Seven Days

MIKE MULVIHILL’S guide to the week’s TV

SATURDAY THE MANY FACES OF MICHAEL CAINE

6.50pm, bbc2 ★★★★

The British actor has managed to convince in a wide variety of roles throughout his 60-year career. This profile, first shown in 2011, pays tribute with the help of archive clips and the words of friends and critics.

THE HIT LIST CELEBRITY SPECIAL

7.45pm, bbc1 ★★★

Comedian Susan Calman and DJ Melvin Odoom, former footballer John Barnes and DJ Scott Mills, and football pundit Chris Kamara and DJ Vick Hope are the teams having their music knowledge put to the test.

CASUALTY

9.20pm, bbc1 ★★★

Ethan is elated by the news that he’s been given the opportunity to go to Costa Rica for a work placement, but things aren’t going so well for Dylan, who is struggling in his role as clinical lead of the emergency department.

MYSTIFY: MICHAEL HUTCHENCE/ INXS: LIVE BABY LIVE

9.20pm/11pm, bbc2 ★★★★

Rare archive footage and intimate insights from family and friends (including Kylie Minogue) combine to tell the story of the charismatic Australian singer who died, aged just 37, in 1997. It’s followed by a chance to see him in concert with his band, INXS, at Wembley Stadium in 1991.

SUNDAY THE SECRET LIFE OF MARY POPPINS

2pm, bbc2 ★★★★

Victoria Coren Mitchell explores the complex life of Mary Poppins author P.L. Travers, looking at her 20-year battle with Walt Disney, whose 1964 film version she loathed. Saving Mr Banks, the film based on that relationship, starring Emma Thompson as Travers and Tom Hanks as Disney, is at 3pm.

COUNTRYFILE

6pm, bbc1 ★★★★

Steve Brown is in Somerset, celebrating the work that volunteers and communities do in our countryside, from counting bees to helping people with mental health issues.

QUIZMASTER

6pm, ITV ★★★

Some very familiar previous quiz show contestants from Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?, Mastermind, The Chase, Fifteen To One and University Challenge compete in a high-stakes battle to become the ultimate quiz champion. Jeremy Vine is your host.

ANTIQUES ROADSHOW

8pm, bbc1 ★★★★

In a special edition, Fiona Bruce looks back at the most memorable finds from recent years, and reveals what happened next – and that means finding out what was actually inside a 200-year-old bottle of wine that expert Andy Mcconnell tasted in 2016.

SNOW CATS AND ME

8pm, bbc2 ★★★★

A moving two-part documentary in which cameraman Gordon Buchanan heads to Siberia to help to release beautiful lynxes – previously being kept as household pets – back into the wild. Concludes on Monday.

THE TRIAL OF CHRISTINE KEELER

9pm, bbc1 ★★★★

This new six-part series is a stylish dramatisation of one of the most seismic scandals in British political history. Sophie Cookson is Keeler, with James Norton as her mentor, Stephen Ward, and Ben Miles as her government minister lover John Profumo.

MONDAY

ONLY CONNECT

8pm, bbc2 ★★★ Victoria Coren Mitchell hosts as former teams return to compete in four special episodes of the quiz show this week. Continues on New Year’s Day at 8pm.

CHRISTMAS SALES: SUPERSHOPPERS SPECIAL

8pm, ch4 ★★★

Sabrina Grant and Helen Skelton hit the sales to investigate the tricks that retailers use to get us to spend money – and the ways you can get around them to save money.

WORLD’S MOST SCENIC RAILWAY JOURNEY: MINUTE BY MINUTE

8pm, ch5 ★★★★

Settle into your seat as the ‘Black 5’ locomotive takes you on a stunning realtime train journey along the West Highland Line, from the foothills of Ben Nevis to the sea at the coastal port of Mallaig.

ALAN CARR’S CELEBRITY RE-PLAY 2019

9pm, ITV ★★★

The Chatty Man and Angellica Bell are hosting a night of fun and games that sees six celebrities taking their places on the sofa for a raucous look back at the good, the bad and the ugly from 2019.

THE BEST OF 2010-2015 WIPE

10.45pm, bbc2 ★★★★

Relive the best moments from Charlie Brooker’s cynical end-of-the-year show, which has sadly been missing from the schedules for the past few years.

NEW YEAR’S EVE DAME EDNA RULES THE WAVES

9.05pm, bbc1 ★★★

Direct from her super-yacht, Dame Edna Everage hosts an exclusive evening of music and chat with guests Sharon Osbourne,

Rob Rinder, Emily Atack and Nile Rodgers.

GRAHAM NORTON SHOW: NEW YEAR’S EVE SHOW

10.20pm, bbc1 ★★★★ Graham presents his traditional New Year’s Eve show, with guests Tom Hanks, Motsi

Mabuse, Stephen Graham, Matthew

Rhys, Florence Pugh and Anthony Joshua.

