Best on TV

SATURDAY

The Borgias

Sky Atlantic, 9pm

In episode two of the new series, Pope Alexander VI (Jeremy Irons) shows his softer side as he gets his mistress to help the poor who are being ravaged by starvation and disease on the streets of Rome. Meanwhile, the Borgia pontiff’s enemies continue to move against him, not least Cardinal Della Rovere who survived a poisoning attempt.

Three Kings

TV3, 9pm

George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg and Ice Cube team up for this enjoyable tale of a group of American soldiers in Iraq who plan to steal a huge cache of gold.

Before Night Falls

TG4, 9.40pm

The first time many of us saw Javier Bardem was alongside Johnny Depp in this 2001 biographical film about Cuban writer Reinaldo Arenas. Nominated for an Oscar for his role, the Spanish actor portrays Arenas through his journey from hero fighter in the Cuban revolution through periods of persecution on the island because of his sexuality, and up to his death in New York from Aids in 1990.

SUNDAY

The Zoo

UTV, 8pm

Return of the enjoyable series filmed behind the scenes at London Zoo. You know the drill — caring keepers taking on parental responsibilities, etc.

Sex Story: Fifty Shades of Grey

Channel 4, 10pm

Bestselling book Fifty Shades of Grey has brought the world of bondage into the public arena. This documentary tries to assess the effect it has had, by visiting a spanking class, and spending time with a couple whose practices are at the more extreme end of the S&M scale. A book club reads the bestseller and members share their verdict, while representatives of Ann Summers adult stores explain what they are doing to make the most of the novel’s popularity. Sex columnist Pamela Stephenson also gives her opinion on the new craze for all things bondage-related.

MONDAY

Simply Italian

Channel 4, 8.30pm

Italian food is the best in the world, and much of it is really easy to cook. This new four-part series has Welsh-Italian presenter Michela Chiappa taking us through the basics of the much-travelled cuisine. She begins by showing how easy it is to make your own pasta, and also makes lasagne verdi with walnut and sage pesto. In Bologna she hears the secrets of authentic bolognaise recipes.

Jimmy Carr: Being Funny

Channel 4, 10pm

The popular British comedian takes a break from TV presentation duties to return to his stand-up roots in a new live show.

TUESDAY

Scannal

TG4, 7.30pm

Looks back to 2007 when Susie Long exposed the gap between private and public healthcare in Ireland. Her email to Joe Duffy’s Liveline show under the name Rosie described how her seven-month wait for a colonoscopy had, in effect, been a death sentence. By the time she was eventually seen, her bowel cancer was terminal. She died aged 41 in October 2007, leaving behind two teenage children and her husband Liam. Long’s tragic case sparked much public outrage and promises for reform.

Networks of Power

Sky Atlantic, 9pm

Former British diplomat Christopher Meyer is in Rome to continue his look at various power structures around the globe. The show doesn’t have good news for Italy, as a journalist tells of how recession has opened doors for the mafia to reassert their grip on the capital. The chief of the anti-mafia police also gives advice on how to survive assassination attempts, and fashion mogul Santo Versace explains how he’s trying to fight corruption.

Revenge

RTÉ Two, 10.30pm

Olympic coverage means there’s just one episode of Revenge, and watch out for the different scheduling slot. What we’ll miss out on in quantity is more than made up for in impact, however, as a massive revelation leaves Emily’s head spinning. Big episode that’s unmissable for fans.

WEDNESDAY

A History of Art in Three Colours

BBC Four, 9pm

Presenter James Fox has his blue period as he explores the significance of the colour in the world of art. We see how it entered western art through the importation of the precious stone lapis lazuli from the East, and also how blue has given an emotional depth to the work of such figures as Gaugin, Van Gogh and Picasso.

THURSDAY

Animal Clinic

RTÉ One, 7pm

Natalia the vet has a tough job on her hands trying to save a cat who suffered a broken pelvis after being run over by a cat. Out in the field, Dublin SPCA staff Lisa also has difficulty trying to rescue a swan, while Liam and Gillian try to treat a horse that was ridden into a fence.

Undercover At The News Of The World

Channel 4, 11.05pm

While Rupert Murdoch’s flagship newspaper did some terrible things, its use of the Fake Sheikh will long go down in the annals of investigative journalism. In this documentary we see how journalist Mazher Mahmood would pose as a wealthy Arab, secretly filming well-known people saying things they wouldn’t want to come out in public. Among his targets were Newcastle United chiefs Freddie Shepherd and Douglas Hall who called Geordie women “dogs“; and England soccer manager Sven Goran Eriksson. Not all of Mahmood’s stories stood up to rigorous examination, and Irish jockey Kieren Fallon is among those who tell the show about how he became a victim of inaccurate allegations.

FRIDAY

Gardeners’ World

BBC Two, 8.30pm

At last we find a show on BBC this week that doesn’t have an Olympic angle. Carol Klein is checking out some wild roses, while Monty Don offers advice on propagating culinary herbs.

Iron Maiden: Behind the Beast

BBC Four, 10pm

A documentary produced by the band themselves on their Final Frontier tour as they travel around on a Boeing 757 piloted by lead singer Bruce Dickinson.

The Walking Dead

RTÉ Two, 11pm

The little peace the group had on Hershel’s farm is most definitely over, and the tragic situation that has unfolded is matched by divisive suspicions among the survivors.