What to watch on TV this week
With Halloween on the horizon, there’s a spooky theme to the routines performed by the 10 remaining couples.
A moderately interesting guest list includes comedian Stephen Merchant, chef Gino D’Acampo and pop singer Nicole Scherzinger.
The campaigning documentary-maker tries to ‘Make America Sane Again’ with this film of his live stage performance in a Trump-supporting town in Ohio. The lead time means it’s not quite in sync with recent developments in the presidential debate, and there are no spoilers in revealing that Moore isn’t a fan of Trump.
Former soccer star Stephen Hunt joins Davy Fitzgerald, Anna Geary and Alan Quinlan among the mentors. David the father is a keen cyclist, while sons Fionn and Odhran are keen rugby players, and their sister Naomi is a gym regular and Zumba fanatic.
The final three are in Athlone for their final painting challenges, before a winner is chosen and their work is sent to hang in Dublin Castle.
Much of this week’s action again revolves around Niamh and her plans to fleece Paul. Her conspiracy with Dermot threatens to go astray, and she also suffers a crisis of conscience. But will it be enough to halt her plan?
The first series of the android drama series was one of the big hits of last year, possibly due to the combination of decent viewing and some zeitgeisty themes about our interaction with the digital world.
This second season picks up the action just a few months after last year’s events, with several of the protagonists in hiding in Berlin and the British coast. There’s also action from San Francisco where a character played by Carrie-Anne Moss (The Matrix) is hired for a special AI project.
Classical megastar Andre Rieu discusses some of the big questions with Gay Byrne. During an interview recorded in his home town of Maastricht in Holland, the violinist/conductor talks about his strict upbringing, and how his father ensured Andre and his five siblings practiced their music for hours on end from the age of five.
He reveals how it was his childhood sweetheart, and later wife Marjorie, who gave him the love and affirmation that made him happy. He’s also quite open on the subject of his apparently successful shows. He’s sold millions of records, but having 110 people on his payroll has also meant he’s stared into the bankruptcy abyss on occasion.
Twin doctors Chris and Xand van Tulleken return for another run of their superb show that has a lot of fun explaining medical and biological issues to children. First up is a look at the flexibility of human bodies, and they also go behind the scenes to find out about the job of an air ambulance pilot.
Apparently, straightforward quiz shows just don’t cut it with modern audiences, so everything now needs a format. For this one, random people get stopped on the street and are invited to join in as contestants. They even get to ‘search’ for the answer on their phone.
Two-hour special live broadcast to mark the network’s 20th birthday. President Michael D Higgins provides a live address, and there are also reports from Páidí Ó Sé’s pub in Ventry, and Ionad Cois Locha, Gweedore.
Scorn and mirth seem to be the main emotions that the public feel towards Enda Kenny, but presumably there must be a fair amount of respect and affection as well, considering he’s been the first Fine Gael leader to last successive terms as Taoiseach. This two-part documentary by Pat Leahy looks at the Mayo man’s rise through the ranks since he was first elected in 1975.
Halloween special includes a section in Cork where Kevin ends up terrified when he finds out how television shows are really made.
Paul Muldoon narrates a documentary on his former neighbours from Collegeland on the Armagh-Tyrone border whose 14 siblings have an incredible accumulated age of 1,117 years. The are Austin Donnelly (70), Sean (92), Maureen (91), Eileen (89), Peter (86), Mairead (85), Rose (84), Tony (82), Terry (80), Seamus (79), Brian (75), Kathleen (74), Colm (72) and Leo (70).
One of those ‘live’ nature TV events the BBC has been doing so well in recent years. Over the next three nights, a team of presenters bring us an unfolding tale of polar bears, shorter days, diminishing sea ice, mining, oil exploration.
Eunice Power is in Cobh Heritage Centre to meet five food producers from Munster, including Cork participants Caroline Murphy from Knockraha, and Ramona Ruiz Keohane, from Bantry.
The beauty of the roundtable format used on this show is that it keeps things rolling along where traditional chat shows would flounder.
An Australian documentary looking at the work of the homicide detectives on the case of Irish woman Jill Meagher, murdered in 2012 in Melbourne by serial rapist Adrian Bayley.
KT Tunstall explores the careers of Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris.
A rather impressive guest list tonight is led by Ben Affleck and David Attenborough, while Sting provides the music.
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
