tue 22/07/2025

tv

Nolan: Australia's Maverick Artist, BBC Four review – a lust for life in all its aspects

Marina Vaizey

Reckless, unstoppable, one step ahead of everyone else, a hell of a lot of fun, utterly charming, street smart – descriptions of the artist Sidney Nolan (1917-1992) poured out from colleagues, rivals, curators, art historians and dealers, not to mention friends and family, in this persuasive film.

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Black Lake, Series 2 Finale, BBC Four review - Swedish chiller fails to thrill

Adam Sweeting

A bunch of young-ish people stuck in a rambling house in the middle of nowhere, a hatchet-faced senior citizen guarding a hoard of murky secrets, assorted missing persons, a derelict sanatorium, lots of creepy noises and no telephones… hang on, isn’t that exactly the same formula as in the first series of Black Lake...

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American History's Biggest Fibs with Lucy Worsley, BBC Four review - rewriting history in the Land of the Free

Marina Vaizey

The multi-costumed Lucy Worsley is television marmite, loved or loathed: her gesticulating enthusiasm can grate, as can her stream of bland platitudes. Typically the title is Worsley-twee, evoking fibs instead of lies and falsehoods; are we in the nursery, as smart Nanny Worsley seems to think?

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Magnum P.I., Sky 1 review - slick and formulaic remake of Eighties original

Adam Sweeting

Perhaps inspired by the success of the revived Hawaii Five-O, CBS and Universal have gone back to the Eighties, and back to Hawaii, to see if the venerable Magnum P.I. could benefit from a similar overhaul. Early evidence suggests that as formulaic American dramas go, it’s… sort of business as usual.

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Cold Feet, Series 8, ITV, review - mortality lite

Jasper Rees

How much more is there to say about the thrills and spills of midlife? Cold Feet made a surprisingly nimble return to ITV a couple of series ago after a long furlough. There was little evidence of stiff joints or saggy bottoms in Mike Bullen’s writing as he welcomed a gang of teens to the cast list.

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On Drums... Stewart Copeland!, BBC Four review - no drummer, no rock'n'roll

Marina Vaizey

On Drums was inhabited by a parade of fine-looking young and middle aged multi-ethnic anglophone drummers, all introduced by Stewart Copeland, the American drummer of the Police.

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Catastrophe, Series 4, Channel 4 review - final series starts strongly

Veronica Lee

Some may have thought that Catastrophe (Channel 4) had neared the end of the road with the third series, but I disagree. It was still managing, with some deftness, to pull off the difficult trick of mixing broad humour with serious themes of love, attraction and the difficulties of parenthood.

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Call My Agent!, Netflix review - French movie stars turn out for witty and waspish TV show

Adam Sweeting

Read theartsdesk review of Call My Agent!, Series 4

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Brexit: The Uncivil War, Channel 4 review - Benedict Cumberbatch gets the best tunes

Jasper Rees

One day this all will be over. Give it half a century. In 50 years' time, there will be documentaries in which today’s young, by then old, will explain to generations yet unborn exactly how and why Britain went round the twist in 2016.

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Luther, Series 5, BBC One review - welcome return for Idris Elba's maverick 'tec

Saskia Baron

“Can you breathe?’ “Yeah.” “Shame, that”. Another ne’er-do-well is being banged to rights after a chase through container stacks in the dark. Luther is back, and he hasn’t upgraded his Volvo or changed his tweed coat – but we don’t really mind, do we?

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