29 May 2022 43
THE BEST TV FROM AMAZON AND BEYOND... MONDAY 30 MAY
Jubilees on BFI Player
If looking back on the
Queen’s reign makes you
want to immerse yourself
even further in royal history,
you can witness previous
celebrations in this free
collection of vintage footage
(available from today).
As well as revisiting Her
Majesty’s silver jubilee in
1977, it covers George V’s
equivalent milestone in 1935
and even has glimpses of
Victoria’s diamond jubilee
in 1897. Talking Pictures TV
nods to this week’s festivities
with a 1984 documentary,
The Queen And Her
Ceremonial Horses (Friday,
1.05pm), and a 1955 film,
John And Julie (Thursday,
6.10pm). This comedy about
two kids sneaking off to see
the coronation evokes its era
with appearances by Peter
Sellers and Sid James.
Edward PorterOliver! (Sky Cinema
Greats, 11.50am)
Ask a cinephile to pick the
best film of 1968 and there
is a good chance you will be
told it was 2001 — A Space
Odyssey (which is on Sky
Cinema Greats today at 8pm).
But the year’s winner of the
best-picture Oscar was this
film of Lionel Bart’s musical
take on Oliver Twist. It may
not be quite as ambitious as
Kubrick’s sci-fi classic, but it
has its own grand spectacles,
along with an abundant
jaunty spirit. Ron Moody gives
a renowned performance
as Fagin, mentoring Mark
Lester’s Oliver and Jack Wild’s
Artful Dodger. Dir: Carol ReedChef (Sky Cinema
Comedy, 6pm)
The story of a restaurant cook
who goes back to basics by
running a food truck, this
comic drama was itself a
change of pace for its writer,
director and star, Jon Favreau.
On a break from popcorn
movies, he rustled up a simple,
warm-spirited film. (2014)
Edward PorterAll human life: Eclair (C4, 5.30pm) Wild and Lester (SCG, 11.50am)FILM CHOICE
ON DEMAND
DI Ray (ITV Hub)
What with the popular Vigil,
The Bodyguard and Line of
Duty, the name Jed Mercurio
now promises a certain high
level of production values. So,
when a new series from JM’s
production team drops and
looks a little “daytime budget”
standard, you can understand
One Bullet In Belize
(Discovery +)
It’s rare to watch a crime doc
before a trial has taken place
but that’s the case with this
film about socialite Jasmine
Hartin, the ex-wife of British
billionaire Andrew Ashcroft
and due to stand trial this year
for the 2021 killing of a Belize
police chief. Hartin says the
shooting was an accident, the
victim’s family say cover-up.
Andrew MaleDas Boot (Sky/NoW)
This wartime drama is a
curious affair. Now in its third
season, a new young Wolfpack
team readies U-949 for battle
and Royal Navy officer Jack
Swinburne (Ray Stevenson)
prepares for revenge. There
are conspiracies afoot, a hunt
for stolen gold and the promise
of a great showdown in the
Battle of the Atlantic, yet, at its
heart, the show really wants to
be a domestic period drama.Patti Cake$ (Disney+)
A white New Jersey woman
(Danielle Macdonald) trying
to make it as a rapper, this
drama’s heroine faces
questions about authenticity,
and you could take a similar
view of the movie itself.
Behind its show of realism,
Geremy Jasper’s film is a
slightly corny feelgood tale.
Why object, though, when the
whole thing is so energetic
and entertaining? (2017) EPa certain level of audience
disappointment. However,
this is good. Parminder Nagra
brings a haunted uncertainty
to her role as Det Inspector
Rachita Ray, promoted to
head up a Culturally Specific
Homicide (CSH) team that
is rife with institutionalised
racism. Writer Maya Sondhi’s
dialogue has a prosaic
believability and each episode
unfolds with a meticulous
slow-burn intensity.Three little birds, singing sweet songs: puffins gather for a blether (BBC2, 8pm)
Springwatch (BBC2, 8pm)
Chris Packham and Michaela
Strachan are back at their
Wild Ken Hill base for the
next three weeks as the BBC
engages in its annual attempt
to bring the glories of the
season to our screens. It’s a
special place, 4,000 farming
acres in Norfolk, maintained
by rewilding, and its happy
bee colony has now been
rigged with cameras so
that viewers can peer in.
Packham promises “a great
story about the breeding
journeys of puffins”; Megan
McCubbin travels across
the north of England; Iolo
Williams is on Mull with 22
pairs of white-tailed eagles;
and we are promised
“mindfulness moments” in
every show, 90 seconds of
the purest nature. Or you
could just switch off your
television and go outside.
Helen StewartCroatia — Defining A Nation
(Fifa+)
Slaven Bilic, the former West
Ham player and manager,
is the most familiar face in
an absorbing documentary
about Croatia’s 1990s golden
generation and the links
between sport, nationality and
politics. Bilic and midfielder
Zvonimir Boban (captain of
the 1998 World Cup team) are
the main interviewees as the
film chronicles how football
symbolised Croatian identity
as federal Yugoslavia broke
up and hostility to Serbia
turned into war. Evocative
clips show patriotic pride
and inter-state tension on
display in international
fixtures, rivalries between
Serbian and Croatian clubs,
and hooligans’ battles.
John Dugdale
Drawers Off — The Big
Naked Painting Challenge
(C4, 5.30pm)
The first series exhausted the
Venn diagram that contained
both “talented amateur
artists” and “exhibitionists
inclined to get their clothes off
for television”, so Jenny Eclair
has forked out for a life model
for season two of her fun
competition. Phew.Big Antique Adventure
(C5, 7pm)
Susan Calman, the queen of
Channel 5, straddles the week
with a delve into the world
of antiques, aided by Paul
Martin. “I’ve got just five days
to cram as much knowledge
and useful information as you
can get into a small Scottish
presenter,” she says.
Helen StewartSecrets Of The Queen’s
Coronation (More4, 10pm)
This documentary digs deep
into the pageantry to show
exactly how events of June 2,
1953, came together. Most
interesting is the testimony
from Baronness Willoughby
De Eresby, a maid of honour,
and Andrew Parker Bowles,
page to the Lord Chancellor.
Victoria SegalCRITICS’ CHOICE
Kings and queens
on screen