John Byrne’s TV choices for the week ahead (Dates covered: Sat Sept 13 – Friday 19)
Loads of new shows this week, ranging from sci-fi to old-fashioned all-round entertainment, and the latest incarnation of the brilliant Sheridan Smith. Meanwhile, it's goodbye to Glee, Piers Morgan and The Walking Dead.
Pick of the week
The Leftovers, Tuesdays, Sky Atlantic
In a week full of new shows, this really stands out. Fingers crossed, eh?
From the co-creator of Lost comes a brand new drama based on the bestselling novel by Tom Perrotta. Three years after 140 million people – 2% of the world’s population – disappeared without trace, focus falls on the small town of Mapleton, New York, as those left behind attempt to get on with their lives in a world that has utterly changed.
At the centre of the series is the Garvey family. Police chief Kevin (Justin Theroux) must deal with escalating conflict in the town, as well as addressing his own personal traumas and tackling the rebellious streak awakened in his daughter Jill (Margaret Qualley) by the ‘Departure’. His son Tom (Chris Zylka), meanwhile, has left town having seen the event as a wake-up call to take action.
In this opening episode, the strained community weighs the pros and cons of a ‘Heroes Day’ tribute to the local ‘Departed’. As Kevin foresees the trouble it could cause, he clashes with the town’s mayor, Lucy Warburton (Amanda Warren), who’s championing the event. Kevin faces further challenges at home when Jill becomes lost in a cloud of apathy with her friend Aimee (Emily Meade).
Trailer Time: Warning! Contains strong language
Star of the week
Sheridan Smith
Cilla, Mondays, UTV
Sheridan Smith's star just keeps on rising – but playing legendary Liverpool singer Cilla Black could be her crowning moment. Already she's been praised, by none other than Cilla herself, who has described Smith's portrayal of her as 'so believable'
Only 33, Sheridan Smith has enjoyed an upward trajectory in her carer since her first television appearance in 1999, when she played Matilda in ITV's Dark Ages. She's known for her roles in the comedy series Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps, Gavin & Stacey,and Benidorm. She won the BAFTA TV Award for Best Actress, for her role in the 2012 five-parter Mrs Biggs.
Smith is also a critically acclaimed West End theatre actress, having won two Laurence Olivier Awards in consecutive years – and now she's the star of Cilla, a three-part drama by acclaimed writer Jeff Pope.
Long before she became a Saturday night dtaple when presenting Blind Date, Cilla Black was a very successful singer. Cilla charts her rise to fame, the atmosphere of promise and excitement as the Merseybeat music scene, and a time of tight-fitting skirts, stiletto heels, and beehives. Gear, fab, groovy!
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Starting this week
Legends, Wednesdays, Sky 1
Sean Bean (Game of Thrones) is back on the TV, head intact and all. The actor has snuffed it some 20 times in his various film and TV roles, but is alive and well in this trippy thriller based on Robert Littell's bestseller. Brought to life by executive producer Howard Gordon, the man behind 24 and Homeland, Legends sees Bean take on leading man duties as Martin Odum, a deep-cover operative working for the FBI.
He's basically a chameleon, adopting a dressing box of disguises - or to use FBI speak, 'legends' - to catch out America's Most Wanted, starting in this first episode with a group of domestic terrorists.
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Also starting this week:
Sunday Night at the Palladium, Sundays, UTV
An old British TV tradition gets revived here. Some of the UK’s best-loved comics and entertainers will host one show each and introduce some of the biggest stars from music and comedy onto one of the world’s most famous stages. There will also be specialty acts from around the world plus surprise guests.
Mount Pleasant, Tuesdays, Sky Living
The warm and witty comedy drama returns for a fourth season, featuring Sally Lindsay, Daniel Ryan, Samantha Womack and a colourful ensemble.
The Gadget Buzz, Thursdays, TV3
Four tech-savvy reporters Laura Wood, Joe Donnelly, Keith Nolan and Georgie Gavin preview and review the latest gadgets, and broadcast the latest technology news.
