The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Our newest TV stars come out of Africa
SERENGETI Thursday, BBC One, 9pm
Natural history programmes are sometimes accused of creating misleading structured narratives, which is presumably why this new series begins with a caption stating that what we’re about to see is “a dramatised story based on the real lives of Africa’s most charismatic animals”.
The essential facts are true but the filmmakers have contrived a story to facilitate them. Actor John Boyega fulfils the role of a sonorous voice of the animal kingdom narrator, as he embeds us within a pride of lions, a cackle of hyenas, a herd of elephants and a troop of baboons (collective nouns are fun, aren’t they?).
Serengeti is beautifully made, the footage is stunning, but it’s occasionally undermined by an inadvertently amusing OTT music score.
INSIDE THE BANK OF ENGLAND Tuesday, BBC Two, 9.30pm
Filmed over the space of a tumultuous year, this series boasts unprecedented access to one of the most powerful institutions in the world. As well as housing vast quantities of gold bullion, the Bank of England prints the country’s entire supply of banknotes and, theoretically at least, stops the high street banks from crashing the British economy again.
When the pound’s value plummeted in the wake of the Brexit vote, inflation rocketed skywards. If the Bank can’t keep it under control, the results will be catastrophic. In episode one we meet leading Bank of England executives, including Governor Mark Carney, as they attempt to pull off a high-stakes balancing act.
It’s engrossing and worrying in roughly equal measure.
CHARLEY PRIDE: I’M JUST ME Friday, BBC Four, 9pm
This solid documentary tells the remarkable story of an African American singer who transcended racial barriers to become a huge star in the country and western firmament. Charley Pride’s success is a powerful statement in itself. Most black musicians of his generation gravitated towards jazz, blues and soul, but Pride fell in love with country music as a child working on a cotton farm in the brutally segregated South. After a few years playing baseball in the Negro American League, he eventually became a trailblazing entertainer during a time of civil unrest.
Featuring contributions from Whoopi Goldberg, Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton and Pride himself, I’m Just Me pays due respect to a singular triumph of talent, integrity and self-belief.
SHIPMATES Friday, Channel 4, 11.05pm
It must’ve been the shortest TV pitch meeting ever.
“Imagine Love Island, but on a boat.” Sold.
Shipmates is a soul-sapping reality series in which two ‘wild’ groups of friends board a luxurious cruise ship for a Mediterranean jolly.
It’s not just fun and games, though, there’s a competitive element too: the teams have to convince their fellow party animals, all 1,500 of ’em, that they’re the deserving winners of a popularity contest.
Look, I don’t want to sound like a snob, but if I was trapped on a boat with any of these people I would happily jump overboard and embrace my watery fate. I’d be the real winner.
This week they pitch up in Cannes. Desolation ensues.