with the details, then I suggest you go in blind. Do not Google Banerjee, as Welcome to Chippendales thrives upon its multitudinous truth-is-stranger-than-fiction twists. 

I can’t vouch for the whole series as I’ve only seen two episodes, but if you’re anything like me – a sucker for weird stories about extreme showbiz hubris, crime and corruption - then I daresay you’ll be intrigued from the get-go. 

Masters of the Air – Apple TV+, early 2023

The final part of a trilogy that began with Band of Brothers followed by The Pacific, this Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg-produced miniseries focuses on the Eighth Air Force of the United States Army during World War II. 

The hallmarks of its esteemed predecessors were historical accuracy, sympathetic portrayals of the key characters, and an unflinching approach to the horrors of war. There’s no reason to suspect that Masters of the Air won’t continue in that tradition. 

As always, it boasts a large ensemble cast. Watch out for Austin Butler, who recently shone with his performance as Elvis in Baz Luhrmann’s magisterial biopic, and our next TARDIS coordinator, Ncuti Gatwa (more of whom below).

The Idol – Sky Atlantic, early 2023

A drama devised by the musician and actor Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye, this sounds – in theory at least – like a frank deconstruction of the modern pop biz. 

Lily-Rose Depp stars as an aspiring pop idol. The sudden pressures placed upon her trigger a nervous breakdown. Enter a self-help guru/cult leader played by Tesfaye, who promises to put her career back on track. What could possibly go wrong? 

That synopsis suggests a scathing showbiz satire on the way vulnerable young people are exploited by opportunistic charlatans, so let’s hope it makes its point with acute anger and sensitivity. 

The Idol, sadly, marks the final screen appearance of Anne Heche, who left us long before her time was due.

Succession – Sky Atlantic, Spring

Glory be, it’s back. One of the most outstanding TV dramas of recent years, HBO’s Succession joins the likes of Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul and Mad Men in that rarefied category of ‘American Dramas That Really Are As Good As Everyone Says They Are’. 

If you haven’t seen this scabrous show before, the basic gist is this: Brian Cox plays the monstrous multimillionaire patriarch of a deeply dysfunctional family. They’re all awful yet utterly compelling and pathetically comical. 

Created by Jesse Armstrong of Peep Show and The Thick of It renown, it’s an aghast meditation on the terrifyingly all-powerful likes of Murdoch, Trump and Musk. 

Newcomers are advised to gorge on every episode before season four begins.

Doctor Who – BBC One, Autumn

We’ll have to wait a while until we get to see new Doctor Ncuti Gatwa in action, but the anticipation is palpable. 

The next series heralds the return of writer/producer Russell T. Davies – that man again - who revived Doctor Who so successfully back in 2005. 

It’s been a lean few years for the show, its popularity declined under the hapless stewardship of previous head writer Chris Chibnall, but if anyone can reverse this beleaguered institution’s fortunes, it’s RTD. 

The comeback kicks off with three specials starring the beloved pairing of former Doctor David Tennant and his companion Catherine Tate. 

Gatwa – a striking actor who oozes charisma – will take over at Christmas, although a recent teaser trailer suggests we’ll see him before then. Optimism reigns supreme.

IT'S A SIN + A PERFECT PLANET + 54 DAYS: AMERICA AND THE PANDEMIC

This article was originally published in The Courier on 6th February 2021.

NEXT WEEK’S TV

It’s a Sin – Friday, Channel 4, 9pm

Once again, Russell T. Davies flits with ease between comedy and tragedy in this impeccable drama about the AIDS crisis. It’s 1988, and Ritchie decides that it’s time to come out to his parents. His visit to their home on the Isle of Wight is heartbreaking: I guarantee that you will struggle to hold back tears. 

Meanwhile, Ash and Jill join a peaceful protest against Clause 28, and Roscoe hopes that his secret affair with a Tory MP (Stephen Fry) will whisk him into the high life. Fans of a certain sci-fi show (it’s RTD, so you can probably guess) will be delighted by one particular scene, but in typical Davies style it ends with a gut-punch.

