Mamma mia, Penelope! Just where did you get that accent?

Donatella Versace is reportedly furious at the narrative told in The Assassination Of Gianni Versace (BBC2), but she must, surely, be delighted at the casting of beautiful actress Penelope Cruz as her.

after the first episode, many viewers observed that Spanishborn Penelope was struggling with Donatella’s Italian accent. things hadn’t improved last night either, when it sounded as though her dialect coach was the Italian mamma from the Dolmio pasta sauce advert.

that aside, poor Penelope hasn’t had a lot to do so far. She spent most of the second episode sweeping into rooms and asking people to leave as ‘I need to ’ave a word wis my brother in private’.

Stealing the show was Darren Criss in the role of serial killer andrew Cunanan. When we caught up with him last night, he had moved to Miami under an assumed identity.

Cunanan changed personas as often as he changed stolen cars. one minute he was the son of a Midwest farmer, the next he was flamboyant French fashion student Kurt DeMarrs, and Criss brilliantly captured the disturbed and schizophrenic nature of his character.

By the time he arrived in Miami, Cunanan — who was gay — had already killed four men and was one of america’s top ten most wanted men, yet still he continued to openly stalk the beaches and nightclubs looking for wealthy men to exploit.

as for his next victim, Gianni Versace was about to launch his latest collection and desperate to prove he wasn’t a has-been overshadowed by emerging new talent like alexander McQueen.

telling a story where everyone already knows the ending is always a challenge, and writer tom Rob Smith overcomes this with strong character development of lesser- known players such as Cunanan and Versace’s lover antonio (Ricky Martin).

all that’s needed is for poor Penelope Cruz’s dialogue to get a little bit more exciting than asking people to leave a room.

Save Me (Sky atlantic) is a crime story told against an altogether less glamorous backdrop of Deptford, South-east london.

nelson ‘ nelly’ Rowe ( lennie James) is under suspicion for kidnapping Jodie, the teenage daughter whom he hadn’t seen for years.

nelly is a ducker and diver, but insists he is innocent and that the man Jodie had been chatting to online, who lured her to a meeting, was a wellinformed imposter.

last night’s episode, the second in the series, shone a light on the other possible suspects. Was it Jodie’s odd best friend Dylan who had encouraged her to make contact with her estranged father?

then there was Jodie’s stepfather, Barry, who offered a £50,000 reward for information, even though he didn’t have the funds. Did he offer the reward knowing he’d never have to pay it?

Suranne Jones stars as Jodie’s mother Claire, and with a creepy husband, an unhappy teenager and a fabulous house, it must have felt like familiar territory to her coming so soon after Dr Foster. at least her character is — for now — slightly less unhinged.

Dark and grimly gripping, with the whole series already available on download, I doubt too many people will be able to resist binge watching in one go.