Seven Days

MIKE MULVIHILL’S guide to the week’s TV

SATURDAY Pointless Celebrities 6.20PM, BBC1 ★★★★

Alexander Armstrong hosts a comedy special, with the teams made up of Rowland Rivron and Simon Day, Hal Cruttenden and Zoe Lyons, Jan Ravens and Stephen K. Amos and Rich Hall and Sara Pascoe.

Strictly: The Best 7.10PM, BBC1 ★★★★

This one-off special sees some of the bestloved celebrity dancers from the past 15 years – including Ann Widdecombe, Jeremy Vine, Mark Ramprakash and Abbey Clancy – sharing the inside stories of their Strictly experiences.

Casualty

8.25PM, BBC1 ★★★

Dylan is concerned for his friend Ciara – he can’t get in touch with her, and has missed an AA meeting as a result. And so, he’s not too impressed when she arrives at Holby, having collapsed in a pub. Plus, Ethan helps Alicia to feel safe in her own home again.

How The Victorians Built Britain 9PM, CH5 ★★★

In episode three of this fascinating series, Michael Buerk looks at how the Victorians created what we know as the modern home. He begins his journey by exploring the explosion in house-building in the early Victorian period, and later learns how gas helped to brighten those new homes.

The Jonathan Ross Show 9.40PM, ITV ★★★

Actor Martin Clunes, sprinter Dina AsherSmith, singer Josh Groban and Celebrity Juice host Keith Lemon provide the chat, while singer-songwriter Hozier performs on British TV for the first time since 2015.

SUNDAY Countryfile 7PM, BBC1 ★★★★

It’s harvest time, the busiest weeks of the farming year, and Helen Skelton visits a farm in York to hear how our carrots are in crisis, while Steve Brown is in Cornwall to learn the nutritional benefits of sea berries.

Antiques Roadshow 8PM, BBC1 ★★★★

Fiona Bruce and the Roadshow head to Leicester to set up camp at the historic Abbey Pumping Station, where treasures brought in include a gigantic statue and a tiny frog.

Battle Of Britain: Model Squadron 8PM, CH4 ★★★

In the second of three programmes in which model aircraft enthusiasts re-create key dates in the Battle of Britain, the focus is on August 15, 1940, when the Luftwaffe launched a series of bombing raids on RAF bases.

Bodyguard 9PM, BBC1 ★★★★★

In the penultimate episode of Jed Mercurio’s gripping drama, David (Richard Madden) delves into Julia’s political manoeuvring in an attempt to prove his theory that there is a conspiracy at the heart of government. But his investigation is hampered as allegations about his and Julia’s conduct come to light.

King Arthur’s Britain: The Truth Unearthed 9PM, BBC2 ★★★★

With exclusive access to a major excavation, Alice Roberts examines new clues to what life was really like during the Dark Ages – and the evidence suggests that the Anglo-Saxons weren’t so much invaders as immigrants.

Vanity Fair 9PM, ITV ★★★★

George has been cut off from his inheritance after marrying Amelia, and their relationship takes a turn for the worse in Belgium, where George gives Becky a letter at a dance. But then, the Army gets its marching orders – Napoleon is advancing on Brussels…

MONDAY

Chase The Case 2.15PM, BBC1 ★★★

Dan Walker hosts a new daytime game show – which bears a striking resemblance to Channel 4’s Deal Or No Deal – in which five contestants trade general knowledge for information to gain access to a case containing a secret amount of cash.

Jamie Cooks Italy 8PM, CH4 ★★★

Lucky Jamie Oliver is in Tuscany for his sixth episode of eight, and he’s learning the secrets of the perfect beef stew with home-made pasta from 88-year-old Nonna Miriam.

Travel Man: 48 Hours In Ibiza 8.30PM, CH4 ★★★

Comedian Jessica Knappett joins Richard Ayoade for a minibreak to the island of Ibiza, where the buttoned-up Travel Man tries to let his hair down in the party capital of the world.

Black Earth Rising 9PM, BBC2 ★★★★

Hugo Blick shows that the Bodyguard creator Jed Mercurio isn’t the only writer capable of giving his audience a shock as this gripping international thriller takes a disturbing turn in the opening scenes. Where it goes next will keep you on the edge of your seats…

Strangers 9PM, ITV ★★★★

In last week’s opening episode, Jonah (John Simm) was hit with the doubly devastating news that not only was his wife dead, but she had been married to someone else for 20 years. Now, alone in Hong Kong, the dark secrets about his wife continue to spill out…

TUESDAY

The Great British Bake Off 8PM, CH4 ★★★★★

It’s Dessert Week, and judges Prue Leith and Paul Hollywood have set three sticky challenges to test the remaining nine bakers.

