tv
highlights
The Big, Big Talent Show Scottish, Sat 28 Jun, 8.10pm.
A new chat show about aliens, a Pizza Hut advert, and now this - host of the new series of the Stars In Their Eyes- type talent show. Is this a comeback we see before us from the Iatterday lisping chat show host Jonathan Woss? Judging by the brand new range of suits, it is.
ER
Channel 4, Sat 28 Jun, 9pm.
Re-run of the second series of the hugely popular medical drama, for those already suffering withdrawal Symptoms from the end of the third. You know who you are, ER addicts. Subtitled 'Welcome Back, Carter’, this is the one where a gang shooting keeps the surgeons busy, and the arrival of new chief resident, Kerry Weaver, causes friction in the ranks.
Working For The Enemy BBCZ, Sat 28 Jun, 9pm.
The United Kingdom! season continues with this look at one couple affected by the Proiect Work scheme introduced by the Tories to get the long-term unemployed back to work. Thirty-five- year-old Kevin is an artist who has never held a steady job, and his girlfriend Robbie, a reformed heroin addict, works as a seamstress for £70 a week. Now, if Kevin wants to continue receivmg his £48 dole money a week, he’ll have to iack in his art and work for It.
Millennium
Scottish, Sun 29 Jun, lOpm.
The long awaited terrestial touchdown of the chilling new sCI-fi drama series from the makers of The X—Fi/es, which already has a huge following on Sky. Stars Lance Henrikson as Frank Black, the retired FBI agent With a gift for seeing into the minds of serial killers. See Frontlines.
Gayle's World Scottish, Wed 2 Jul, 10.45pm.
The comedy zone presents Brenda Gilhooley in a sketch show hosted by
Cuddle up to the new series of Friends. Channel 4, Fri 4 July, 9.30
her alter ego — page three stunna Gayle Tuesday. Also featuring the 'It' girls, Doreen from Common Cabs and the gossips. Vicki Michelle, Daniella Westbrook, Kathy Lloyd, Sara Cox and Judith Chalmers are amongst the guests.
The Last Governor BBCl, Thu 3 Jul, 10.40pm.
Major five-part series of documentary films charting Chris Patten’s role as the last governor of Hong Kong. Written by Jonathan Dimbleby, the films trail events leading up to 30 June, 1997, the day when British sovereignty finally comes to an end. The first programme, 'A Democratic Time-Bomb‘, recalls Patten's arrival in Hong Kong, and the mixed reactions of the colony's people to his plans for their future.
A Bill Called William Channel 4, Thu 3 Jul, 9pm.
Documentary marking the passing of the 1967 Sexual Offences Act, which decreed that gay men over 21 years old could finally have sex without breaking the law. The programme uncovers the extent of intolerance and ignorance that had to be overcome in both Houses of Parliament before the bill, dubbed ’William’, because no one dared speak its name was passed.
A Weekend On Mars Channel 4, Fri 4 Jul, 8.30pm.
On Friday 4 July, NASA’s Pathfinder probe wrll land on Mars, starting a new era in space exploration, and Channel 4 Will be there to Witness it with a three-day celebration of the event. Just in case life is discovered by the probe's robot explorer, live programmes will relay news as it happens, but if our little green friends fail to show, a weekend of cult sci-fr films, comedy shorts and documentaries of the alien kind follows. Clive Anderson hosts the Friday night event.
Friends Channel 4, Fri 4 Jul, 9.30pm.
The award-Winning US sit-com returns for a third series wrth a bang, when Ross (David Schwrmmer) confides a sexual fantasy involvmg a certain Star Wars princess with danish pastries on her head to Rachael (Jennifer Amston). Meanwhile, Chandler (Matthew Perry) rekindles an old flame.
Village Vouces
Channel 4, Sat 5 Jul, midnight. Manchester’s gay Village is the subiect of this one-off documentary looking at its transformation from rundown area to thriVing centre of excluswely gay bars and businesses. Not simply a pleasure zone, the Village has its own doctors, soliCitors and taxr firms, all gay-owned and run. Part of 'Queer Street', a new Saturday night zone devoted to programmes exploring the current lifestyles and concerns of lesbians and gay men.
Mao's New Suit
Channel 4, Mon 7 Jul, 10.55pm.
For decades the blue or grey uniform of communism, the Mao SUit, was the only style option available to the Chinese. But China's door has now opened and so have people’s wardrobes. This documentary focuses
Gas Channel 4, Tue 1 Jul,lO.50pm.
Along with etc-smokers. wannabes of every creed must surely rank among the most irritating beasts to blight the earth. Think Pontins' talent contests. pub karaoke. etc. etc. Thankfully. the thumb screws of quality control are a tad tighter in Gas, billed as 'a flagship show for the comedy stars of tomorrow' and directed by Stephen Stewart, the man behind Channel 4’s off-the-wall hit Don ’t Forget Your Toothbrush.
With a motley crew featuring an ex-postman, a bingo caller and atlugh Grant look-a-lilce, there's more than a passing resemblance to Stars In Their Eyes. but here the inevitable result is something akin to a Woolies pick 'n’ mix. The choc‘olate eclair star quality is provided by the likes of Martin Bigpig, whose name belies a serious talent, and one of Putney's more humorous failed parliamentary candidates - no, not Mellor or Goldsmith - but seventies crooner Lenny Beige. But what's lacking, at least on the strength of early episodes, is a slick anchorman to hold it together.
Host Lee Mack may have scooped rave reviews and a So You Think Your’re Funny award at recent Edinburgh Fringes, but the lad is sadly lacking in originality. charm and image. Yeah, this is a low-budget affair, tenuously coated with a bright. sugary veneer. But let's not forget Stewart's power. After all, anyone who can turn a ginger geek like Chris Evans into a sex symbol can surely do better than this. (Claire Prentice)
on two youngdesigners from the new I generation of Chinese entrepreneurs, l as they prepare for their first fashion show. l
A Bit Of Scarlet
Channel 4, Tue 8 Jul, l 1.25pm. Feature-length celebration of British lesbian and gay images in cinema, uniting a giant cast of domestic acting talent including Dirk Bogarde, Glenda Jackson, Maggie Smith, Joyce Grenfell, Vanessa Redgrave, John Hurt and more.
radio
highlights
The Mic, The Star And The Crescent - Rappin' For Islam
Radio 1, Sun 6 Jul, 7pm.
New York Journalist and hip hop activist, Harry Allen, speaks out on the links between rap, religion and politics in an updated verSion of the programme first broadcast last September. The rewsed documentary focuses on the Nation Of Islam’s role in the emergency Summit of hip hop artists which followed the
recent deaths of rap superstars Tupac Shakur and Christopher -- The Notorious BIG. — Wallace.
Beyond The Millennium Radio 4, Mon 30 Jun, 8.40pm.
Second series of the millennium jitters show where Sheena McDonald calls on SIX ’experts' to predict the future, which isn't much to ask really. The first guest is Professor Chris Hables Gray, author of Postmodern War. His 2020 vision includes cyborg warriors, genetic biological warfare and regional nuclear conflicts. Let's JUSI hope he’s wrong, eh.
The Rise And Fall Of The House Of Hammer Radio 2, Tue 8 Jul, 9.30pm. Remember the House Of Hammer? How could you forget, as you hid behind your hands and squirmed on the sofa at the cheesy horror of classic Hammer productions like The Curse Of Frankenstein and Taste The Blood Of Dracula. Now, according to Mark Kermode, the company that chilled audiences in the 50s, 605 and 705 wrth monsters made from butcher's off-cuts and average budgets of £700,000, is on the move again. Oh, the horror (Ellie Carr)
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