Jamie Cooks Christmas
Sunday, Channel 4, 8pm
When Jamie Oliver decides to host a Christmas dinner party, Santa is usually inundated with letters asking to be put on the guest list. But sorry, this party is only for Oliver’s family and friends, so unless you’re Jamie’s bestie, you can only watch in awe as he turns bog-standard foodstuffs into delicious festive delights. Under Oliver’s expert hand, salad leaves become a superb accompaniment to his Christmas cheesy filo parcels, while boring old cauliflower gets an exciting new lease of life as part of a veggie Christmas lasagne, flavoured with a seasonal spice rub. And forget the Christmas pud – Oliver finishes with a flourish: sticky toffee coffee pudding made with whizzed walnuts, Medjool dates and marvellous spices.
I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here! Final
Sunday, UTV & Virgin Media One, 9pm
At last, it’s time to crown the king or queen of the jungle, but who is going to be the last celeb standing in the contest that remains stubbornly popular with viewers? At the time of writing, just one contestant, Loose Women presenter Jane Moore, had been cut loose from the camp, with rumours rife that Northern Irish radio DJ Dean McCullough would be next to get booted out. Danny Jones from McFly was still favourite to win the contest, with Coleen Rooney aka Wagatha Christie biting at his heels, Rev Richard Coles in third place and Irish woman Maura Higgins fourth at 11-1 odds. Whoever wins this year, they can be sure their career will experience the famous Bushtucker bounce.
Dostoevsky
Sunday, Sky Atlantic & Now, 9pm
Don’t write off this Italian-language series – the titular character has no relation to the 19th-century Russian novelist, although this Dostoevsky’s writings also plumb the depths of madness. This dark crime drama is created by the d’Innocenzo brothers, Damiano and Fabio, and follows the hunt for a vicious serial killer stalking the hinterlands of Rome who has earned the nickname due to the graphic, gruesome letters left at the crime scenes. Filippo Timi plays detective Enzo Vitello, a cop haunted by the contents of the letters, who decides to strike out on his own and hunt down the killer. But this dangerous solo quest soon put him in both physical and existential peril.
La Vie sa Bhruiséil
Monday, RTÉ One, 8pm
The Belgian capital of Brussels is where the European Parliament is located, and so it attracts people from all EU countries who are keen to live and work close to the parliament’s corridors of power. Europe’s multilingual capital is also home to many Gaeilgeoirí, and this new series profiles some of the city’s Irish-speaking residents, including the Uí Chonchúir family, the Ó Dubháins, Ciarán Ó Ceallaigh, Ríoghnach Hyland and the members of Conradh na Gaeilge Brussels. What’s life like for the city’s growing community of Irish speakers?
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RTÉ Investigates: Black Market Weight Loss
Monday, RTÉ One, 9.35pm
How far would you go to reach those elusive weight loss goals? For many Irish people battling obesity, some of the new prescription medications coming on the market offer hope, but low supply and astronomical prices make them harder to obtain, which is why so many people are turning to the black market to get their hands on these hard-to-get drugs. But many of these illegally sourced medications are fake, putting people at serious risk. In this RTÉ Investigates special, reporter Pamela Fraher explores the ballooning demand for illegal weight-loss treatments, and how the criminals cash in on the desire to be thinner.
Chancers
Monday, BBC One, 10.40pm
While we wait patiently for the next series of Give My Head Peace, here’s a satirical comedy sketch show from Belfast comedians Shane Todd and Ciarán Bartlett that turns the lens on the cringiest, most awkward moments in modern life. Todd and Bartlett are joined by a sharp, witty cast chosen from the cream of Northern Ireland’s comedy scene, and they’ll be cranking up the discomfort levels in a series of movie parodies, skits and embarrassingly absurd encounters. You’ll either laugh your head off at every ridiculous situation or hide behind the sofa until it’s all over.
Swiped: The School That Banned Smartphones
Wednesday & Thursday, Channel 4, 8pm
What happened when pupils of a school in Colchester had to do without their smartphones for 21 days. Did anarchy reign? Did the kids suffer from withdrawal symptoms? This documentary tracks a daring experiment in phone deprivation, when a group of pupils are challenged to give up their electronic comfort blankets for three weeks, with scientists and medics on hand to monitor the reactions, changes in behaviour and physical effects as the kids adjusted to their new powered-off existence. They are also given cognitive tests to see how smartphone use impacts on brain function, mood and social interaction. With debate raging on whether children should have unlimited access to smartphones, and Australia planning to ban social media for kids under 16, the time is right to test the waters and see if banning smartphones will help children re-engage with the real world.
