The best UK TV to watch this week from a Deborah James doc to Scared of the Dark

Plus Britain's Got Talent returns with a new judge

There's a great week of telly ahead. (Sky/Channel 4/ITV/BBC/Prime Video)
There's a great week of telly ahead. (Sky/Channel 4/ITV/BBC/Prime Video)

On UK TV this coming week the achievements of cancer campaigner Deborah James are marked in a powerful new documentary, while Saturday nights get an injection of razzmatazz thanks to the return of Britain’s Got Talent.

Plus ITV1 brings a certain amount of controversy to the schedules with its three-part dramatisation of the crimes of Raoul Moat.

Saturday, 15 April/Sunday, 16 April – 8.00pm/7.45pm: Britain’s Got Talent | ITV1

This image and the information contained herein is strictly embargoed until 21.00 Monday 10th April 2023

From Thames

Britain’s Got Talent: SR16 on ITV1 and ITVX

Pictured: Ant & Dec and Alesha Dixon, Amanda Holden, Simon Cowell, Bruno Tonioli.

This photograph is (C) Thames and can only be reproduced for editorial purposes directly in connection with the programme or event mentioned above, or ITV plc. This photograph must not be manipulated [excluding basic cropping] in a manner which alters the visual appearance of the person photographed deemed detrimental or inappropriate by ITV plc Picture Desk.  This photograph must not be syndicated to any other company, publication or website, or permanently archived, without the express written permission of ITV Picture Desk. Full Terms and conditions are available on the website www.itv.com/presscentre/itvpictures/terms

For further information please contact:
james.hilder@itv.com
Ant & Dec and Alesha Dixon, Amanda Holden, Simon Cowell, Bruno Tonioli (Thames)

Usually, all the pre-broadcast BGT talk would be of the more eccentric hopefuls. But this year, all eyes are on the judging panel, thanks to the departure of David Walliams (who recently apologised for “disrespectful comments” made about participants in 2020) and the arrival of Bruno Tonioli.

Read more: What happened to the winners of BGT?

Already, we’ve had press reports of a prank by Simon Cowell having backfired when the Syco boss pretended to be hurt by a crossbow arrow fired by the former Strictly judge. But we can now assess for ourselves the impact made by Bruno thanks to a double bill of episodes on Saturday and Sunday. That’s the weekend sorted, then…

Saturday, 15 April, 9.25pm: Lyra | C4

Editorial use only. MANDATORY CREDIT: JESS LOWE  /NO SALES
Mandatory Credit: Photo by JESS LOWE/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock (10214306c)
Belfast Journalist Lyra McKee poses outside the Sunflower Bar on Union Street in Belfast, Northern Ireland, Britain, 19 May 2017 (issued 19 April 2019). According to media reports, Lyra McKee was killed during riots in Londonderry (Derry) on 18 April 2019. Police Service of Northern Ireland said that McKee was allegedly shot while reporting on clashes with dissident republican rioters.
Journalist Lyra McKee killed in Derry, Belfast, United Kingdom - 19 May 2017
Lyra McKee (JESS LOWE/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock)

When investigative journalist Lyra McKee was shot dead by Irish Dissident Republicans at the age of 29, tributes were paid across the world, with US Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi even seen holding a press conference and a minute’s silence in her memory.

Read more: Lyra McKee killed in suspected 'New IRA' terrorist shooting

Now, the journalist’s close friend, documentary-maker Alison Millar has used salvaged voice recordings and dictaphone recordings to help tell McKee’s story in her own words, while family members talk of their grief and the quest for justice that followed her death.

Hilary Rodham Clinton, who serves as executive producer on the project said: “With the Good Friday Agreement under threat, the film could not be more timely and is an important watch for anyone concerned about peace in Northern Ireland.”

Sunday, 16 April – Tuesday, 18 April, 9.00pm: The Hunt for Raoul Moat | ITV1

WORLD PRODUCTIONS FOR
ITV1

THE HUNT FOR RAOUL MOAT
EPISODE 3 



Pictured: LEE INGLEBY as Neil Adams, VINEETA RISHI as Nisha Roberts and SONYA CASSIDY as Diane Barnwell..

