Monday 5 August 2013

TV Picks: 5-11 August 2013 (Dragons' Den, Field of Blood 2, Nikita, Mob Doctor, Steve Coogan: Stand-Up Down Under, That Puppet Game Show, etc.)

Monday 5 August 2013

Below are my picks of the most notable TV shows returning/premiering on UK screens this week...

MONDAY 5th
PICK OF THE DAY The Billion Dollar Wreck Hunt (Channel 5, 8pm) Documentary series following the deep-water salvage company Odyssey Marine Exploration as it attempts to recover treasure from three shipwrecks. (1/3)
Dispatches: Celebs, Brands & Fake Fans (Channel 4, 8pm) Documentary on the tricks advertisers use to promote bands on websites.
Long Live Britain (BBC1, 9pm) New series raising awareness of type 2 diabetes. Presented by Julia Bradbury, Phil Hammond & Phil Tufnell. (1/2)
Rick Stein's German Bite (BBC2, 9pm) Special where the chef tries to uncover culinary gems from Germany.
Petrol Bombs & Peace: Welcome to Belfast (BBC3, 9pm) Documentary about a loyalist band marching into an area of dispute in Belfast.

TUESDAY 6th
Make Me a German (BBC2, 9pm) Documentary where a BBC journalist's family relocate to Germany to experience life there first-hand, in light of its economic success in such financially uncertain times.
Stephen Fry's Key to the City (ITV, 9pm) Documentary taking a close look at the city of London's many treats and hidden treasures.
PICK OF THE DAY Steve Coogan: Stand-Up Down Under (Sky Atlantic, 9pm) Fly-on-the-wall documentary following comedian Steve Coogan on a comedy tour of Australia, performing as characters like Paul Calf, Tony Ferrino & Alan Partridge. (1/2)
King Alfred & The Anglo-Saxons (BBC4, 9pm) Documentary series on King Alfred the Great. (1/3)

WEDNESDAY 7th
How Not to Get Old (Channel 4, 8pm) New series tackling the anti-ageing industry. Hosted by Anna Richardson & Louise Redknapp. (1/6)
PICK OF THE DAY Nurses (Channel 5, 8pm) Documentary series following the nursing staff of Cardiff and Vale University Health Board. (1/8)
Inside My Mind (BBC3, 8pm) Documentary looking the science behind common mental disorders in young people.

THURSDAY 8th
PICK OF THE DAY The Field of Blood 2 (BBC1, 9pm) Series 2 of the crime drama set in the 1980s newspaper industry. Starring Jayd Johnson, Ford Kiernan, David Morrissey, Katherine Kelly & Brian Pettifer. Concludes tomorrow. (1/2)
The Men Who Made Us Thin (BBC2, 9pm) New series exploring the businesses who have made a fortune from weight loss plans. Hosted by Jacques Peretti. (1/4)
Fraud Squad (ITV, 9pm) Documentary following the detectives from the Economic Crime Department of the City of London Police.
Saving Hope (Watch, 9pm) Canadian supernatural drama about the ghost of a comatose doctor who wanders the corridors helping his wife. Starring Michael Shanks & Erica Durance. (1/13)
Legally High (Channel 4, 10pm) Documentary investigation into the world of legal drugs.


FRIDAY 9th
Natural World: Sri Lanka - Elephant Island (BBC2, 9pm) Wildlife special where cameraman Martyn Colbeck travels to Sri Lanka to study a subspecies of Asian elephant.
PICK OF THE DAY Nikita (Sky Living, 9pm) Season 3 of the US action drama. Starring Maggie Q, Shane West, Lindsy Fonseca & Aaron Stanford. (1/22)
The Mob Doctor (Sky Living, 10pm) New US drama about a Chicago surgeon who helps gangsters in order to keep her brother safe. Starring Jordana Spiro, William Forsythe, James Carpinello, Zach Gilford & Zeljko Ivanek. (1/13)


SATURDAY 10th
PICK OF THE DAY That Puppet Game Show (BBC1, 6.45pm) Family entertainment show where two celebs go head-to-head in challenges hosted by a gang of puppets. Featuring Jonathan Ross & Katherine Jenkins. (1/8)
Sebastian Bergman (BBC4, 9pm) Swedish crime drama about an abrasive police profiler dealing with the death of his wife in the Thailand tsunami of 2004. Starring Rolf Lassgard, Gunnel Fred & Tomas Laustiola. (1/2)


SUNDAY 11th
PICK OF THE DAY Dragons' Den (BBC2, 8pm) Series 11 of the business reality show, with two new dragons in Piers Linney & Kelly Hoppen. (1/6)