Television
The Best of the Week
SUNDAY JANUARY 26
The Show Must Go On: The Queen + Adam Lambert Story (Prime, 9.00pm). Adam Lambert was runner-up in American Idol season eight, but it was his performance with Queen on the show that set in motion a nearly decade-long collaboration with Brian May and Roger Taylor. This documentary tells that story and also has interviews with May,
Taylor, Rami
Malek (who played Freddie Mercury in Bohemian Rhapsody) and Idol judge Simon Cowell. By sheer coincidence, Queen + Adam Lambert are touring here in early February.
MONDAY JANUARY 27
The 62nd Annual Grammy Awards (TVNZ 2, 2.00pm). Modern American pop music may be incomprehensible to anyone over 40, but at the very least, the Grammys usually put on a good show. Alicia Keys hosts for the second time from the Staples Center in Los Angeles, and it’s looking like it will be the year of Lizzo – she has eight nominations, based
on her album Cuz I Love You, a title that means something different to Kiwis. Lizzo is set to perform, along with Ariana Grande (who has five nominations), Billie Eilish (who has six) and Aerosmith, who are 2020’s MusiCares Person of the Year. TVNZ is broadcasting the event live, with a repeat on TVNZ Duke at 9.30pm. The Grammys’ red carpet is also quite the show – will anyone ever top Lady Gaga arriving in an egg? – and there’s coverage on E! (Sky 014) from 10.00am, with live coverage from noon.
TUESDAY JANUARY 28
Dog Squad Puppy School (TVNZ 1, 7.30pm). As anyone who follows Emergency Puppy on Twitter knows, a puppy a day can reduce blood pressure, so expect monumental cuteness and a feeling of general calm watching this new local series about the tiny canines that are training to become world-class sniffers. Aw. But wait, there’s more baby animal delight to come: First Year on Earth follows Dog Squad Puppy School at 8.00pm, a BBC series about baby animals. There’s Safina the elephant in Kenya; Nyakabara the mountain gorilla in Uganda; twins Bisque and Chowder, who are spotted hyenas, also in Kenya; Limpet, a southern sea otter in California; Jazir, a toque macaque in Sri Lanka; and
Fela, an Arctic fox in Iceland.
They’re adorable and vulnerable – sharks are partial to otters, dogs hunt monkeys and gorillas can die from tree falls.
The Great Australian Bake Off (Prime, 7.30pm). If you’re missing a Bake Off fix, the Aussie version will have to do until a new local series arrives. Comedians Claire Hooper and Mel Buttle return as presenters, as do judges Maggie Beer and Matt Moran – the season begins, as should most things in life, with cakes.
The Twelve (Rialto, Sky 039, 8.30pm). A Belgian drama that sparked the inevitable