The Herald - The Herald Magazine
THIS WEEK’S BEST FILMS
Throughout her reign, the Queen has attended weekly meetings with her Prime Ministers. But while she’s been keeping the appointment for 68 years, there have been 14 different occupants of No 10 calling on her, from Winston Churchill to the current leader Boris Johnson. This documentary looks at the relationship between the monarch and her
PMs, finding out what really happens at the meetings and who wields the biggest influence. According to the Netflix drama The Crown, the Queen got on particularly well with Churchill and Harold Wilson, but the programme asks if she really does have favourites, and whether the personal ever gets in the way of the professional. It also looks back at some memorable moments, including the Queen singing Auld Lang Syne with Tony Blair.
Mystery Road (BBC4, 9pm)
BBC4’s latest crime drama import comes from Australia. If you missed the first series (which was itself a spin-off from the movies Mystery Road and Goldston), it starred Aaron Pedersen as the indigenous detective Jay Swan, who was looking into the disappearance of two cattle hands. He’s back again for the second run, but this time he’s arriving in the town of Gideon to investigate the grisly discovery of a decapitated
SATURDAY
Strong-willed bookworm Belle (Emma Watson) rebuffs the amorous advances of preening Gaston (Luke Evans), who wonders how he’ll know when he is in love. Before Gaston can find out, Belle trades places with her inventor father Maurice as the eternal prisoner of an accursed Beast
(Dan Stevens) in his crumbling stronghold. Beauty and the Beast is a ravishing live-action remake of the 1991 Disney animation, and if Bill Condon’s picture doesn’t quite scale the dizzy heights of its predecessor, it comes delightfully close.
Pacific Rim: Uprising (2018) (C4, 9pm)
Ten years after the Pan Pacific Defense Corps (PPDC) unleashed an army of Jaegers – 25-storey tall robots operated by mindmelded humans – former pilot Jake Pentecost (John Boyega) is contacted by Mako Mori (Rinko Kikuchi).
She implores him to return to the PPDC to head off the threat posed by Liwen Shao, chief executive of Shao Industries, who intends to replace the Jaegers with unmanned drones. Haunted by ghosts of the past, Jake eventually agrees to mentor a spunky 15-year-old cadet called Amara, whose family were crushed to death during one monster attack. The sci-fi’s gleaming hardware is impressive – hulking, digitally rendered robots cut a swathe through the toppling skyscrapers of Tokyo.
SUNDAY
Doctor Zhivago (1965) (BBC2, 3pm)
This epic romantic drama is set during the Russian Revolution and follows Yuri Zhivago (Omar Sharif), a married doctor who
body. That isn’t the only problem Gideon is facing, as an archaeological dig is also stirring up controversy.
Jonathan Ross’ Comedy Club (STV, 10pm)
Jonathan and co-host Mawaan Rizwan present another stand-up showcase featuring some of the best and funniest new comedians in the UK. This episode features a set from Nigel Ng, the Malaysian stand-up comedian known for his comedic character, Uncle Roger. Plus there are performances from Adelaide-born comic Bec Hill, who tends to incorporate arts and crafts into her routines and Edinburgh Comedy Award winner Jordan Brookes. Finally, Kerry Godliman, who played Hannah in Derek, Nicky in Bad Move and Lisa in After Life, will be trying out some new material.
SUNDAY
Out of This World (CBBC, 9.30am)
In the third programme of the series, Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock reveals the game-changers of space – including missions and spacecraft from the Space Shuttle to the Hubble Space Telescope that have transformed our lives on earth and beyond. Dr Maggie’s Star Guest is NASA astronaut Kathy Sullivan, who flew in the space shuttle three times, delivered Hubble into orbit and was the first American woman to walk in space. Plus, Dr Maggie counts down the Top 5 Most Expensive Missions and all your space falls for Lara (Julie Christie), the beautiful wife of a political activist. He’s torn between his commitment to his wife and his passion for his mistress. Of course, the path of true love never did run smooth. The story itself is nothing particularly special, however, the outstanding performances from the all-star cast and, in particular, David
Lean’s masterly direction, make it a must-see. Although it was mauled by the critics, the film earned 10 Oscar nominations, winning five.
questions are answered in Ask Maggie.
Tour de France Live 2020 (ITV4, 3.45pm)
Since 1975, the Tour has finished on the Champs-Elysees, the emblematic street in the centre of Paris. And today, after more than three weeks of racing, the racers can finally push for home and celebrate this year’s General Classification winner. Although this final stretch usually favours sprinters, the rest of the pack will be hoping to buck the trend, and even during these strange times, there could be massive crowds from Place de la Concorde, along the Quai des Tuileries to the ChampsElysees. But one thing is certain, thanks to a truce, the yellow jersey will remain the property