mon 07/10/2024

tv

Doctor Who: Twice Upon a Time, BBC One review – a defiantly small and personal goodbye

Owen Richards

And so, with one last speech on the importance of kindness, Peter Capaldi and Steven Moffat bid farewell to the TARDIS. In their final Doctor Who episode, Twice Upon a Time subverted expectations with a small, sweet adventure which valued character above plot.

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300 Years of French and Saunders, BBC1 review - seasonal treat from the sketch duo

Veronica Lee

What joy that Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders were persuaded by the BBC to celebrate their 30 (ish) years as a comedy duo with this programme – and that this sweet confection was shown on Christmas Day.

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Maigret in Montmartre, ITV review - dirty deeds in clubland

Adam Sweeting

Whatever the Waitrose and Morrisons commercials are telling you, as far as TV schedulers are concerned ‘tis the season for murder. Thus a Christmas Maigret has become an instant tradition, with Rowan Atkinson reprising his performance as Georges Simenon’s dolorous detective.

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Peaky Blinders, Series 4 Finale, BBC Two review – Tommy faces his reckoning

Owen Richards

Luca Changretta got his just desserts, Alfie Solomons made a last gasp for the quiet life, and Thomas Shelby revealed his true enemy – Peaky Blinders wrapped up another exciting series in a high-octane and neat finale.

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The League of Gentlemen, BBC2 review - an anniversary to celebrate

Veronica Lee

In 1994, a group of students at Bretton Hall drama school – Jeremy Dyson, Mark Gatiss, Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith – began writing and performing together.

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Judi Dench: My Passion for Trees, BBC One review - an arboreal delight

Marina Vaizey

“I am going to find out how much my trees live, breath, and even communicate. I am Judi Dench, and I have been an actor for 60 years – but I have had another passion ever since I was a little girl: I have adored trees. My six acres are a secret woodland, and my trees are part of my extended life.”

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Agatha Christie's Crooked House, Channel 5 review - actresses chew furniture for fun

Jasper Rees

Crooked House is being released as a film in various territories, but has already been shown on television in America and has now surfaced as a drama on Channel 5 bearing the title Agatha Christie’s Crooked House.

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Witnesses: A Frozen Death finale, BBC Four review - weirdo childbirth cult hits the buffers

Adam Sweeting

It’s remarkable how pervasive the Scandi-noir formula has become, with its penchant for weird and perverted killers, labyrinthine plotting and intriguingly flawed protagonists.

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The Tunnel: Vengeance, Sky Atlantic review - entente not-so-cordiale

Adam Sweeting

For the third and allegedly final time, we hasten back to the Kent coast for another outbreak of cross-Channel crime.

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Bancroft, ITV review - Sarah Parish's very cold case

Jasper Rees

This week we were all meant to be gripped by a bunch of ancient geezers nicking diamonds in Hatton Gardens. The postponement of ITV’s nightly four-part drama – the second of four (four!!) different versions of the infamous burglary – is a bit of a mystery. Now you see it on the cover of the Radio Times.

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