PICKS OF THE DAY
Food: MasterChef, BBC1, 8pm
Following an arduous seven-week journey, the search for the country’s best amateur cook reaches its climax tonight as the final contenders push themselves to the limit for one last time before judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace (both left). This is the contestants’ very last chance to pull out all the stops, show everything they’ve learned along the way and demonstrate the kind of cook they have become. The talented bunch must take to the kitchen once more to produce the best three dishes of their lives, pushing their culinary boundaries and delivering jawdroppingly good food as they compete to lift the coveted trophy and become the 18th MasterChef champion.
Travel: Great Continental Railway Journeys, BBC2, 7pm
Michael Portillo (left) embarks on a thousandmile journey from the Swedish capital of Stockholm to Abisko in the northern reaches of the Arctic Circle. In Stockholm, Michael braves a precarious tour of the city from its rooftops before boarding a heritage tram to get the lowdown on 1930s Sweden from an expert. Moving on, the former cabinet minister finishes his journey deep in the Arctic Circle at a remote climate research station.
Lifestyle: Gordon Ramsay’s Future Food Stars, BBC1, 9pm
With the help of oyster farmer Tom Haward (above, right), chef Gordon Ramsay (above) asks his contenders to harvest oysters by hand on the Essex coast using centuries-old techniques, before putting them in charge of his restaurant, The Savoy Grill. With his reputation on the line and paying diners expecting great service, will they live up to Gordon’s standards?
Documentary: Paul Merson: A Walk Through My Life,
BBC2, 8pm
The popular football pundit and former Arsenal and England midfielder walks through North Yorkshire, reflecting on his unconventional life, career and faith. Carrying a 360-degree camera, he also describes his struggles with drink and gambling, which cost him, more than £7million. Merson (above) also learns more about his gambling pattern and how his mind works.
Film: Top Hat, BBC4, 9pm
Classic comedy starring Fred Astaire (right) and Ginger Rogers. Jerry Travers spots Dale Tremont and falls in love, but their romance is complicated by the fact that Dale thinks he’s married to her best friend. In this warm-hearted, witty musical Astaire consolidates his image once and for all with the title number Top Hat, White Tie And Tails, while the Irving Berlin score is a constant delight. A movie to treasure for its sumptuous art deco design and the pairing of its principal players.