BEST OF THE REST
DAMNED Channel 4, 10pm
MISERY and laughter seem to rub along nicely together in this series, which bows out tonight with the final two episodes.
First Nitin (Himesh Patel) deals with an “unkempt child” living with heroin addict parents, while in lighter news, Nat (Issy Suttie) continues the search for the perfect birth partner. And Rose (Jo Brand) faces an awkward ‘morning after the night before’ with Dennis (Clive Mantle).
Then there’s more drama as a 14-yearold girl has a baby in the school toilets – her mother is a notorious thug. Rose gets the creeps while visiting some home-schooled Mormon children. And Al (Alan Davies) has a big announcement.
This series brilliantly pings us from social work hell to glorious comedy and back again, taking on big issues, yet swerving too much darkness with an idiot employee or awkward relationship.
And as it all ends on a typically brilliant low, you’ll realise you’ll miss this next week.
ZOE BALL’S HARDEST ROAD HOME BBC1, 9pm/ BBB1 Wales 10.40pm
LAST year, Zoe Ball’s boyfriend, 40-year-old cameraman Billy Yates, took his own life after a long struggle with depression.
Zoe has since spoken out about the tragedy and decided she was determined to raise awareness about mental health, hoping to help others coping with the overwhelming sadness and bafflement after the suicide of a loved one.
Which brings us to this, Zoe’s Sport Relief fundraising challenge, which sees the 47-year-old TV and radio presenter embark on a 350-mile, five-day ride from the town of her birth, Blackpool, to her home in Brighton.
As she sets off from Blackpool Pier, she says: “I am feeling every kind of emotion you could imagine. Fear, anticipation.”
And of course what follows is a gruelling battle against fatigue, aching bones and a fair few hills.
There are surprises of course, as celebs turn up in support, sometimes on a bike, and while there are laughs it’s also an emotional journey.