TELEVISION LISTINGS
TELEVISION
A selection of television highlights, listed by day, In chronological order. Television listings compiled by Jonathan Trew.
FRIDAY 9
I TLI. Friday (Channel 4) 6—7pm. Chris Evans. the man who has siiigIe-handedly cornered the market in zaniness. returns to the small screen with his own brand of off-the-wall humour. liach week at least three bands will be getting their rocks off while livans gives the viewing public the benefit of his personal take on the events of the week. .~\pparently. T.l".l. stands for Thank Four lt's . . . and not another four letter word beginning with F as reported in the nasty tabloids.
I Sounds or The Eighties (BBC 2) 7.30—8pm. The hitmakers of the previous decade are wheeled out for our delight. embarrassment and wonderment. This evening's archive performances include Billy Bragg. The Pogues. Aztec Camera and The Style Council featuring some bloke called Weller.
I Bab C Nesbitt (BBC 2) 9-9.30pm. Rab's formative years come under inspection when he bumps into his long lost brother at their father's grave.
I Alison’s Last Mountain (BBC 1) 9.30—1050pm. The cameras follow Alison l-largreave's husband and children as they make a pilgrimage to K2. the mountain on which she was blown to her death last year. The programme throws up many interesting questions. not least of which is the way in which Hargreaves was deiiioriised in some quarters for neglecting her parental responsibilities. A view which her husband holds in scant regard. See preview.
I Jo Brand Through The oakehole (Channel 4) lf).3()—l I.()5pm. The coiiiedienne runs through her doubtless. demure views on kids. parents and the problems raised by being unfortunate enough to have strict parents. Brand regales us with tales of parents' reactions to their offspring watching Ixtsf 'limgo In Paris and having a black boyfriend.
I The Girlie Show (Channel 4)
l l.()5—l 1.55pm. The Hirer-babes with brains continue to highlight mankind's follies. with the emphasis on the ‘man'.
SATURDAY 10
I Dad’s Army (BBC I ) 5.30—6.05pm. More gentle chuckles as Corporal Jones volunteers to float downstream as a log in order to capture Captain Square‘s windmill.
I Correspondent (BBC 2) 7.20—8.05pm. ln a new series of personalised reports from BBC journalists around the world. viewers are treated to the tale of an Indian village which is being terrorised by a plague of elephants and an Italian town which is on course for the most corrupt town in the world award.
I Divine Magic (Channel 4) 8—9pm. This evening's programme looks at the enormous impact which prophecy has had upon history. From the ancient Greeks and Romans right up to modern times with Nancy Reagan consulting an astrologist on a daily basis. people have peered into the future and acted accordingly. Prophecy was the foundation of the world‘s major religions. has been used to justify wars. explain catastrophes and shape public opinion. Should prove fascinating. especially as the millennium approaches.
I The Trial: Sad, Mad and Bad (BBC 2) 8.05—9pm. More on Edinburgh‘s underbelly as cameras follow criminals and lawyers through the courts.
I ‘Alex could find a vein in a mummy,’ drawls William S. Burroughs, the American beat writer who has become an elder statesman for all junkies. Unlike most of his contemporaries and a good many of the younger generation, Burroughs has survived — thrived even - on a life of addiction. His friend and iagging partner Alexander Trocchi fared less well. The Scottish writer who was born and educated in Glasgow died aged 59 in 1984, his body broken by heroin addiction. As the Ex-S documentary on Trocchi’s life suggests, his talent as a writer was largely dissipated through addiction and a chaotic personal life. He produced one great work, the autobiographical Cain’s Book, and a series of 083 — dirty books written solely to secure a paycheck from a backstreet pornographer. However, as with any drug-using artist, separating the causes and effects of addiction from creativity is nearly impossible. Without his intimate relationship with the needle, perhaps Trocchi would not have written a significant word. We’ll never know for sure.
Ex-S: Trocchi - A life In Pieces is shown on Mon 12 Feb at 10.10pm on 8801.
I Prime Suspect lll (Scottish) ‘)--l lpm. A repeat showing for Lynda La Plante's drama about a female cop working in a iriale-dominated environment. Stars a host of top names including Helen Mirren. Tom Bell. Peter ('apaldi and David Thewlis.
I Peter Yorke’s Eighties (BBC 3r ‘).3()-I()plii. Yorke wraps tip his disection of the 80s and finally disappears tip his
I Fine But: Love At First Sight (BBC 2) l()— l l.3()pm. What with Valentine‘s day fast approaching this seems as good a time as any to take a look at Cupid's arrows and the havoc that they wreak. Footage of couples who claim to have fallen in love are interspersed with more hard-nosed clips such as the corripaiiy who are trying to put love in a bottle.