The Yorkshire Vet 8PM, CH5 ★★★

This week in Boroughbridge, Julian Norton has to perform a rare and difficult procedure on an injured cow, while over in Thirsk, Peter Wright battles against the odds to save a black swan that has sustained a horrific injury.

Wanderlust 9PM, BBC1 ★★★

Joy and Alan’s experiment has had intriguing results, but they need to stick to the rules if their marriage is to survive – so how will Joy handle bumping into her first love again?

Princess Margaret: The Rebel Royal 9PM, BBC2 ★★★★

The concluding part of this intimate profile charts Margaret’s colourful life from the early 1960s to her death, at the age of 71, in 2002.

The Circle 9.15PM, CH4 ★★★

In this new reality show, contestants can only compete and communicate via a specially designed social media platform. It’s basically an online popularity contest, so the images and information they upload is crucial.

WEDNESDAY Trust Me, I’m A Doctor 8PM, BBC2 ★★★★

This week, Michael Mosley finds out if a glass of wine can protect your blood vessels from the harmful effects of junk food, while Giles Yeo tests home breathalyser kits.

Bad Move 8PM, ITV ★★★★

See TV feature, page 16.

Trust 9PM, BBC2 ★★★★

It’s episode two of this true-crime drama and, as word of his grandson’s kidnapping spreads, J. Paul Getty (Donald Sutherland) sends his trusted fixer, Fletcher Chace (Brendan Fraser), to Rome to investigate the boy’s mysterious disappearance.

Joanna Lumley’s Silk Road Adventure ★★★★

9PM, ITV

On the second leg of her journey, Joanna follows the ancient Silk Road from the Black Sea to the Caspian Sea, across the rapidly changing post-Soviet states of Georgia and Azerbaijan.

Casualty 24/7 9PM, CH5 ★★★

Not to be confused with Channel 4’s awardwinning 24 Hours In A&E, this new four-parter focuses on patients and the dedicated staff who treat them round the clock in Barnsley.

Defending The Guilty 10PM, BBC2 ★★★★

The world of barristers is the setting for this first in a new run of sitcom pilots. The IT Crowd’s Katherine Parkinson leads the cast in a comedy that shows plenty of promise.

THURSDAY Celebrity MasterChef 8PM, BBC1 ★★★★

In the first of the semi-finals, the celebrities face their toughest challenge so far – cooking a feast for 90 of the staff and volunteers at the Black Country Living Museum in Dudley.

Back In Time For The Factory 8PM, BBC2 ★★★

The women experience factory life as it was in 1976 in this third episode of five, when workers were getting to grips with the production of that year’s fashion must-have: the prairie dress. Plus, the factory holds a beauty pageant, which includes a swimsuit round.

Press 9PM, BBC1 ★★★★

In the best episode yet, The Post’s deliciously dark editor, Duncan Allen (Ben Chaplin), shows his nasty side, leaving the Prime Minister and rival newspaper The Herald in his wake.

The Mighty Redcar 9PM, BBC2 ★★★★

On our penultimate visit to Redcar, 15-yearold Safy has her heart set on playing netball for England, and a scholarship to a top private school in York could help to make her dream come true – but it doesn’t cover the full cost.

To Catch A Serial Killer – With Trevor McDonald 9PM, ITV ★★★★

This intriguing one-off follows the hunt for killer Christopher Halliwell, who murdered two women in 2003 and 2011. Much of the focus here is on the former detective in charge of the investigation – he caught his man, but lost his career. Trevor McDonald reports.

FRIDAY

Gardeners’ World 8PM, BBC2 ★★★★

Arit Anderson investigates growing concerns about the use of plastics in the horticultural industry, and we find out from Environment Minister Michael Gove about any future plans for controlling its use and improving recycling.

The Island Strait 8PM, ITV ★★★

It’s springtime, and the people who live and work along the Menai Strait – the saltwater river that separates the island of Anglesey from mainland Wales – are welcoming the season’s tourists, who have set the tills ringing.

Britain By Bike With Larry & George Lamb 8PM, CH5 ★★★

On the final leg of their journey, the genial duo head to the Outer Hebrides to cycle the 185-mile Hebridean Way, crossing ten islands. Along the way, George seeks out some local Harris tweed, before playing a game of football on one of the most picturesque pitches in the world.

Ancient Invisible Cities 9PM, BBC2 ★★★★

Michael Scott concludes his fascinating series by taking us on an extraordinary journey to uncover the hidden and invisible treasures that lie beneath the streets of ancient Istanbul.