Undercover Police: Hunting Paedophiles – Monday, Channel 4, 9pm

The National Crime Agency estimates that there are now 300,000 people in the UK who pose a sexual threat to children. This new series gains exclusive access to a covert unit of police officers tasked with bringing child sex offenders to justice. Preview copies weren’t available, but I think it’s fair to assume that this will be a tough, disturbing watch. 

In episode one we follow an undercover officer as he poses online as someone looking for other men to commit more heinous crimes with him. The series promises to explore the difficult questions surrounding the causes of paedophilia, as well as the psychological repercussions experienced by professionals who submerge themselves in this horrifying world on the public’s behalf. 

South Africa with Gregg Wallace – Tuesday, STV, 7:30pm

As the egg man’s journey comes to an end, he takes a helicopter ride to the remote and verdant heart of South Africa’s Zulu Kingdom. With assistance from a storyteller dressed in traditional Zulu garb, he delivers a mini history lesson about the Battle of Rorke’s Drift, when a small group of British soldiers (who had no business being there in the first place) fought around 4,000 Zulu warriors. 

Wallace is an amateur history buff and a big fan of the - as he acknowledges - divisive film Zulu, so he’s in his element. After that, it’s time for a spot of hearty home-cooked lunch in a traditional Zulu village. 

Wallace is known for being alarmingly ebullient, but he’s fairly restrained here. Respectful and engaged, he does a decent job.

First Dates: Valentine’s Day Special – Tuesday, Channel 4, 10pm

A special? It’s no different than any other episode of this cheerfully contrived dating show, but I have no beef with that. This week we meet Alexandra, the self-described “Bridget Jones of Northampton”, who works as a wedding planner. Her blind date is Tom, who’s in the high-end marquee hire business. What are the chances of that? 

On another table, retired Labour MP Roger admits that he’d “struggle if I went on a date with a Tory.” Fortunately, Jean, a retired French teacher, doesn’t disappoint. And then there’s the discomfiting pathos of Adam, a heavily tattooed extrovert who doesn’t understand why women can’t take him seriously. 

From a certain angle, this heart-warming show doubles up as a sensitive study of loneliness.

Imagine… We’ll Be Back? – Tuesday, BBC One, 10:45pm

The UK’s performing arts industry has been severely waylaid by the pandemic. In this well-meaning programme, Alan Yentob meets some of the people who are struggling to keep it alive while we wait to return to some semblance of normality. 

The contributors are sympathetic, of course they are, but Yentob is such a risible figure he fatally undermines the entire endeavour. His elitist pomposity and lack of self-awareness is a constant source of dismal mirth. Despite what he clearly thinks, he’s the last person who should be presenting a programme like this. Art is for the masses, but Yentob is a snob. 

It’s such a shame, as we really do need to support our local theatres and arts venues.

Extraordinary Escapes with Sandi Toksvig – Wednesday, Channel 4, 9pm

If you’ve ever fancied going on a luxury mini-break with Sandi Toksvig, then now’s your vicarious chance. In this new series, she visits some of Britain’s most tranquil spots while staying in various striking properties. Her first destination is the Deben Peninsula on the coast of Suffolk. 

Each week she’s accompanied by a famous female pal: her guest in episode one is the great Alison Steadman. Toksvig informally interviews Steadman about her life and likes (she’s a big fan of fungi and clouds), as they luxuriate in a converted 19^th century defence tower, a 17^th century thatched cottage, and the gatehouse of an 11^th century priory. 

It’s just two nice women shooting the sea breeze: passive comfort viewing.

Stonehenge: The Lost Circle Revealed – Friday, BBC Two, 9pm

The provenance and purpose of Stonehenge is one of history’s great mysteries. As Spinal Tap once mused of the prehistoric Britons who built it: “No one knew who they were, or what they were doing.” In recent years, however, a team of experts have plugged a 400-year gap in our knowledge of where the monument’s original stones came from. 