I Eurotrash (Channel .1! I035- ll.|()piti. (iaultier and de Cannes. two icons for a civilisation in terminal decay. follow an innocent liiiglishman to a Parisian exhibition of erotica and there‘s a demonstration of the Talk Dirty machine which teaches users how to swear fluently in eight different languages. Should prove a big hit with grubby sclioolboys across the Continent.
I Cocktail (Scottish) ilpiri—l3.55am. The slimey Tom Cruise demonstrates a significant proportion of what was wrong with the 80s in this vacuous yet slick film.
Alriiorid. The Cardigans and l.oti Reed.
I llotel Babylon (Scottish)
one sandwich short ofa picnic Lee
I The White Room (Channel -li l I . lfipiii l3. Ilium. Radio's coolest I)J introduces music from Moloko. Marc
We are iiot worthy am] so on.
I3.55‘-I..i5;llll. l)ani Behr chats to Claudia i Schiffei' and Noel Gallagher as well as focusing on lidriiundo. the Brazilian footballer w hose (in-pitch karate skills i would put Caritoria to shame.
I Baadasss TV (Channel 4) 2.2()—2.5()am. l)ub fans will find it worth staying up to watch Ice-T interview the legendary and
Scratch Perry.
I NBA Raw (Channel -1i
ll.liam l3. lipm. Channel 4 attempts to make basketball a cult sport in the same way that they managed w llIl .-\iiier‘rcan football and failed with sumo wrestling. Still ifslam durikrn' is your thang then the in your face style of presentation should make it worth getting up for.
I Board Stupid (Channel 4) 1.15- 1 .45pm. Normski presents this youth orientated show on the fastest growing sport since channel surfing -- snow boarding. Music comes from technopunks. The Prodigy. who are apparently big on surfing the powder.
I Lemming Aid (Channel 4) l.-iS— l .SSpin. A short New Zealand film about a group of animal activists gathered on a Norwegian clifftop. armed with pillows. ready to stem a tide of suicidal lemmings has got to be worth ten minutes of anyoire's time.
I Honey, I Blew Up The Kid (Scottish) old-Spin. Having eluded the social workers for shrinking his kids the bumbling Rick Moranis goes on to subject his kid to a ray which makes him grow to l I? feet tall.
I Ballykissangel (BBC i)7.3oA—s.zopm. New six part drama following the adventures of a British priest sent to Ireland. See preview.
I Wired World (Channel 4) 8— 8.30pm. Peter (.‘ur'ran e\ploi'es the electronic media jungle and looks at why ('ruszvmrn/v is being produced in the former Soviet state of Kasakhstan.
I Ruby Wax Meets . . . Roseanne Barr (BBC It If)- 10.30pm. Once more the stage is set for a gigantic clash of the egos.
I Everyman: The Time To Die (BBC I i |().~lf)---l ldfipm. The cameras head to a hospice and follow the fate of three people in the terminal stages of cancer. Talking to the staff and the patients the programme aims to break down some of the silence surrounding death.
MONDAY 12
I Classic Ships (Channel 4) 8.30 -‘)pin. The series looking at the history and design of all things nautical turns its telescope on the water bound leisure industry. From rowing boats for the proles to pleasure steamers for the toffs. boats have played an important part in British free-time. not least at Dunkirk when thousands of pleasure boats crossed the Channel and turned a humiliating retreat into a triumph in the collective psyche.
I Our Friends In The North (BBC 2) 9—H). l()pm. Power cuts. Three day weeks. Rubbish piled high in the streets. Yep. it's l‘)7-l and the story of the Geordie pals continues to unfold.
I Island OI Dreams (Channel 4) ‘)- -l()pm. Shir/er iii/(’IlIf/lt’ comes to life in this three part series looking at British women who have found romance and settled in Greece. The regrets and the rejoicing are all captured over fifteen months of filming.
I liaising Cain (BBC It It) in ll,-1l)pm. Psychological thi'illei' from Brian De Palma starring John l.ithgow and l.olita I);ivrdovich.
I The Montel Williams Show (Channel 4) S—-5.5()prn. Yet another Airierican chat host looks at ‘\\'oriien who demand money and gifts.‘ Sonya has a posse of men who provide her every need -- car. jewellery. apartment. They all believe they're her main man — until Montcl stirs up a hornet's nest by introducing them to each other. No price is too high when entertainment is at stake.
82 The List 9-22 Feb I996