This photograph is (C) ITV Plc and can only be reproduced for editorial purposes directly in connection with the programme or event mentioned above, or ITV plc. This photograph must not be manipulated [excluding basic cropping] in a manner which alters the visual appearance of the person photographed deemed detrimental or inappropriate by ITV plc Picture Desk.  This photograph must not be syndicated to any other company, publication or website, or permanently archived, without the express written permission of ITV Picture Desk. Full Terms and conditions are available on the website www.itv.com/presscentre/itvpictures/terms

For further information please contact:
patrtick.smith@itv.com
LEE INGLEBY as Neil Adams, VINEETA RISHI as Nisha Roberts and SONYA CASSIDY as Diane Barnwell (ITV Plc)

In lesser hands, this could have been a schlocky, exploitative affair, but screenwriter Kevin Sampson has done an excellent job in shedding light on the human tragedies that lay behind Britain’s biggest real-life manhunt.

Read more: The Hunt for Raoul Moat: Paul ‘Gazza’ Gascoigne’s bizarre involvement in the case

Lee Ingleby is at the centre of events over the three parts (which are airing over three nights) in his role as Neil Adamson, the senior Northumbria police officer leading the race against time to apprehend Raoul Moat (Matt Stokoe), the man recently released from prison who has now embarked on an horrendous killing spree armed with a shotgun…

Sunday, 16 April, 9.00pm: Scared of the Dark | Channel 4

Pictured (L-R): Donna Preston, Nicola Adams, Chloe Burrows, Chris Eubank, Danny Dyer, Paul Gascoinge, Chria MacCausland, Max George, Scareltt Moffatt Scared of the Dark (Channel 4)
Pictured (L-R): Donna Preston, Nicola Adams, Chloe Burrows, Chris Eubank, Danny Dyer, Paul Gascoinge, Chria MacCausland, Max George, Scareltt Moffatt Scared of the Dark (Channel 4)

We've heard of celebrities giving up the limelight but not light altogether. Yet this is the challenge facing the stars entering a pitch-black bunker in Scared of the Dark to see how they fare over eight days in complete darkness.

Even before an episode had aired, this experimental game show was attracting attention, thanks to the actions of one its participants: Chris Eubank. How long the ex-boxer lasts remains to be seen, but he'll be sharing his living space with the likes of Paul Gascoigne, Nicola Adams and Scarlett Moffatt, and competing to win items that'll make their lives easier. Danny Dyer hosts.

Monday, 17 April, 9.00pm: Deborah James: Bowelbabe In Her Own Words | BBC2

Storyville: Bowelbabe: In Her Own Words,17-04-2023,Deborah James,@Bowelbabe,@Bowelbabe
Deborah James (@Bowelbabe)

Filmed during the final months of her life, Dame Deborah James talks candidly about the realities of living with bowel cancer, her tireless campaigning and the effect her illness has had on those closest to her.

As such, it’s an affecting watch, especially in light of the fact that we already know its ending, with James having died at her parents’ house in Woking in June 2022.

Read more: The stars we lost in 2022

But what haven’t yet been viewed by the public are the never-before-seen mobile phone clips, footage from which are offered up here, alongside James’s collection of TikToks and Instagram videos.

Wednesday, 19 April, 9.00pm: Painting Birds with Jim and Nancy Moir | Sky Arts

Painting Birds with Jim and Nancy Moir (Sky)
Painting Birds with Jim and Nancy Moir (Sky)

Ornithology and comedy – an unlikely combination? It may feel like an odd mix, but then comic Jim Moir has never been one to conform to expectations.

Read more: Jim Moir has given up his Vic Reeves alter ego

And his latest series proves to be both charming and entertaining, with Jim seen in the company of his wife Nancy venturing out into the countryside with the aim of creating an original piece of bird art while in the company of twitchers, conservation experts and artists. A feature-length documentary, A Brush with Art, which also features Jim, follows on and delves into the connection between comedy and art.

Friday, 21 April: Dead Ringers episodes 1-6 | Amazon Prime Video

Rachel Weisz stars in Dead Ringers. (Prime Video)
Rachel Weisz stars in Dead Ringers. (Prime Video)

David Cronenberg’s 1988 thriller is reworked and gender-flipped for a new generation with Rachel Weisz playing the double-lead role of Elliot and Beverly Mantle, twin gynaecologists who’ll be seen performing ethically questionable procedures on infertile women.

All six episodes of the psychosexual thriller will drop at the same time, a move that will no doubt result in viewers getting caught up in the siblings’ mission to push the boundaries of medical ethics – no matter what it takes. Expect dark humour and subversive body horror.

Watch: Rachel Weisz on playing twins in Dead Ringers