"Back to Life," back to reality...
It's been rather hot outside. Here's some of the television you may have missed.
Hello,
After a little break, Worth Watching is back.
Here’s a few things you should be keeping on your radar:
Spielberg (Sky Atlantic / Now TV) - This documentary on the filmmaker Steven Spielberg and his work is absolutely well worth your time. It's so brimming with clips and anecdotes about some of his most well known films (Jurassic Park! Jaws! Indiana Jones! E.T! Close Encounters!), that you will barely notice the two and a half hour running time. I mean, I certainly didn’t. What I did not appreciate until I saw this documentary was how Spielberg literally spent years trying to prove to the Hollywood system that his films were Oscar worthy, but was shut out because they were judged to be too commercially successful to be art.
Homecoming (Netflix) - Beyoncé’s Coachella performance lit up our social media feeds just over a year ago. If you watched it first time round, watch it again. This Netflix documentary is one of the best concerts I have seen on television in recent years (the energy pushes through the screen). You don’t even need to be a fan to watch it. A lot has been written about the performance, some of the best words coming from Gerrick D. Kennedy for the LA Times: “What made Beyoncé’s Coachella showing so radical was her mission to celebrate the black art that has long influenced popular culture even though its architects—especially the female ones—haven’t always been given their due from white America.”
Game of Thrones (Sky Atlantic) - I don’t need to tell you that this show is on if you are already a fan, but it’s actually more accessible right now than you might think if you've never watched. And you don’t need to start from the top. Why? The fight for the Throne has taken a backseat whilst an army of the dead starts marching from the North. I’ve also written a blaggers guide for the Radio Times about where we are. Next week's episode is anticipated to be one of the most intense battle scenes ever to be shown on television. The reaction on social media is going to be ridiculous and amazing. Watch it first thing on Monday morning before you go to work (no, seriously).
Back to Life (BBC Three) - There’s so many press reviews calling this comedy “the new Fleabag” but do not compare and contrast -- Back to Life deserves to be appreciated on its own terms. Daisy Haggard stars as Miri, a woman who moves in with her parents after serving an 18 year prison sentence for a crime we aren’t told about. A great deal of the comedy comes from the relationship she has (and we all have) with our parents and relatives, from quips about garden waste to gentrification (“Everyone is terrified we’re going to be the next Margate.” / “What happened to Margate?” / “Hipsters.”) But it is also deeper than that, a six-part meditation on whether we can ever really move on from our past and the consequences of our mistakes.
We reviewed this in a bit more detail on yesterday’s Must Watch podcast, which you can subscribe to on BBC Sounds. We also speak to Daisy Haggard too. The episodes are broadcast on Mondays from 2:45pm and then available to download afterwards.
Oh and this might interest you… I interviewed Black Mirror’s Charlie Brooker and Annabel Jones at the BFI Radio Times TV Festival a week ago and they revealed a lot about what they cut from Bandersnatch and what they wish they added in. You can read about it in the Radio Times. Sample Brooker quote: “The pay-off for choosing the cereal, later on, when you hit Dad with the ash tray and kill him, was going to be cutting to a shot of Frosties or Sugar Puffs being splattered with blood.”
And a show that I don’t think is worth your time…
Chimerica (Channel 4) - I really wanted to like this four part drama about China and America (hence the title!), especially as it is a TV adaption of the much celebrated play, but it just feels so jarring and just that little bit too pretentious. However, it is an easy watch if you really have four hours to fill. Do any of us have four hours to fill?
And finally… I just want to say thank you for all of your donations for my London Marathon attempt this Sunday. We’ve raised more than £2500 for Bowel Cancer UK, who help research and create awareness of what the symptoms are of this disease. The target has been pushed slightly however now to £2750, so any last-minute donations would be hugely appreciated. Thank you.
I’ll let you know how well that goes on next week *starts sweating from fear*
Oh and the coverage for the London Marathon starts at 8.30am on BBC Two, before crossing over to BBC One at 10.
Have a great week.
Scotty x