TELEVISION
rm”--- -._. ._ .
LISTINGS
FRIDAY 5
‘ I” (6
I Fame Is The Spur(Channel-1)2—4. 10pm. Michael Redgrave is somewhat miscast as the crusading grim-oop-north Labour MP fighting for workers' rights. whose values become submerged beneath practical considerations. An innovative film. with the interesting speculation that the central character was based on Ramsey MacDonald.
I Short Stories: Beyond The Barrier (Channel 4) 8.3(l—9pm. By day Philip Steff is a mild-mannered car-park attendant in chintzy Bath; by night. he is aghostbuster. This documentary. the first of a new series. explores his double life and the bizarre community of the occult. I The Chief (Scottish) 9;“)an First in a series of six stories about ChiefConstable John Stafford. back on duty after temporary suspension to deal with a series of bomb hoaxes by animal activists. I Rory Bremner (BBCZ) 9—9.30pm. Impressions and humour from Rory. assisted by co-writcrs and performers John Bird and John Fortune. I Cheers (Channel 4) 9—9.3(lpm. Carla warns everyone that the football table is possessed by evil spirits. Listen. it happens. I Arena: Kenneth Anger's Hollywood Babylon (BBCZ) 9.30— 10.30pm. A journey into the darker side of l lollywood history in a quirky film using old clips and guest appearances from Mike McShane as the God of Hollywood. Marianne Faithfull as the mysterious Lady in Black. and the man who embalmed Marilyn Monroe. Anger himself is our willing guide. I Roseanne (Channel 4) 10— 10.30pm. Roseanne is suffering badly from PMS. not helped by the burden oforganising a surprise birthday party for Dan. I Whose Line Is It Anyway? (Channel 4) 10.30—1 lpm. Clive Anderson introduces more all-too-occasionally amusing improvisation. recorded in front ofan American studio audience in New York.
IApology For Murder(BBC1)
10.55pm— 12.35am. A slightly better than , routine thriller stars Lesley Ann Warren F as a writer trying to gather inspiration by inviting people to confess all to her answering machine. Needless to say. things get out of hand when someone rings I to confess to a stringof grislymurders. Look out for ‘Robocop' star Peter Weller. I Please Hammer Don't Hurt 'Em (Channel 4) llpm—midnight. MC llammerstarsina f
’ musical mini-drama capturing the tragedy
ofinncr-city children killed in drug-running crossfire. Perhaps he prays ' forthem. I Patter Merchants (Scottish) ll.1()—l 1.40pm. Come back Funny Farm. all is forgiven. Allan Stewart introduces ‘comics' from the chicken-in-a-basket circuit. including Eddie Devine. 1 lilary ()‘Neil and impressionist Aiden J.
Harvey.
I Tabaiaba (BBCZ) ll.2()pm—12.4(lam. A Madagascan film set in 1947 whenthe I island was under French colonial rule. A I stranger arrives in a small isolated village and upsets the calm pastoral life with his political ideas.
I Panic In The Streets (Channel 4) Midnight— l .5()am. New ()rleans is the setting for a pacy crime thriller starring Richard Widrnark and Paul Douglas. They are the doctor and policeman racing against time to catch the killers of a man found to be suffering from bubonic plague.
I Bye Bye Jimmy (Scottish) 12. 10—1 .(l5am. Jimmy being James Dean in the only filmed interview he ever gave. The rest of the programme is taken up by friends recounting tales about his attitude to Hollywood and his careless driving.
SATURDAY 5 ,9;
I Grand National Grandstand (BBCI) 12. 15—5.()5pm. The world’s greatest steeplechase live from Aintree gets under way at 3.20pm. with the usual build-up in advance. If you're looking for an outside flutter Team Challenge might be worth following. if it lines up.
I Giant (BBCZ) 3.45—6.55pm. James Dean's final film before he did a Marc Bolan. He plays the moody ranch-hand Jett Rink in a powerful adaptation ofEdna Ferber‘s epic novel. Rock Hudson and Elizabeth Taylor co-star.
I Sound Stuff: The Diango Legacy((‘hannel 4) 7—8pm. Sacha Distel (yes. lhutSacha Distel) narrates a documentary about the rich musical legacy oigypsy guitarist Django Reinhardt. and discovers that the legends style of playing is still very much alive. \
I Yeelen(BBC2)9.55—l1.35pm.A beautifully-shot film from Mali about a young man who gains magical powers. but arouses the fears of his father who determinesto kill him.
I 4-Play: Finding Sarah (Channel 4)
10—1 1.10pm. (‘arol (Barbara Durkin)was adopted as a baby and. now an adult. is keen to trace her natural mother. Friends. family. and even the social servicesall stand in her way.
