JUSTINE O’MAHONY’S TV WEEK
THERE WAS only two programmes worth talking about last week for very different reasons. The first was Michael D's State visit to London to visit the Queen. Over 1.3 million viewers tuned in to watch The Little Man make history by being the first Irish President to visit Britain at the invitation of the Queen and didn't he do us proud?
Us Irish love a bit of pomp of ceremony and there was plenty of that during his four day visit which started with him meeting Prince Charles and Camilla at the Irish Embassy, before heading off to Windsor Castle to meet the Queen.
I've always felt a bit hard done by that we don't have our own royalty but having watched the lovely and elegant Sabina swan around in her beautifully tailored designer outfits and Michael prancing like he was born to it, The Higgins' are as close as we're ever going to get!
Some minor trivia - During the State Banquet at Windsor Castle there were 2,127 setting items on the 160 foot long table with 77 guests on each side of the table plus three at each end. Each guest had an individual butter dish but Charles and Camilla had miniature bottles of olive oil instead. They must have been on a low fat diet!
The highlight for many viewers was the Ceiliuradh concert held at the Royal Albert Hall which saw a stellar cast of Irish talent take to the stage. Well done to Bryan Dobson for excellent anchorage of the event and thanks be to God they didn't send Sharon Ni Bheolain!
Ah now I wish I could be as complimentary about Game of Thrones but alas no! I admit I got sucked in by the hype and began to feel maybe I was missing out on something. The fourth series kicked off last Monday week to widespread excitement and anticipation. Well if everyone says it's that's good, it must be, I thought.
Wrong. Just because the whole world is gone mad, doesn't mean I am because I can honestly say it was the greatest heap of rubbish I've ever seen. Now to be fair, rather than doing the sensible thing and watching the first three seasons before hand, I jumped straight in and watched episode 1 of season 4. Half way through, I had absolutely no idea what was going on. There was a lot of nudey women and gratuitous sex, not to mention a vast amount of obscene language.
I'm no saint, I like a curse as much as the next person when I wish to vent. But there are certain words that should NEVER be used in conversation or tv. Game of Thrones producers obviously never got the memo on that one!
I couldn't figure out if the acting was just generally terrible or that the script wasn't doing them any favours. There was a plethora of accents including, Geordie, Californian, Cockney and what was lacking in substance, the producers made up for with an excess of sex and violence. An hour of my life wasted!
ONES TO WATCH
Crisis, TV3, Thursday, 10 pm TV3
The latest offering from the US, Crisis focuses on the safety of chil- dren away from their parents as a school bus is ambushed and the kids of some of Washington DC's most elite citizens, including the President, are kidnapped.
Also among those kidnapped is the daughter of the chief executive of a global IT company, Meg Fitch played by Gillian Anderson whose sister Susie Dunn is an FBI agent assigned to the case. But when it's revealed the FBI agent is really the girl's mother and not her aunt, the stakes are set even higher for the family.
Irish Lives: My Transgender Journey, TV3, Wednesday, 9pm
This documentary tells the story of three people as they search for a sense of their own identity, strive for acceptance and continue to battle against the government to be recognised in their true gender. UCD student Sam made the transition from female to male with the full support of his family but he still has further barriers to cross.
Louise also shares her story as the first transgender worker in Ireland to successfully use the Employment Equality Act in a case of gender discrimination on the grounds of gender. And Kay gives an open and honest account of her pending surgery as well as her struggle to change her name and gender on her American passport.
The Guess List, BBC1, Saturday, 9.30pm
I love Rob Brydon as an actor so it will be interesting to see how he fares as a TV presenter with this new show that is supposed to be crammed full of big laughs and famous faces. Each show pits two members of the public against one another as they compete for an exclusive tailor- made prize. Five celebrity guests are on hand to lend their support as Brydon draws up a guess list of answers. Typical Saturday night telly.
SOAPWATCH
It's all kicking off in Emmerdale this week when the b'ould Charity discovers she is pregnant, although given the way she sleeps around with any man who has a few bob in his pocket, she's probably the only one that's surprised! To say she's not best pleased would be an understatment and so confides in Debbie who helps her concoct a cover story so she can have a termination.
But......wait for it, Megan finds the pregnancy test in the bin and is
quick to confront Declan. Declan is horrified that she wants a termination and so determined to stop her that he proposes to her! Those two certainly deserve each other.
Meanwhile over in Coronation Street it's all about to hit the fan for Peter Barlow who got the shock of his life last week when he thought he had gotten both his wife and his mistress pregnant. Although, not true, the shock of it all has forced him to finish the affair with Tina, but she manages to seduce him once more this week and afterwards he hits the bottle. Carla is disgusted with him and issues him with an ultimatum - either give up the drink or there will be no baby. Are his exploits about to come back to haunt him?
It's all about who killed Lucy Beale this week in Eastenders as the beautiful young blonde meets her maker. These whodunnits are what Eastenders do really well and this story line should keep us going for a few weeks at least.
Will it be Max, who Lucy has been having a fling with? (Really?? Lucy and Max? I just don't buy that one!). Will it be Lauren, her best friend and Max's daughter? Or will it be Lee Carter, just back from Afghanistan and harbouring lots of secrets?