JOOLS’ ANNUAL HOOTENANNY

11.15pm, bbc2 ★★★★

Welcome in the 2020s with bluesman Jools Holland and his guests, who this year include the rapper Stormzy, Welsh rockers Stereophonics and, as usual, the Pipes and Drums of the 1st Battalion Scots Guards.

CRAIG DAVID ROCKS BIG BEN LIVE

11.25pm, bbc1 ★★★★

The New Year’s Eve celebrations kick off live from the heart of London with a concert staged by singer-songwriter Craig David, before the traditional fireworks display at midnight. Happy New Year!

NEW YEAR’S DAY ROMEO AND JULIET: BEYOND WORDS

5.30pm, bbc2 ★★★★★

The Royal Ballet’s Francesca Hayward and William Bracewell take the lead roles in this wonderful film version of Kenneth Macmillan’s ballet set to Prokofiev’s music, shot on location in Hungary.

MIRANDA: MY SUCH FUN CELEBRATION

5.45pm, bbc1 ★★★★

Miranda Hart and the cast of her much-loved sitcom come together to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the first episode with a music-filled, star-studded spectacular from the London Palladium.

All series of Miranda are on BBC iplayer now.

THE GREAT FESTIVE BAKE OFF 7.40PM, CH4 ★★★★

Noel Fielding, Sandi Toksvig, Prue Leith and Paul Hollywood welcome the cast of the hit comedy Derry Girls into the tent for a chaotic celebrity edition. And there’s a special performance by the London Community Gospel Choir to celebrate the New Year.

DRACULA 9PM, BBC1 ★★★★★

From the creators of Sherlock comes this reinterpretation of the Bram Stoker legend. The Danish actor Claes Bang really gets his teeth into the role of the bloodsucking Count in this unmissable three-part drama, showing over consecutive nights. Be warned, though, it’s gory stuff, not for the faint-hearted.

EARTH’S TROPICAL ISLANDS 9PM, BBC2 ★★★★

Over the next three nights, escape the dark and grey winter and let yourself be transported to three stunning islands. The series continues with Borneo on Thursday and Hawaii on Friday – but first, we’re off to Madagascar, home to a magical array of creatures found nowhere else in the world.

A YEAR IN THE LIFE OF A YEAR 2019 11PM, BBC2 ★★★★

It may be tucked away in a late-night slot, but make sure you don’t miss Rhys Thomas’s inspired spoof end-of-theyear review. Some cleverly edited clips help you to relive the cultural highlights of 2019 in hilarious, irreverent fashion.

THURSDAY BEST HOME COOK 8PM, BBC1 ★★★★

Ten of the country’s most talented – and nicest – home cooks will be cooking, eating and living together over the next ten weeks. Claudia Winkleman is back as host, but this time, Mary Berry and Chris Bavin are joined on the judging panel by chef Angela Hartnett.

LAST MINUTE HOLIDAY SECRETS UNPACKED 8PM, CH4 ★★★

Presenter Scarlette Douglas sets out to discover the latest insider tips that will help you to save cash when booking your holiday.

GINO’S ITALIAN EXPRESS 8.30PM, ITV ★★★

Gino’s train journey takes him on a starstudded line-up of Tuscan cities, starting off in Pisa, the city famed for its leaning tower.

BIG FAT QUIZ OF THE DECADE 9PM, CH4 ★★★

Claudia Winkleman, Nish Kumar, Joe Lycett, Alan Carr, Stacey Solomon and Jonathan Ross have their knowledge of the past ten years put to the test by sardonic Jimmy Carr.

IMAGINE 11PM, BBC1 ★★★★

Alan Yentob talks to Lenny Henry about the highs and lows of his 45 years in show business, while Lenny meets up with his closest friends, family and colleagues to reminisce about his rise to fame aged just 16.

FRIDAY SECRET SCOTLAND WITH SUSAN CALMAN 8PM, CH5 ★★★

The likeable comedian kicks off a new series about Scotland’s most famous locations in the Cairngorms in the eastern Highlands. There, she goes in search of the elusive wildcat – but first, she dances at Balmoral.

THE GOES WRONG SHOW 8.30PM, BBC1 ★★★

Everything that could go wrong does go wrong as the amateur dramatists at the Cornley Drama Society put on a Second World War production, which is rarely performed because of its historical inaccuracy.

HOLIDAYING WITH JANE MCDONALD & FRIENDS 9PM, CH5 ★★★

Jane is joined by a host of celebrity friends for a new travel series brimming with holiday ideas. In the first episode, Jane heads to the Greek island of Corfu, and the former Strictly winner Ore Oduba is in the Lake District.

IN SEARCH OF DRACULA WITH MARK GATISS 10.35PM, BBC2 ★★★★

After his interpretation of the Dracula legend reaches its conclusion on BBC1, the series creator explores this icon of popular culture. Helping him in his quest are former film brides of Dracula, including Joanna Lumley.