THIS WEEK’S TOP TV PICKS
COMEDY Ghosts Monday, BBC1, 8.30pm, Wednesday 7.30pm in Wales, Friday 9pm in NI
We’re quaking, yet not with fear but laughter, as we’re back in the haunted house inherited by Alison (Charlotte Ritchie) and Mike (Kiell SmithBynoe), in which only she can see the gormless ghosts, such as
Robin the caveman (above). Deservedly back for a second series and made by the same gifted team who gave us Horrible Histories, Ghosts is a tonic for the soul: entirely dispensable entertainment that has absolutely no underlying message. In this week’s opening episode, Alison and Mike wonder whether the answer to their financial problems could lie in admitting to the world that their house is haunted – but nothing goes to plan. Dead funny.
FOOD The Great British Bake Off Tuesday, C4, 8pm
Never mind the little matter of Covid-19: we’re back in that famous white tent with a dozen bakers seeing if they can take the heat in the kitchen to be crowned as champion after ten episodes, and it’s almost as if nothing’s changed. Prue Leith and Paul Hollywood (above) return to judge the creations, starting off with the offerings for the opening episode’s cake week, and there’s just one alteration to the line-up, with Matt Lucas coming in alongside Noel
Fielding to replace Sandi Toksvig. We can even look forward to the celebratory Paul Hollywood handshake, thanks to the cast and crew maintaining a bubble together so they can circumvent social distancing rules.
TRAVEL Grayson Perry’s Big American Road Trip Wednesday, C4, 10pm
Who would have thought that a crossdressing artist would be the closest thing this era has to Alan Whicker? Turner Prize-winner Grayson Perry (above) is off on a tour of the US in this new series filmed last year, in which he’s exploring the different parts of a society criss-crossed by monumental cultural divides. Dressed in a variety of eyecatching outfits and riding a motorcycle emblazoned with psychedelic motifs, Perry is an eccentric sight, but he also proves to a formidably smart interviewer, with a quick-witted warmth that persuades all those he meets to open up, starting in a well-timed opening episode focused on the African-American experience.
DOCUMENTARY London Zoo: An Extraordinary Year Thursday, ITV, 9pm
It’s not just human society which has been transformed by the lockdown. Life has changed in so many ways too for the animals in London Zoo after the doors were closed to visitors this year, and the extraordinary story of the past few months is revealed in this enthralling twopart documentary series, filmed both at Regent’s Park in the capital and the sister site in Whipsnade. With about 20,000 creatures from more than 500 species to care for, the tourists may have gone, but for the keepers the workload has been greater than before, whether breeding venomous spiders or getting a sea lion ready to move to another zoo.
MUSIC Later... With Jools Holland: Mercury Prize 2020 Friday, BBC2, 10pm
Don’t worry, there’ll be no mingling on Jools Holland’s revamped show. Instead of bands filming in front of a live audience there’s now just one act for each episode, joining the host at his own recording studio in London. But the good news is that Holland can get them to open up in depth in between songs, as they reveal their influences and pick out archive performances. For the opening episode the new Mercury Prize winner (to be revealed on The One Show on BBC1, Thursday, 7pm) will celebrate their win and play the tunes that saw off the competition. Stormzy, Dua Lipa, Michael Kiwanuka, Charli XCX and Laura Marling are among the nominees.