Film choice

The Madness of King George (1994) FILM4, 6.50PM ★★★★

 Based on the play by Alan Bennett, Nicholas Hytner’s study of the decline into dementia of a reigning monarch won Nigel Hawthorne a Bafta. His George III is childlike, forgetful and abusive, and in danger of being removed from the throne by those who blame him for the loss of the American colonies. Helen Mirren, Geoffrey Palmer and Rupert Graves co-star. (1997) SYFY, 10.00PM ★★

 In this tedious, if starry remake of the far superior The Day of the Jackal, Bruce Willis is the mysterious professional assassin hired by a Russian mobster to kill a leading American political figure. It is feared that the director of the FBI (Sidney Poitier) is his next target, so authorities coax imprisoned IRA sniper Richard Gere – the only man who has ever seen The Jackal – into helping them track him down. Don’t Look Now (1973) HORROR CHANNEL, 10.50PM ★★★★★

 Director Nic Roeg (The Man Who Fell to Earth) has taken cinema to strange places with his non-linear narrative technique. And his talents are certainly on display in this fascinating exploration of the supernatural, adapted from a story by Daphne du Maurier. Julie Christie and Donald Sutherland star as a couple who move to Venice after their daughter dies, only to encounter forebodings of death.