THE HOT LIST
BEST OF TV AND STREAMING
RETURN OF THE KING TIGER KING Netflix
■ THE explosive rivalries between wildlife park owners documented in the first series of Tiger King was the big TV hit of the first lockdown 18 months ago and now we revisit that cast of strange and eccentric characters to see what they’re up to now. As before, the main focus is likely to be Joe Exotic, the controversial former owner of a roadside Oklahoma zoo who was jailed at the end of the first season. A gun-toting polygamist with a terrible haircut, Exotic seemed more concerned about making money and attacking his rivals than the animals under his care – but has prison changed him? And what’s happened to his old zoo in the meantime?
MACCA AT LARGE PAUL MCCARTNEY NIGHT BBC Two, Saturday, November 20, from 7.55pm
■ WITH the release of Peter Jackson’s highly anticipated Beatles documentary Get Back imminent (out next week), the Beeb goes on a deep dive into their archives to celebrate the life and times of Macca. First up is Paul McCartney at the BBC, a compilation of post-Beatles TV appearances, which is followed at 9.25pm by a live performance at the Cavern Club from 2018, the Liverpool venue where the Fab Four played more than 300 times. Then finally at 10.55pm, McCartney is interviewed by actor Idris Elba who tries to find out what drives his continuing creativity.
CLASSIC NOIR THE THIRD MAN BBC Two, Saturday, November 20, 1.15pm
■ CAROL Reed’s 1949 film is rated as one of the best British movies of all time and more than 70 years on, it’s still an intriguing slice of post-war noir. Joseph Cotten plays Holly Martins, a pulp writer who’s travelled to Vienna to see his old pal Harry Lime (Orson Welles) only to find out he’s been reportedly killed in an accident. As Martins tries to find out what happened to his friend in the war-ravaged city, the web of intrigue gets ever more tangled. A superb, witty thriller penned by Graham Greene and elevated by Welles’s fleeting appearances. Before the film at 12.45pm, Talking Pictures looks at Welles’s stellar career as an actor and film-maker.
LEGACY OF EMPIRE EMPIRE STATE OF MIND Channel 4, Saturday, November 20, 9pm
■ AUTHOR Sathnam Sanghera mixes the personal and the historical in this two-part survey of the British empire and its legacy, drawing on his own experiences as he goes. In this first programme, he interviews people with a range of viewpoints on racism and finds some disturbing echoes of the past in modern times. Uncomfortable but essential viewing.
KILLER ON THE LOOSE CRIME Britbox from Thursday, November 18
■ IRVINE Welsh’s crime novel is the first adaptation of his work for TV and this six-part series promises to be as hard-hitting as the likes of Filth and Trainspotting. Dougray Scott stars as DI Ray Lennox, an Edinburgh detective who is convinced a schoolgirl’s abduction is the work of a serial killer called Mister Confectioner. His bosses believe the killer is already behind bars but Lennox is convinced he’s still on the loose and as the investigation proceeds, things start to get very personal. Also starring Joanna Vanderham, Angela Griffin, Ken Stott and Laura Fraser. Darryl Webber