What to watch
Who Do You Think You Are?
BBC ONE, 9.00PM
Back for a 14th run, this celebrity genealogy series has endured thanks to careful selection of unlikely personal histories designed to reflect the depth of this country’s past – the compelling stories far outweigh the duds. Each series also tends to launch with a cracker (Bill Oddie, Jeremy Paxman, Danny Dyer) and tonight is no exception. Charles Dance has always believed that, in spite of the tendency of producers to typecast him as a venal aristocrat, he is from altogether more lowly stock, with his mother Eleanor a parlour maid and his father Walter (who died when Charles was four) an engineer.
Even the most cursory digging reveals both the accuracy and fallacy of his assumptions, from the moment he “learns” the name of his grandparents from his half-brother. Gradually, the complexities of both branches of his family tree become apparent. Chinoiserie, Belgian revolutionaries, the Boer War and rampant infidelity all make appearances, before a series of discoveries and a family tragedy buried deep in the past pierce Dance’s default setting of wry amusement in deeply moving fashion. Gabriel Tate husband’s safe room, while Inspector Karim Delormes (Amr Waked) makes a breakthrough in his murder investigation and all roads seem to lead to shadowy collector Jon Brandeis (Igor Skreblin) as the gorgeous but superficial thriller continues. Some of the dialogue is mystifyingly leaden, but consummate pro Stiles holds the whole wobbly edifice together with sterling support from the reliable likes of Phil Davis and Adrian Lester.