Friday’s TV tips
Davina McCall kicks off a night of fun and frivolity live from the London Palladium. For the first hour, she’s joined by Lenny Henry, and they will introduce Rowan Atkinson in a new Mr Bean sketch, guest-starring Ben Miller and Rebecca Front, while Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman will announce the winner of The People’s Strictly.
There’s been plenty of hype surrounding this series, so no doubt viewers will be keen to hear who the winner is after their performances on Wednesday night. It’s certainly the moment many people at the Beeb have been waiting for.
From 8pm, it’s David Walliams’ turn to co-host with Davina, as they introduce a special Vicar of Dibley in which Geraldine (Dawn French) is up for the job of bishop against some very famous competition indeed.
And later, John Bishop joins Davina to present a brand new Little Britain sketch.
Music comes courtesy of Ella Henderson and Sam Smith, plus, if you tune in after the news break, expect to hear from the likes of Russell Brand, Doc Brown, Trevor Noah and a live sketch from Cardinal Burns.
A Hong Kong detective teams up with a British agent and an investigator to stop a global slave ring.
Combining the martial arts prowess of international action superstar Jackie Chan with state-of-the-art special effects, The Medallion is an action comedy co-starring Claire Forlani, Lee Evans and Julian Sands.
Chan plays Eddie Yang, a Hong Kong cop who suffers a near fatal accident while investigating a case involving a mysterious medallion.
Eddie soon discovers that with the powerful medallion in his possession, he gains incredible speed, strength and skills, taking his martial arts abilities to awe-inspiring heights.
Enlisting the help of an old flame, British Interpol agent Nicole James (Forlani), Eddie is determined to learn the secret of the medallion and face down the evil crime lord Snakehead (Sands), who wants to use its awesome powers for his own nefarious plans.
Starring: Jackie Chan, Lee Evans & Claire Forlani.
'Life', the programme that showcases the best of what's happening in Ireland today.
Presenter, Sybil Mulcahy meets the Loughmore, Co Tipperary locals who came together to start the countries first co-op tea rooms in order to save their town.
She's also in the Enniskerry, Co Wicklow grounds that have been voted the third best gardens in the world, according to National Geographic.
Reporter, Michael Ryan is in Dublin's Phoenix Park meeting the members of one of the Garda's most popular divisions, the mounted unit.
We’re all for charity work and good causes, but if you’re all Comic Relief-ed out, then BBC4 has a great alternative line-up of viewing tonight, much of it paying homage to Irish musical offerings.
This insightful documentary tells the story of how rock music has helped bring about change for Ireland over 40 years, and how many of the sounds to emerge were grounded in the musical traditions of Ireland’s two main cities.
The films explores how the harder sounds of Belfast merged with the folk traditions of Dublin, and celebrates some of the key musicians to have emerged from the country; from the pioneering showbands of the late 1950s through to the modern day.
The programme also looks at how these musicians were influenced by the political, social and cultural climate of their surroundings.
Keep an eye out for contributions from the likes of U2, Sinead O’Connor and, of course, Bob Geldof.
By now, Bear Grylls is probably hoping he’s managed to separate the wheat from the chaff when it comes to survival instinct, and with only six celebrities left, the competition is getting more tense than ever.
However, jungle life is taking its toll – one of the celebs is suffering from mosquito bites, while another has trench foot and requires treatment from the Mission Survive medic.
But who is showing off an essential skill needed for survival – being cheerful in the face adversity?
In this instalment, Bear meets the celebs in a two-mile cave system, offering them breakfast and a dose of zinc (from tarantulas, naturally).
He shows his proteges how to burn the hairs off the tarantulas’ legs to make them safe to eat, before setting them a challenge which will test their rope skills.
But they’d better keep half an eye for out dinner: a fresh pig carcass that Bear has hidden somewhere in the cave.
It’s great to see Jo Brand on the box regularly once again, and it seems she’s got quite a penchant for reality telly.
In 2009, she took a judge’s seat on BBC Two series The Speaker, before joining the panel on ITV’s Splash! in 2013 and last year, and now she’s settled nicely into the role of presenter of this brilliant spin-off programme.
Alas, tonight’s episode certainly isn’t about her. She will be chatting to the four celebrity Star Bakers and hears their feelings about their time on the show, before one of them is announced as the overall winner.
Plus, judge Mary Berry, comedian Frank Skinner and former GBBO contestant Howard Middleton reflect on the shenanigans in the tent, taste the audience’s wares and discuss pictures of viewers’ creations.
It’s a shame it’s all over for another year...
This enjoyably edgy comic-book action comedy sees Aaron Taylor-Johnson cast as an American teenager who becomes a real-life superhero.
Although his amateur crime-fighting adventures make him a media sensation, he is soon in over his head as he crosses paths with a gangster and a lethal father-daughter vigilante team.
Director Matthew Vaughn and co-writer Jane Goldman proved you don’t need a huge budget and a well-known comic-book series to make a great movie.
Their tale, based on a Mark Millar comic, is superbly crafted, and the movie is brilliantly cast with Chloe Grace Moretz stealing the show as foul-mouthed young crime-fighter Hit-Girl.
Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Chloe Grace Moretz, Nicolas Cage, Mark Strong, Christopher Mintz-Plasse
In a plague-ridden medieval England in 1348, one isolated community seems to be unaffected. In a bid to discover whether witchcraft is behind the area’s remarkable good fortune, a naive young monk is dispatched to investigate – along with a band of hardened mercenaries.
Unfortunately, their journey is beset by hazards – and when they finally reach their destination, it seems their problems are only just beginning.
Director Christopher Smith blends elements of adventure, horror and drama together to tell this tale, and uses a leading trio of period genre-staple stars: Sean Bean and Carice van Houten both went on to star in Game of Thrones. Look out for recent Oscar-winner Eddie Redmayne in an early performance.
Sean Bean, Eddie Redmayne, Carice van Houten, David Warner, Johnny Harris, Kimberley Nixon, John Lynch, Tim McInnerny
The CIA put together a team of mercenaries in a bid to track down a missing scientist. The soldiers of fortune begin their search at an archaeological dig in the Middle East, but unbeknownst to them, they end up disturbing a terrifying supernatural entity.
It’s impossible to take this far-fetched horror too seriously, however those who are willing to be swept along for the ride will find themselves all the happier for it.
It’s not too cerebral – you know you have an all-action film on your hands when Ron Perlman is playing the scientist – instead this is more of a thrill ride, with dark, supernatural themes akin to The Ninth Gate or Angel Heart – however with less of the twisty puzzles.
Cuba Gooding Jr, Henry Rollins, Ron Perlman, Taryn Manning, Valerie Cruz, Ray Winstone
