BEST OF THE REST
THE SECRET LIFE OF THE ZOO AT CHRISTMAS
Channel 4, 8pm
THE season of goodwill has arrived at Chester Zoo, which means the doting keepers go round giving out little gifts to all the animals.
“Animal families at Christmas are much the same as people families,” insists Kirsten. “They love a good bit of food, they love spending time together and maybe exchanging a little gift if they’re lucky.”
Beagle and Husky the meerkats, and their swarms of pups, are given a Christmas tree decorated with spiralised root vegetables and crackers made of meal worms. Festive.
Meanwhile, there’s emotion and excitement at news of the birth of Kyra, the UK’s first surviving sun bear cub. “I may have had a lump in my throat,” says keeper Lucy.
Later, the bear proves a little overadventurous and gets stuck up a tree the first time it ventures outside.
And there’s nothing very merry about what happens to a plucky little spider, which attempts to snag giant spider Ruby.
THE ‘CHRISTMAS’ MISADVENTURES OF ROMESH RANGANATHAN
BBC2, 9pm COMEDIAN Romesh is essentially travelling to one of the most hostile environments on Earth just to get himself a good dinner party story. “I’m sick of the constant one upmanship,” he moans.
And so in this festive edition – festive only in that he’s told to wear a Christmas jumper – he heads to the Canadian Arctic.
He wants to know if there’s more to the “icy bit at the top of the Earth” than freezing to death or being eaten by a polar bear.
He meets his guide, the Inuit-born athlete, movie star, youth ambassador and hunter Johnny Isaaluk. Johnny is wearing a T-shirt, which is just showing off really. The pair hit it off and what really makes this travelogue is that Johnny totally ‘gets’ Romesh.
There’s banter over everything from punching a polar bear on the nose, to using a binbag for a toilet and standing on igloos. You may even spot Romesh having a good time.