I Twin Peaks (1313(2) 9. 10— lllpm. Repeated from last 'I‘uesday. Agent Cooper and Sheriff'l‘ruman go after the ruthlessJean Renault and hisevil sidekicks Pete Peugeot and l-‘rankie Ford liscort (very poo-er).
I Endless Love(BB(‘1)
lt).4()pm— l 2.30am. Puppy love turns tragic in Franco Zeffirelli's faintly ludicrous Rmm’r) (nu/Juliet-type talc. starring Brooke Shields and Martin llewitt as the teenage lovers forbidden to see each other by their parents. Sigh . ..
I After Dark (Channel 4) l 1.40pm - '.’ Last in the series ofopen-endcd debates on a topical issue (ie. they haven't told me what it is).
SUNDAY 7
I Viv On Sunday (Scottish) 3-4pm. Viv Lumsden presents another in the chatshow programme with a difference. vith surprise guests and audience participation.
I Five From Home (Channel 4) 5—-npni. A new series looking at the sport of point-to-point racing in Northern Ireland. topically starting the day after the (irand National.
I Scottish International (Scottish) 6—6.3(lpm. This documentary. presented by Margo MacDonald. examines international events from a Scottish point of view.
I Mozart‘s Operas: Cosi Fan Tutte (1313(2) b.4()—1()pm. Apparently the Emperor was a bit miffed with Wolfgang Amadeus when be commissioned this. and gave the maestro an insultingly trivial subject. Viennese gossip. to work with. Nowadays. the feminists might get a little annoyed about the title. meaning ‘so do all women.‘ I The Darling Buds 0t May(Scottish) 7.45—8.45pm. A new series based on the Larkin family made famous in the stories of l LE. Bates. David Jason stars as Pop Larkin. the junk dealer with a heart of gold.
I The Olivier AwardS(BB(‘i ) 8.15—9.35pm. ‘Lovey. daarling. haven't seen you since Bafta. the ungrateful brutes. how could they overlook you again'." Yes. it's those theatre awards. featuring more harit than a butcher‘s window display.
I The Media Show (Channel 4)9-9.45pm. Emma Freud talks to controversial film director Derek Jarman about his adaptation of Marlowe's Edward II (who I believe came to a particularly sticky end). Members ofthe cast are interviewed. as well as historian A.L. Rowse and agony aunt Claire Rayner (eh?)
I The President‘s Analyst (Channel 4) 9.45—1 1.45pm. A wacky satirical look at American politics and espionage. with James('ohurn hamming it up outrageously as the President‘s psychiatrist.
I Screen Two: Aimee ( BBQ) io-l 1.40pm. Last in the current series stars Donald Sumpter and Juliet Stevenson in a moving drama about a millionaire rock promoter who returns after disappearing for two years. He visits the old folks home where his mother lives and kills her. in an apparently motiveless attack.
I Celebration: A Night at The Circus (Scottish) 1 1 .l)5pm-- [2.05 am. Remember Archaos. the crazy bunch ofcar-trashing. chainsaw-juggling motorbike fiends. staffed entirely by people who‘ve run away to join the circus'.’ This docutnentary follows the fortunes of one yottng girl who leaves home to join up. IWalltTheTallt(BB(‘i)10.55 l 1.20pm. Management guru (‘harles l landy presents the first in a new series discussing management methods and objectives. The programme looks at the first six monthsof business for a new Body Shop franchise in Blackpool. with company boss Anita Roddick offering her commentson motivation.
I Heed Dolls (Channel 4)
l l.45pm—l. 15am. A Moroccan film that tells the story of a young woman forced into an arranged marriage. When her husband dies suddenly. she enters into an affair with a stranger that has tragic consequences.
I Off The Page (Scottish) 12.05 12.35pm. lan Crichton-Smith discusses his new novel "The Dream' with .‘vlorag Stewart.
MONDAY 8 '
I The Cosby Show (Channel 4 ) (so. 30pm. Repeated sugary comedy at the l luxtable household. This week gormless sort Theo is smitten by a new girl at school. which doesn't impress his current girlfriend 'l‘anya.
I Horizon: The Mould. The Myth And The Microbe (BBCZ) 8. ll) -‘)pm. A revisionist view of the discovery of penicillin shows that good old Alex l-‘leming lost interest in the stuffeight years before its full potential was realised by l loward Morey and his ()xford researchers. Scrubone point off for Scotland.
I Banned: The Truth About Lies (Channel 4) 9— lllpm. The censorship season opens with a documentary tracing the nature of state secrecy in Britain. taking in l)-noticcs. world wars. Northern lreland and the Windscale cover-up of I956. See preview.
72 The List 5 - 18 April 1991