It is an absolutely bumper week of great TV this week, so much so that TOTB could have pulled a double shift to make sure that we brought you it all, but then we would have hated to do something so prosaic as to “do a good job”.
So instead, feast your eyes on this small but perfectly-formed selection of what is catching our eye this week, and check out http://www.ukproxyserver.com to find out how you can watch it all via a UK virtual private network.
What: Broadchurch | Where: ITV 1 & ITV Player | When: Monday 4th, 21:00-22:00 GMT
Way back when we used to publish stuff here, we previewed this Chris Chibnall penned drama as one of the most exciting shows for 2013, and now it’s arrived we’re officially excited.
You can’t ignore the similarities between Broadchurch and the new BBC drama Mayday, as both follow the tale of small communities rocked by the death of a child (they’re even scheduled at the same time), however the stellar cast list (David Tennant, Olivia Colman) of ITV’s offering could give it the edge.
What: Derek Series Finale | Where: Channel 4, 4OD | When: Wednesday 6th, 22:00-22:35 GMT
This latest Ricky Gervais offering has received its fair share of criticism for being both too offensive and too soppy, yet love him or hate him, you can’t deny that The Office creator makes TV that gets people talking.
The series finale promises to be more gushingly sentimental than ever, as a resident of the care home dies leading the characters to introspectively reflect on their lives.
What: Charlie Brooker’s Weekly Wipe & Gogglebox | Where: BBC Two, BBC iPlayer/Channel 4, 4OD | When: Thursday 7th, 22:00
Thursday night sees a battle of two weekly review shows, as the final episode of the brilliant Charlie Brooker’s Weekly Wipe goes head-to-head with the first episode of new series Gogglebox, in which real families give their thoughts on the previous week’s TV.
We don’t know if it’s just because the new Channel 4 show is somewhat stepping on TOTB’s toes (it’s our job to provide ill-informed and barely-coherent opinions on the week’s TV), but we’re not quite sure about the premise of Gogglebox. If we wanted to listen to someone’s dad moaning at the TV while scratching his crotch, we could just turn to our own dad while he moans at the TV and scratches his crotch.
What: Crufts | Where: Channel 4, 4OD | When: Sunday 10th, 17:30-20:00 GMT
If you’ve been longing for a show to fill the “dogs doing tricks” genre ever since the last series of Britain’s Got Talent ended then you’re in luck, as this Sunday sees a bumper two and a half hours of perfectly-coiffured canines running up ramps, and then running back down the other side.
The highlights of the final day of this year’s Crufts is presented by Clare Balding, typically a horse racing presenter, who presumably can’t look any of them in the eye right now after realising she’s eaten so many of them.
