What to watch on TV this week
RHS Chelsea Flower Show
BBC Two, 7.30pm (not NI)
A look at some of the highlights from the past week of the horticultural extravaganza.
Mumford and Sons
BBC Four, 10.40pm
The British band’s set live from Radio 1’s Big Weekend Exeter.
Wild Cities – Belfast
RTÉ One, 6.30pm
This excellent series has ensured those who’ve watched it will look at Irish cities in a totally new way. It concludes with a visit to Belfast, where we see a spectacular gathering of 40.000 starlings. The Lagan is also crucial for some of the city’s wildlife, and comedian Simon Watt shows us a kingfisher on the hunt, and less active seals sunning themselves.
Channel 4’s Comedy Gala
Channel 4, 9pm
Alan Carr, Sean Lock and various other stars of the stand-up scene perform in aid of Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity.
Coldplay
BBC Four, 9pm
Chris Martin returns home to Devon for his band’s live performance at Radio 1’s Big Weekend Exeter.
The Real Versailles
BBC Two, 10.30pm
In anticipation of the big drama series beginning on Wednesday (see p48), Lucy Worsley and Helen Castor provide some context with a look the life of King Louis XIV, and its tales of sexual scandal and bitter revenge.
Alan Partridge’s Scissored Isle
Sky Atlantic, 10.35pm
Steve Coogan’s ubiquitous character returns for a one-off documentary about his native land. One of the issues he’ll be addressing is a ‘schasm’ - a combination of a schism and a chasm - between the haves and the have-nots in Britain.
Euro 88 - We Can Beat This Lot
RTÉ One, 7pm
First of a two-part series looking back at Ireland’s mixed history in the European Championships. The opening episode looks at the glory days of Euro 88, with its decent draw against Russia, a respectable defeat against the Dutch, and that incredible victory over England, a game that still ranks up there in the greatest moment in the lives of a certain generation of soccer fan.
Fierce
UTV Ireland, 8pm
Steve Backshall concludes his series on animals with a vicious reputation by kayaking close to a hippo, and handling a spitting cobra and a puff adder.
Follow Donal
RTÉ One, 8.30pm
Donal Skehan goes travelling for this new series about food in various European countries. First up, he’s in Budapest, checking out the local langos snacks, and stripping down to his togs for a dip in the thermal baths.
Later... Live with Jools Holland
BBC Two, 10pm
Michael Kiwanuka has a new album on the way, and this second release looks like further enhancing his reputation for those who like folky soul, or even souly folk. He perfoms on tonight’s show alongside the likes of Tame Impala, Biffy Clyro and punk-jazz trio Moon Hooch.
Life After Death: The Elber Twomey Story TV3, 10pm
A documentary looking back on the tragic day when Elber Twomey, from Meelin in Co Cork, was involved in a crash with a suicidal driver while on holidays in Devon in 2012. Her 16-month-old son Oisín died in the crash, and her husband Con passed away 10 months later from injuries he sustained. Elber herself was also injured, and at five months pregnant, lost the baby she was carrying. She explains how she has since campaigned for better awareness of how to deal with suicidal drivers.
Lose Weight for Love
BBC One, 8pm
Bob and Jane like to eat and they love to drink, but their mutual indulgence is also threatening their health and their relationship. Tanya Byron and her team separate them for 10 weeks in an attempt to deal with both the emotional issues and the lack of exercise that are contributing to their issues.
My Money And Me
RTÉ One, 8.30pm
Ed and Muris are a young couple who’ve decided that the ridiculous amount of money they’re spending on Dublin’s high rents would be better going to a mortgage for a house of their own. However, in order to get on the property ladder, they’ll have to curtail their eating out and taxi journeys, and the presenters also suggest a few more ways for the duo to snip their spending and save for a deposit.
Ben Building: Mussolini, Monuments And Modernism
BBC Four, 9pm
You don’t have to try hard to find Italians with good things to say about their former Fascist leader, and his architectural legacy is often something that gets mentioned. Jonathan Meades travels through Italy looking at some of the buildings from the era, showing how the desire to be modern and progressive often clashed with revivalist tendencies that sought to play up links with the Roman Empire.
Seventy With A Six Pack
Channel 4, 10pm
A documentary in the True Stories strand follows a group of elderly muscle men preparing for the World Bodybuilding Finals in Miami.
I’ve Got Your Back RTÉ 2, 5pm
Ten-year-old AC/DC fan Lilia Smyth from Bishopstown, Cork, gets some help from members of her family on the quiz show.
Living with Dementia: Chris’s Story
BBC One, 8pm
Chris Roberts is 55 and has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. This documentary follows his life over two years as he and his family come to terms with the diagnosis and see the awful affliction’s early progression.
Le Week-End
Channel 4, 9pm
Hanif Kureishi collaborated with Notting Hill director Roger Michell on this 2013 comedy drama about a couple who mark their 30th wedding anniversary with a weekend in Paris.
Gardeners’ World
BBC Two, 8.30pm
A lot of the prep work is done in many gardens, and we’re into a season of nudging things along through a period of peak growth. Tonight, Monty Don is in his cutting garden, and Frances Tophill shows some of her progress with different vegetables.
Other Voices: An Irish Affair
RTÉ2, 11.20pm
Some of the Irish groups featured on this retrospective of the Dingle event include Lisa Hannigan, The Frames, Kodaline and Villagers.
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