The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
BEAR GETS GRILLED
TOP Louis Theroux TV PREVIEWS
PICK Interviews… – Tuesday, BBC Two, with Paul Whitelaw 9pm
The adventurer and broadcaster Bear Grylls often comes across as an inadvertently comical figure; a gung-ho action man with zero self-awareness. That, of course, is why Louis Theroux wanted to interview him. Grylls can’t really be like that? Well, he is and he isn’t. While perfectly pleasant and evidently sincere, he doesn’t appear to have much of a sense of humour about himself. That’s probably because, as the programme suggests, he’s an insecure person who feels compelled to live up to a self-made alpha male image. Grylls, to his credit, is candid about his lonely boarding school childhood, and one gets the impression that he’s never fully come to terms with that experience. It’s all rather sad.
Hong Kong’s Fight for Freedom – Monday, BBC Two, 9.30pm
The latest two-part report from BBC Two’s acclaimed This World strand focuses on some of the Hong Kong protestors who took a stand against their government and China’s authoritarian regime in 2019. Their identities are protected, of course, but to even speak about this at all is testament to their bravery. Hundreds of thousands of justifiably angry Hong Kong citizens took to the streets when their long-held autonomy from mainland China was threatened by a newly introduced extradition bill triggered by a murder that took place in Taiwan. That bill is a human rights violation, with far-reaching implications for the people of Hong Kong. This World, as always, exposes the details with journalistic rigour.
1966: Who Stole the World Cup? – Monday, Channel 4, 10pm
When England hosted the World Cup in 1966, their triumph was somewhat undermined by the theft of the Jules Rimet trophy. As we all know, it was eventually discovered in a bush by a dog called Pickles. This irreverent documentary digs into one of the most farcical sagas in football history. It makes you feel proud of good old-fashioned British incompetence. Narrated by actor Alan Ford, of fictional cockney gangster fame, it plays out like an Ealing comedy crime caper. If this incident had occurred at the start of the decade, you can guarantee Peter Sellers would’ve starred in a film adaptation. The programme features contributions from some of those involved in the investigation.
Imagine… Douglas Stuart: Love, Hope and Grit – Monday, BBC One, 10.40pm
Scottish-american author Douglas Stuart won the 2020 Booker Prize for his visceral debut novel Shuggie Bain, which tells the semi-autobiographical story of a queer boy and his alcoholic single mother in working class Glasgow. A TV adaptation is on its way. Stuart’s latest novel Young Mungo is also a bestseller. In this revealing profile, the New York-based Stuart returns to Glasgow with Alan Yentob to reflect on his tough upbringing. He comes across as a pleasant and perceptive man whose pride in where he came from is plain for all to see. His reminiscences are accompanied by contributions from famous fans such as Alan Cumming, Lulu and Stuart Murdoch from Belle and Sebastian.