Tuesday’s TV tips
Career-orientated Jane is always the bridesmaid, never the bride. In fact, she’s so good at being a bridesmaid that she’s done the job 27 times, and has a wardrobe full of dresses to prove it.
Her own big day seems even further away when her younger sister Tess announces she’s getting married - to the man Jane has been secretly nursing a crush on. While she contemplates the prospect of traipsing down the aisle after the loved-up pair, a journalist hears about her wedding record and decides it would make a great story.
Leading lady Katherine Heigl proved her rom-com credentials in Knocked Up, and while this isn’t quite in the same league, it’s still an enjoyably fluffy treat.
While the plot may be predictable, the stars are likeable and the script contains enough smart lines to keep you interested, even if you normally have a serious aversion to chick flicks.
Katherine Heigl, James Marsden, Malin Akerman, Edward Burns, Judy Greer, Melora Hardin, Brian Kerwin, Maulik Pancholy
When a scientist predicts that the world is about to face a global cataclysm with the potential to wipe out the human race, the US president joins forces with other heads of state to make plans for the catastrophe.
Unfortunately, for the vast majority of the planet’s population, these plans involve trying to save sets of zoo animals and a handful of those people deemed to be rich, powerful and special – thus leaving everyone else to their fate. However, when the disaster hits, a writer learns about the refuges and tries to ensure that his family gets a spot in one of them.
Roland Emmerich is hardly a novice at this type of movie (Independence Day, The Day After Tomorrow), and the special effects do not disappoint.
Actors John Cusack and Chiwetel Ejiofor manage to stand out amid the CGI. The drive through a chaotic, imploding LA has to be seen to be believed, while the set piece at Yellowstone is astonishing.
John Cusack, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Danny Glover, Thandie Newton
This documentary can sometimes make for disturbing viewing, but it also highlights the fantastic work the police carry out.
Brace yourselves for the content of this episode, as investigating officer Gary Hales tries to get to grips with a crime in which several elderly people have been sexually assaulted in a graveyard.
He admits that dealing with this particular crime has taken him out of his comfort zone. It’s explained how the police have managed to retain a sample of an attacker’s DNA from a previous crime scene after a fragment of his tongue was bitten off during the assault.
As the case gathers pace, a young man is arrested and brought into the police station before being accused of the latest assaults. All hopes are now pinned on his DNA matching that of the previous attacker...
A fast-paced thriller set in contemporary London, "Blitz" reflects the challenges faced by a group of police officers working in a modern, multi-cultural society.
A raw, gritty tale of moral ambiguity, outsiders and the sacrifices the police make to keep crime off British streets.
Jason Statham, Aidan Gillen, Paddy Considine
As the name suggests, the final movie from the Python stable is a jet black comedy pondering the meaning of birth, life and death.
It opens with Terry Gilliam’s supporting feature, The Crimson Permanent Insurance, which kicks off a series of loosely linked sketches.
They include an ambitious musical number, and features the unforgettable routine in which overweight diner Mr Creosote (Terry Jones) is tempted to finish off a mountain of food with a wafer thin mint.
This is arguably the weakest of the Python movies, but is bursting with clever ideas and certainly impressed the judges at the 1983 Cannes Film Festival. It won the Grand Prize of the Jury.
John Cleese, Graham Chapman, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Terry Gilliam, Michael Palin
When the nation gets up in arms about the latest goings-on in Downing Street, Rory Bremner’s satirical swipes at the political scene have always come as a welcome breather.
So many fans will be pleased as punch to hear that, ahead of the General Election, the comic is making his long-awaited return to the Beeb after a whopping 20 years, and bringing pals John Bird, Matt Forde, Sara Pascoe and Jan Ravens along for good measure.
Filmed in Manchester just before transmission, Bremner explores the political landscape 800 years after the Magna Carta was written, using sketches, stand-up and archive material. And put under the spotlight, how will David Cameron, Ed Miliband, Nick Clegg, Boris Johnson and Nigel Farage fair?
This is the second show in a double bill of politics-heavy programming tonight.
Welcome back Bremner, you’ve been sorely missed!
Gareth Thomas may have been at the top of his game (rugby union, for the uninitiated) between 1995 and 2007, but few would have guessed he was harbouring a 20-year secret.
For so long he’d tried to hide the fact that he was gay from supporters, fellow team mates and family, but in 2010, Gareth was rewarded for his brave honesty following his coming out, after being voted top of the Pink List of the 101 most influential gay people in the UK.
While the former Wales star became so good at playing ’a straight man’, he has acknowledged that he caused misery for those closest to him, and hated the man he’d become so much that he wanted to die. His journey has been far from easy.
But he’s since spoken out about his experiences in an attempt to help others struggling with their sexuality.
In this one-off documentary, he reveals why he hid his sexuality for so long, and why he finally felt he had to tell the truth five years ago.
