Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Platform for the new romantics
STATION 19
SKY WITNESS, 10pm As the heroic and effortlessly beautiful Seattle firefighters return in the fourth series of this glossy Grey’s Anatomy spin-off, nothing is the same.
We join the crew as the Covid-19 pandemic hits the city, with the tight-knit team leaning on each other for support as they get used to a world of masks and distance.
As we left the series last time, Andy’s mother returned out of the blue, leaving the Station 19 lieutenant to start having a panic attack.
Now it’s three weeks later and Andy, played by Jaina Lee Ortiz, is still trying to process that her mother is still alive, while also grieving the death of her father.
Meanwhile, Sullivan (Boris Kodjoe) struggles with being fired and tries to settle into a new job.
It’s all hands on deck when a group of teenagers unintentionally start a wildfire.
And there’s some neat crossover in some scenes with the cast of Grey’s, which is also due to return to screens next week.
FIRST DATES HOTEL C4, 9pm REFRESHINGLY honest and funny, you can’t help but root for all the daters in this southern Italy-set show.
Fred Sirieix and his team whip up the romance as hopefuls trail in looking for love.
In this instalment, six-foot gym owner and ex-military man Richard says his appearance belies his sensitive side.
“People always think I’m such a badass,” says the 34-year-old, “but in reality me and my son dance to Moana and I have Harry Potter tattoos.”
He adds: “I love me a musical. Why are there not more men dancing in streets as we speak?”
After making the receptionist giddy, he finally has his date with bodybuilder and nutritionist Emilia, who mostly wants someone who can pick her up.
Having Asperger’s means Richard struggles to read women, and he has to ask his date Emilia how it’s going midmeal. The pair make a heartwarming connection.
Meanwhile, 40-year-old hotelier Andy has only recently come out and is looking forward to his first-ever date with a man.
“I have been ‘straight’ for 37 years,” he says.
Ex-bouncer Joseph, from Darlington, is delighted to welcome Andy into the gay club – “the best club on Earth”.
Elsewhere, 24-year-old Angie meets ex-footballer Tom, who has been a stereotypical lad in the past, but is determined to grow up.
The chemistry between these two is palpable from the moment they lay eyes on each other.