Guy Martin: Arctic Warrior
Wednesday & Thursday, Channel 4, 9pm
As Russia steps up its attacks on Ukraine, it’s good to know that Guy Martin is there to help defend the West against Vladimir Putin’s threats to use nuclear weapons. In this new two-parter, Martin goes commando: joins the Royal Marines in the “Northern Flank”, a region 200 miles above the Arctic Circle where the borders of Russia and northern Europe meet, and where security concerns have been heightened to new levels. But has he got what it takes to be a true Arctic warrior? He’ll have to jump in a frozen lake and drive an all-terrain vehicle at night to prove he’s got the mettle.
Fintan O’Toole: A Life in Our Times
Wednesday, RTÉ One, 9.35pm
Earlier this year Fintan O’Toole, star journalist with The Irish Times, officially retired, but we wouldn’t let him go, so we still have him locked away in a tower of the Irish Times building writing incisive columns on politics, Irish life, culture, social history and I’m a Celebrity (okay, maybe not the last one – we’re not that cruel). This documentary looks at O’Toole’s life and career trajectory, from growing up in Crumlin in south Dublin to becoming a leading voice on Ireland’s fast-changing sociopolitical landscape, commenting on contemporary Ireland with sparkling wit and dazzling insight. The programme features lots of archive footage from key events in modern Irish history, all grist to the mill for O’Toole’s bright, inquiring mind. Sure no wonder we don’t want him getting away.
Alan Bennett: 90 Years On
Friday, BBC Two, 9pm
He’s one of Britain’s most beloved playwrights, and this Arena film is both a celebration of his 90th birthday – on May 9th – and a reflection on his life as a young person growing up in a world where attitudes to and laws against homosexuality forced him to remain under the radar. The programme looks at his years in Cambridge studying Russian and becoming obsessed with the college’s notorious spies including Kim Philby and Anthony Blunt, and how his plays including Prick Up Your Ears and The History Boys helped changed the narrative on homosexuality. This very intimate portrait of the writer, actor and presenter is directed by Adam Lowe.
Streaming
The Kings of Tupelo: A Southern Crime Saga
From Wednesday, December 11th, Netflix
Ever since Tiger King the search has been on for another bizarre real-life rivalry to turn into a wacky true-life series, and Netflix thinks it has found a doozy in The Kings of Tupelo, the story of a small-town-Mississippi feud that had huge national repercussions. It revolves around Paul Kevin Curtis, a janitor by day and an Elvis impersonator by night (Presley was born in the city), who falls down a rabbit hole of conspiracy theories, and is soon locked in an escalating feud with a former friend. By the time it culminates in an attempted ricin attack on US government officials, you know things have really spiralled out of control.
One Hundred Years of Solitude
From Wednesday, December 11th, Netflix
Gabriel García Márquez’s magic-realist novel from 1967, which has sold more than 50 million copies, is finally getting its first real TV adaptation in the form of this 16-part Netflix series. Anyone daring to bring the mythical town of Macondo to the screen had better tread carefully, and this ambitious Spanish-language production, shot in the author’s native Colombia, aims to bring viewers right inside the pages of Márquez’s masterpiece. The story centres around the Buendía family, founders of a remote community that they hope will be a utopia but is instead riven with madness, war and a century-long curse.
No Good Deed
From Thursday, December 12th, Netflix
Caveat venditor, as they sometimes say in the property business. Lydia and Paul Morgan are empty-nesters who are selling their beautiful 1920s villa in the Los Angeles neighbourhood of Los Feliz, but is this really a good idea? The house harbours some dark and deadly secrets, and as three couples get into a bidding battle for what they think is their dream home, Lydia and Paul find it increasingly hard to keep the prospective buyers from discovering the nightmarish truth about the property. Lisa Kudrow and Ray Romano star as the Morgans, with Luke Wilson as a washed-up soap star, Linda Cardellini as a ruthless social climber and Denis Leary as a debt-ridden ex-con.
