Daily Express Thursday, August 8, 2019 39
DX1ST
televisionexpress
apparently it might be the work of
Italian master Giorgio de Chirico.
If it is, we’re looking at nearer
£50,000.
Its owner had it sent to Rome to
be valued more than 20 years ago,
and a panel of experts from the De
Chirico Foundation were very
nearly unanimous in believing it to
be genuine.
Very nearly, however, wasn’t
enough. Crucially, one expert
pointed out a detail he felt was
inconsistent with the artist’s other
works.
Specifically, a walnut in the
bottom right-hand corner.
Honestly, some people are so
picky.
Shona (Sharon Horgan), keen to
ensure her fragile sibling remains
on the road to recovery.
Work-wise, Aine teaches English
as a foreign language, a job she
clearly loves, but in her private
moments we can see she’s also
desperately lonely, and it’s
loneliness that’s one of the show’s
key themes.
Finally, the painting under
investigation in this week’s FAKE
OR FORTUNE (BBC1, 9pm) was
picked up in a junk shop for £1.
Personally I’d have haggled, as I
think it’s hideous: a pile of random
fruit in a field (yep, not even a
bowl). But this only goes to show
what a numpty I am, because
leaving school with virtually no
qualifications, so it is extraord-
inarily moving to witness the
encouragement he gives to a
couple of students in particular,
recognising the struggles they face
but convinced they could achieve
great things.
Straight afterwards on the same
side, there’s a fine new comedy-
drama called THIS WAY UP (C4,
10pm), written by and starring the
excellent Aisling Bea.
We first meet Aisling’s
wisecracking character Aine as
she’s checking out of rehab, where
she’s been recuperating after a
“teeny little nervous breakdown”.
Bringing her home is big sister
it’s entirely school-themed, with
the entrepreneurs posing as
teaching assistants and only a
handful of staff knowing the truth.
First up, millionaire marketing
guy Paul Rowlett helps out at a
cash-strapped secondary school
in Hertfordshire, in the guise of
“Mr Williams”.
Paul was never very academic,
T
ODAY, if you’ve no
objections, I’d like to set
you a TV-themed
challenge. Namely, to
get through the whole of
episode one of THE
SECRET TEACHER (C4, 9pm)
without sobbing.
Think you can manage that?
Well, best of luck. I have to say it
had me in bits.
The idea of the series is much
like the long defunct Secret
Millionaire, where wealthy
entrepreneurs used to make
generous donations to worthwhile
but impoverished communities
after mingling incognito for some
weeks. The difference this time is
Secret lesson in emotion
Mike Ward
previews
tonight’s TV
DID YOU KNOW? The iconic Welcome To Fabulous Las
Vegas sign which has stood on Las Vegas Boulevard
since 1959 sits about four miles south of the city
limits, in the, technically, separate town of Paradise.
PICKS OF THE DAY
Documentary: Vegas 24/7,
Channel 5, 9pm
Documentary series about Las Vegas
are nothing new but with so many
stories to tell, they never seem dull.
This one meets some of the
characters and hears the tales that
make the gambling capital one of the
most fun-filled cities on the planet.
A high-rolling millionaire arrives from
Texas to hit the roulette tables and
gamble tens of thousands of dollars
- and loses spin after spin.
Meanwhile, theatre impresario David
Saxe searches for new talent for his
long-running production Vegas! The
Show, while over at a pool party the
staff are topless and spending
thousands of dollars on girls and
champagne is just a normal day.
Soap: Emmerdale, ITV, 7pm & 8pm
Robert has been trying his best in recent times to
persuade a reluctant Aaron to go ahead with the
surrogacy. But as they attempt to come together and
move onwards, they hear Natalie’s having second
thoughts – could that prompt Robert to come clean?
Elsewhere, Jai feigns confidence and Kerry decides
on a fundraiser but Amy has worries about how good
an idea it actually is.
Nature: Serengeti, BBC1, 8pm
The aftermath of the devastating fire has left a
blackened, smoking wasteland, but rain soon brings
hope to the scorched earth. Kike the cheetah and wild
dog leader Jasari are both teaching their cubs how to
survive on their own, only to be interrupted by a
grieving giraffe. A baby elephant struggles in the
flooded river, while Bakari returns when his family are
threatened by a rival baboon troop.
Film: About Time, Film4,
6.40pm
A British rom-com drama
from the mind of the
brilliant Richard Curtis –
bliss for a Thursday night.
In terms of the storyline,
a single man gets the
chance to turn his
unhappy life around when
his father reveals that
they both have the ability
to travel through time and
change their personal
history. He uses his
new-found talent to try to
improve his love life and
win the heart of an
American woman he has
fallen for. Domhnall
Gleeson and Rachel
McAdams (right) star.
Documentary: Broke,
BBC2, 9pm
While the sights and
sounds of Las Vegas are
celebrated on Channel 5,
the cold, hard reality of
life in Britain is on show
on BBC2. In the last in the
series we meet nurse
Lorraine, who has not had
a pay rise in eight years
and with inflation and the
rising cost of living, she
earns thousands less
after tax than in 2010.
Also profiled is Kevin
(left), from North Ayrshire,
who works more than
100 hours a week for
four businesses yet still
delivers takeaways at
night to earn extra money.
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