In this engrossing documentary, Professor Alice Roberts gains exclusive access to a series of extraordinary archaeological digs in Pembrokeshire. She explains how this dedicated squad of archaeologists, geologists and student volunteers have managed to unearth the remains of another vast stone circle, which was dismantled just before Stonehenge was created. Their painstaking detective work has rewritten history.

LAST WEEK’S TV

A Perfect Planet – Sunday 31st January, BBC One

In the final episode of Attenborough’s latest natural history lesson, the great narrator delivered a gloomy prognosis alongside three prominent scientists. Humans are destabilising the planet’s life support systems at a rapid and calamitous rate. We now release 100 times more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere than all of Earth’s volcanos combined. 

To illustrate the dire effects of this human-made crisis, Attenborough presented upsetting scenes of hypothermic turtles and orphaned baby elephants suffering from dehydration. The programme’s key point was this: only by looking at the global cataclysms of the past can we prevent another one happening in future. 

Attenborough and co did provide some glimmers of hope, but it’s hard to avoid feeling helpless sometimes. Nice job, humans.

54 Days: America and the Pandemic – Tuesday 2nd February, BBC Two

This sobering documentary focused on some of the high-ranking American medical experts who did everything within their power during the early stages of the pandemic. It began on 31st January 2020, when there were only seven confirmed cases in the USA, and ended on 24th March, when there were 54,453 confirmed cases and 780 fatalities. 

The experts shared their intense frustrations and almost darkly comic sense of disbelief at pig-headed Trump’s politically motivated refusal to accept reality. Thousands of people have died as a direct result of his blatant misinformation. A rampant, dangerous egomaniac.

New York’s former Health Commissioner Oxiris Barbot broke down in tears as she described her overwhelming sense of responsibility. These people are not to blame, their hands were tied by a despotic regime.

 

IT'S A SIN + JOANNA LUMLEY'S HOME SWEET HOME: TRAVELS IN MY OWN LAND

This article was originally published in The Courier on 30th January 2021.

NEXT WEEK'S TV

It’s a Sin – Friday, Channel 4, 9pm

We’ve known from the start that at least one of the characters in Russell T. Davies’ outstanding drama would eventually die from AIDS. But no matter how much you may have steeled yourself for that tragic development, this episode is utterly devastating. 

Davies doesn’t flinch, as that would fatally undermine his modus operandi. He wants us to confront the terrifying cruelty of this disease and the appalling stigma that surrounded it in the 1980s. He’s made us care about these characters, we’re fully invested in them. Now it’s time to cry and get angry. 

And yet, as always, Davies balances the horror with humour. He’s a remarkable writer: this profoundly compassionate political statement could be the best thing he’s ever done.

Craftivism: Making a Difference – Monday, BBC Four, 10pm

Comedian Jenny Éclair has been on her fair share of protest marches over the years. In this revealing programme, she examines the direct crossover between grass-roots activism and creativity, specifically with regards to knitting, cross-stitching, banners and Fuzzy Felt graffiti. 

That may sound rather twee and whimsical, but Éclair makes a strong case for the effectiveness of craftivism. It grabs people’s attention, it makes them stop and think: humour, art and politics combined. It can also be a source of mental wellbeing. 

Éclair meets various nimble-figured campaigners, all of them devoted to raising awareness of various important causes via non-aggressive means. They’re doing what they can in a benign yet sometimes provocative way.

Interior Design Masters with Alan Carr – Tuesday, BBC Two, 8pm

Deep in the bowels of Broadcasting House, there stands a large semi-sentient computer tasked with churning out formulaic competitive lifestyle formats. Its latest computation is this, a slickly upholstered vehicle featuring ten creative contestants hoping to break into the professional world of interior design. The grand prize is a contract with a luxury hotel in The Lake District. 

