Doc’s toy story with a twist is joyous stuff

No More Boys aNd Girls (BBC2)

GIRLS adore dressing up as princesses, having their nails done and wearing glitter tattoos – and boys love Lego, superheroes and tool boxes.

It’s pretty much the way things have been for decades – but are gendered toys and clothes shaping our kids’ thoughts before they are old enough to make conscious decisions?

Dr Javid Abdelmoneim seems to think so, and this documentary follows his experiment with seven-year-olds.

He decides to introduce more gender equality to see if it changes the kids’ outlook.

After all, as he says, nail polish and lipstick aren’t going to help girls become engineers.

Javid works with one class over a school term.

He makes the toilets unisex, and gives the kids gender-neutral toys. The boys are taken with sewing kits and the girls build their own robots.

By the end of term, the youngsters’ attitudes have changed, confidence levels are up and they’re trying new things.

One of the boys takes up belly-dancing, while a female classmate sets herself a goal of becoming an astronaut.

It’s heartwarming to watch, especially when the parents recognise the process has given their kids more determination than they thought possible. Tissues at the ready!

easyjet: iNside the CoCkpit (itV)

This documentary follows the low-cost airline’s newest and youngest recruits.

Fresh out of flying school, and fresh-faced, cameras follow the eager trainees as they learn the ropes on the runway.

The look on a nervous passenger’s face when she discovered the man flying her plane to Paris in the dark is just 20 years young was a picture!