Festive joys; global fears served up
There’s just a week to go until Christmas. That means some chefs and party planners already feel under the gun. PBS can put cooks in the mood with two offerings from familiar hosts.
“25 Years With Lidia: A Culinary Jubilee” (8 p.m., TV-PG, check local listings) celebrates cookbook author Lidia Bastianich, who has been sharing Italian-American cuisine, culture and recipes on public television since 1998.
Fans of “The Great British Baking Show” can follow its longtime judge to Scotland in “Mary Berry’s Highland Christmas” (9 p.m., TV-PG, check local listings). The Cordon Bleu-trained chef visits the home of her mother to prepare a holiday meal inspired by her location along with friends and U.K. celebrities Andy Murray, Iain Stirling and Emeli Sande. Together, they will herd reindeer, prepare a buche de Noel and a rice dish known as kedgeree.
While that both sounds and eventually looks Indian in origin, this dish of curried rice, smoked fish and boiled eggs is considered an English tradition that some say dates back to the 14th century.
› Because nothing says “Christmas” quite like playing with toys, “Lego Masters” (8 p.m., Fox, TV-PG) invites viewers to a “Celebrity Holiday Bricktacular: Candy Cane Express; Holiday Blockbusters.”
Look for returning players and fan favorites to slap plastic together in holiday themed challenges.
Players include David Guedes, Caleb Schilling, Krystle Starr and Randal Wilson, while guest celebrities include NeNe Leaks, Marshawn Lynch, Kelly Osbourne and Rob Riggle.
› As we speak, the most popular Netflix phenomenon is the doom-laden 2023 thriller “Leave the World Behind.” A tale of a couple (Julia Roberts and Ethan Hawke) who impulsively leave Brooklyn for a Hamptons short-term rental just as an unexplained phenomenon cuts off power, Wifi and cellular service.
Mahershala Ali stars as the owner of the posh location who returns with his brash and opinionated daughter (Myha’la) to seek refuge from the uncertainty and ensuing urban chaos.
Roberts deserves special mention for departing from her “America’s Sweetheart” reputation to play a character who is notably shrill and unlikable for much of the film’s nearly 2.5-hour run. Its length has been the subject of most negative criticism and social media chatter.
In some ways, it’s a long variation on the old “Twilight Zone” episode “The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street,” about ordinary citizens who descend into suspicion and violence after they lose power, TV and radio. That story was told in a half-hour, less time for commercials.
This marks the most high-profile project for its executive producers, former president and first lady Barack and Michelle Obama. We have had a former movie star (Ronald Reagan), a former reality star (Donald Trump) and the media-savvy son of a Hollywood producer (John F. Kennedy) in the White House. It’s interesting to see a former president as an active media mogul.