Each week they’re instructed to transform a bland commercial space using the spellbinding power of their imaginations. Host Alan Carr does what’s required of him (very little), while design guru Michelle Ogundehin scrutinises their efforts. 

It is staggeringly dull, the very definition of barely moving wallpaper. No drama, no tension, no fun. We don’t need this right now. Or ever.

Joanna Lumley’s Home Sweet Home: Travels in My Own Land – Tuesday, STV, 8pm

La Lumley rises above that unwieldy title to present this undemanding series in which she travels around Britain. You know the drill: nice scenery and a smattering of history, all wrapped up in Lumley’s soothing caramel tones. There’s no theme, no focus, just a random patchwork of vignettes. 

On the banks of Lake Windermere she visits the picturesque home of Beatrix Potter. In Whitby, the coastal town that inspired Bram Stoker’s Dracula, she hangs out with some goths. Meanwhile, in Manchester, she visits Coronation Street HQ to wax nostalgically with William Roache (she once played Ken Barlow’s girlfriend for four weeks in 1973). 

Lumley is undeniably good at this sort of thing, she’s naturally charming, friendly and inquisitive.

Your Garden Made Perfect – Thursday, BBC Two, 8pm

Here we go again, yet another ‘aspirational’ series designed to make us feel like failures. You don’t have a massive garden and a mound of disposable income? Well that’s your fault. 

In episode one we meet two couples with a combined budget of £40,000. They want to transform their back gardens into magical wonderlands, so they enlist a team of design experts. Detailed computer-generated simulations afford them the luxury of choosing the results. This conceit is presented as a mind-blowing hook. 

The only affluent lifestyle show I can stomach is Grand Designs, because that tacitly mocks the participants. Pure schadenfreude. This is a smug celebration of oblivious middle-class orthodoxy. I’m a million laughs in real life, honestly.

The Chasers Road Trip: Trains, Brains and Automobiles – Thursday, STV, 9pm

In the final episode of this knowledge-hungry travelogue, Anne, Mark and Shaun from TV’s The Chase arrive in Japan, which has one of the highest robot to human ratios in the world. 

Their journey into the world of Artificial Intelligence is ostensibly light-hearted, but the programme carries a sinister undertow. Advanced facial recognition technology could pose a serious threat to our civil liberties, and do we really want to live in a world populated by realistic androids? We’ve all seen Humans and The Terminator. 

Shaun is particularly worried about this dystopian sci-fi nightmare, whereas pragmatic Anne believes that the human brainbox will always be the dominant force on Earth. Bradley Walsh was unavailable for comment.

LAST WEEK’S TV

Incredible Journeys with Simon Reeve –  24th January, BBC Two

Last year, seasoned BBC travellers Michael Palin and Louis Theroux hosted emergency lockdown compilations of highlights from their previous adventures. Now it’s Simon Reeve’s turn. 

An affable explorer with a dedicated social conscience, Reeve is a people person. He’s not one to merely bask in the foreign climes he encounters, he’s more interested in making a meaningful street-level connection with different cultures. 

This wasn’t the best way to appreciate his work: Best Of’s never are. But it was a touching reminder of how, in his unassuming way, he exposes injustice. War, poverty, inequality, prejudice, these are the abiding themes of his programmes. His anger bubbles just below the surface. His compassion is palpable. A decent human being.

Hip Hop: Songs That Shook America – 29th January, BBC Four

Each episode in this new series focuses on a game-changing hip hop track. It began with Kanye West’s Jesus Walks from 2004. A powerful redemption song, this innovative fusion of social commentary, self-aggrandisement and gospel put Kanye on the map. 

Which is all well and good, but the story behind the making of Jesus Walks isn’t particularly interesting. Yes, the programme placed the song in its socio-political context while tracing the evolution of Kanye’s life and career up until that point, but it all felt rather perfunctory. 

To make up for Kanye’s absence, series producers Questlove and Black Thought from The Roots spoke to some of his collaborators. The rest of the series will hopefully be more substantial.