Future Britain as strange as solar system

THE PLANETS

Tuesday, BBC Two, 9pm

Professor Brian Cox smears his unique brand of awe over this typically engaging series, in which he tells the epic life story of the solar system. He begins at the beginning, 4.6 billion years ago to be precise, when the system was full of nothing but rocks and gas. Gradually, over several million years, the terrestrial planets were formed. Mercury, Venus and Mars have all, at times, enjoyed almost Earth-like conditions: “Every one of our rocky neighbours has a story of what might have been.” Like all Cox documentaries, it includes handsomely shot scenes of him wandering across deserts, computer-generated simulations of various cosmic wonders and an omnipresent symphonic score that kneels at the altar of John Williams.