Saturdays TV tips
(2009) Dinosaurs ruled the Earth for more than 100 million years, and in this third instalment of the computer-animated Ice Age series the pals come fact-to-face with them.
Sid the sloth (voiced by John Leguizamo) begins to feel lonely when his “herd” threatens to break up, and fills the void by adopting a trio of mysterious eggs.
Unfortunately, they belong to a rather disgruntled Tyrannosaurus rex, who captures him and takes him to a dangerous subterranean kingdom filled with prehistoric monsters, leaving his loyal friends Manny (Ray Romano) and Diego (Denis Leary) no choice but to launch a rescue mission – with heavily pregnant Ellie (Queen Latifah) in tow.
TV3's hugely popular game show that sees players earn money for doing absolutely nothing is back with a brand new second series.
In this episode, we have best friends from Kildare, Emma and Lisa up against sibling duo from Dublin Tracy and Gorgeous George and online psychic Gary and his fireman buddy Mattie from Kilkenny.
Adventure game show, presented by Emma Willis and Reggie Yates. The remaining nine couples battle it out for the chance to win a life-changing prize, as one member of each couple takes part in a series of challenges on location in Morocco.
While the other is based at Farnborough airport, ready to answer a series of questions to potentially save their partner, should they find themselves in the bottom three and in danger of being eliminated.
In this show, the challenges include a race through the sand dunes of the Sahara Desert, with the lowest-ranked three contestants flown back to their studio partners in the UK.
In 1983, St David’s Hall in Cardiff was officially opened by the Queen Mother, and later that same year, BBC Wales launched the Cardiff Singer of the World to celebrate the fledgling arts venue’s birth.
It’s gone from strength to strength ever since, and many observers claim that this year’s competition is the strongest ever.
Tonight, Petroc Trelawny and Angel Blue introduce the proceedings as five promising young opera singers from across the globe compete for the Song Prize, accompanied only by the piano.
Winning Streak is back on our screens from June 20th on RTÉ One presented by Marty Whelan and Sinead Kennedy.
Each week five players will be in with a shot of winning some fantastic cash prizes with the return of all the best National Lottery Winning Streak games including favourites Cash Cubes, Patience, Money Match, Pick a Prize, Trapdoor, Wheel Reveal and, of course, the Grand Prize Wheel.
In association with the National Lottery, this season not only one player but two players may have the opportunity to spin the iconic Winning Streak Grand Prize Wheel and win up to 500,000 euro each.
Has the women’s game finally grabbed the nation’s attention? If not, you can’t blame the BBC, because its head honchos really have pulled out all the stops in an attempt to promote the sport.
Plus, the fact the competition is taking place during an otherwise barren football period should have tempted fans to tune in.
We’re now at the last-16 stage, and tonight viewers can see coverage of the first knockout game from the Lansdowne Stadium in Ottawa, Canada, between the winners of Group B and a team that finished third in either Group A, C or D. Subsequent programmes are subject to change.
(2013) During the 1970s, rubber burnt and tempers frayed between two very different Formula 1 drivers: charismatic ladies’ man James Hunt and incredibly ambitious Austrian speed fiend Niki Lauda.
Their daredevil duels reached a horrifying crescendo at the 1976 German Grand Prix at the Nurburgring when Lauda’s Ferrari burst into flames, trapping him in the inferno.
Six weeks later, he emerged from hospital with extensive scarring, determined to prevent Hunt from claiming the chequered flag at Monza.
This incredible story is dramatised in Ron Howard’s biopic that charts the rivalry between Hunt (Chris Hemsworth) and Lauda (Daniel Bruhl) from their early days through to the glamour of the Formula 1 circus.
(2010) Based on a true story, Marius Holst’s hard-hitting drama chronicles the uprising at the Bastoy Residential School for troubled youth, which led to the intervention of Norwegian armed forces.
The governor Bestyreren (Stellan Skarsgard) believes in imposing strict rules on his wards and relies on the guards, led by the sadistic Brathen (Kristoffer Joner), to take charge and use mental and physical abuse to beat the boys into submission.
Seventeen-year-old Erling (Benjamin Helstad) arrives at Bastov with terrified Ivar (Magnus Langlete), and the new inmates are humiliated in front of the other boys in order to quell any thoughts of rebellion.
While Ivar suffers horribly at Brathen’s hands, Erling dares to stand up to the guards and risks everything to escape.
Miriam O’Callaghan returns with an eleventh series of the very successful entertainment series, “Saturday Night With Miriam”
Miriam O’Callaghan is one of the country’s most respected broadcasters. Among those who have previously joined her on “Saturday Night With Miriam” are Colin Farrell, Kate Beckinsale, Brendan Gleeson, Daniel Radcliffe, Kyle McLachlan and Mischa Barton to name but a few.
The new series promises plenty of surprises along the way too. Join Miriam after the main evening News on RTÉ One on Saturdays from June 20th.
Even if you’re not an opera fan, chances are that you would recognise a few tunes from La Traviata, Giuseppe Verdi’s much-loved tale of courtesan Violetta Valery, her dramatic life and tragic death.
Arias from the work are universally popular, even with those who perhaps haven’t realised where they originate from.
Now historian Amanda Vickery and Radio 3 presenter Tom Service are about to shed new light on the opera by exploring its background, including the real-life characters who inspired the late.
Amanda explores the life of Marie Duplessis, the prized courtesan said to be the model for Violetta, while Tom discovers how Verdi, during a trip to Paris with his mistress, decided to use her story as the subject for what would become his masterpiece.
Some observers have suggested that John Bishop is attempting to bring back the kind of variety entertainment shows that dominated TV during his youth, and they might be right.
Certainly such acts, once considered unfashionable, have found homes of late on an increasing number of programmes, including Britain’s Got Talent and Sunday Night at the Palladium, as well as Bishop’s series.
Tonight, he welcomes Spark Fire Dance, who perform a spectacular routine, while music comes from the Vaccines and the Overtones.
The rest of the show is rather dominated by comedy, with stand-up sets by Jimeoin, Tanyalee Davis, Hal Cruttenden and Vikki Stone. The latter puts her musical training to good use while singing an ode to Professor Brian Cox.
Okay, so this psychological thriller has already been broadcast on a satellite channel, but for those of us without access to that particular station, here’s a welcome chance to see the programme from the very beginning – and it’s worth tuning in for Jessica Lange’s performance alone.
The pilot edition introduces viewers to the Harmons, a Boston family with a troubled past, as they relocate to LA.
However, their new home harbours a dark history of its own, and as they begin to settle into their new lives, the building’s secrets start to unravel.
(2008) Long before the Alan Partridge movie, Steve Coogan made his mark on the big screen in this amiable comedy.
Failed actor and recovering alcoholic Dana Marschz (Coogan) reluctantly takes a job as a high-school drama teacher to make ends meet when he realises his acting dreams are never going to become reality.
He soon discovers that the life of an educator is not for him – especially when he’s plagued by bad reviews, student indifference and budget troubles – but when the authorities threaten to cut his course from the curriculum, he hatches an ill-conceived plan to try to safeguard his livelihood – by putting on a spectacular stage production of a self-penned musical sequel to Shakespeare’s classic tragedy.