Ending this week
Glee, Thursdays, Sky 1
Change is in the air as the Gleeks head in new directions ahead of their sixth and final outing. Having conquered Broadway, LA is now calling for Rachel as she spends time with a TV writer who has been commissioned to write a pilot based on the singer’s life. But when the first draft isn’t quite what Rachel expects, she must find a way to show Mary who she really is. Sam, meanwhile, wins his dream job at a steamy audition that tests his commitment to Mercedes, who is busy preparing for her nationwide album launch tour of shopping malls with Brittany as her backing dancer.
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Also ending this week:
The Walking Dead, Fridays, RTÉ Two
As multiple paths collide in what should be a corpse-filled season four closer, Rick comes face to face with sheer brutality. Will he and the group have what it takes to survive?
Women on the Inside, Mondays, RTÉ One
Second and final part of this two-part documentary series filmed behind the walls of Ireland’s women prisons and depicts life inside, allowing us a rare glimpse into a world so few outsiders get to see.
Tumble, Saturdays, BBC One
In this Grand Final, six finalists will perform a series of challenges and routines including the dreaded vault, and the viewers will vote for their favourite celebrity to win Tumble.
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The Village, Sundays, BBC One
John Middleton is still struggling to speak, while Bert grows more hurt and confused by rumours of his Mother’s betrayal with Bill Gibby.
Piers Morgan’s Life Stories, Fridays, UTV
In this last show of the series Morgan will be interviewing Bear Grylls as he reflects on his life and career as one of the most famous TV adventurers and all round action man. Could be interesting, this, as he's led quite a colourful life since leaving County Down at the age of four.
Drama of the week
Boardwalk Empire, Saturdays, Sky Atlantic
The multi-award-winning drama enters its fifth and final season. Following season four’s bloody conclusion, the series jumps forward seven years into 1931 as the country struggles to cope with the Great Depression and the end of Prohibition looms. While awash with memories of growing up in 1884 Atlantic City, Nucky (Steve Buscemi) sets his sights on a post-Prohibition future as he joins Sally Wheet (Patricia Arquette) in Cuba and forges an alliance with a liquor producer.
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Comedy of the week
Scotland in a Day, Thursday, Channel 4
As Scotland votes to decide its future, this one-off comedy mockumentary turns the spotlight on a nation poised on the brink between triumph and disaster. Created, written by and starring Jack Docherty, all Scottish life is here: pensioners, toddlers, deep-thinkers, nutters, landowners, entrepreneurs and party animals - everyone from the passionately political to characters doing their best to avoid the big issues. And away from the vote, on this one day in September, Scots still get married, have babies, party, celebrate, mark the passing of their loved ones and go about their daily lives. While the eyes of the world are on Caledonia, Scotland in a Day features contributions from a range of comedic voices and discovers there's more to Scotland than just 'yes' or 'no'.
Documentary of the week
Ar Intinn Eile (An Irish State of Mind), Wednesday, TG4
This is a three-part documentary series about how mental illness and psychiatry have shaped the nation. For the first time, an up-to-date, well researched and balanced telling of the story of Ireland’s treatment of mental illness comes to us from one of Ireland’s foremost historical documentary making teams.Episode one covers the 18th Century - an era of reform that saw the dawn of a policy of institutionalising the insane and the beginning of early medical classifications of madness. It will examine the lack of proper diagnosis, treatment and even medical understanding of mental illness in the 18th Century. It also focuses on the work and legacy of Jonathan Swift and his posthumous establishment of St Patrick’s Hospital for Imbeciles in 1747, the first hospital for the treatment of mental illness in Ireland, and one of the first in the world.
Film of the Week
Moon, Saturday, RTÉ Two
This 2009 British science fiction drama is quite superb. It follows Sam Bell (Sam Rockwell), a man who experiences a personal crisis as he nears the end of a three-year solitary stint mining helium-3 on the far side of the Moon. Kevin Spacey voices Sam's robot companion, GERTY.
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