This week’s TV offers an insight into life as one of the UK’s last remaining hermits, new gameshow The Tournament and some hearty home cooking with Nadiya Hussein.
The Hermit of Treig – Tuesday, BBC Scotland, 10pm
Ken Smith is one of the UK’s last remaining hermits. For over 40 years, he’s lived without electricity or a phone signal on the banks of a loch in the remote Scottish Highlands. Two years ago, he allowed filmmaker Lizzie MacKenzie to document his solitary lifestyle. The results are rather beautiful. It’s an intimate, meditative film in which MacKenzie gently encourages Smith to explain why he chose to live in almost total isolation. It was, initially at least, a way for him to process some of the grief and trauma he experienced as a young man. But Smith, despite being frustrated by his failing health, seems genuinely happy with how things have turned out. He’s indefatigable.
The Tournament – Monday to Friday, BBC One, 2:15pm
A new daytime gameshow hosted by Alex Scott, The Tournament doesn’t boast any particular angle or gimmick as such. It’s a straightforward, no-frills general knowledge quiz in which eight contestants answer exceedingly simple questions such as: “The Scottish city of Dundee stands at the mouth of which river?” And did Oasis once release an album called “Certainly Feasible”? It’s not a challenging show, and it knows that. It’s a harmlessly generic piece of afternoon filler. And the head-to-head rounds are quite good fun, as the affable contestants have clearly been instructed to stare at each other with the utmost burning intensity. No mean feat when you’re answering questions about Homes Under the Hammer.
Villages By the Sea – Monday, BBC Two, 7pm
Archaeologist Ben Robinson is an enthusiastic, wide-eyed giraffe of a man, and here he is, in this scenic new series, to deliver some engaging history lessons about Britain’s coastal villages. His first port of call is Bamburgh in Northumberland, which is situated just a few miles south of the Scottish border. Overlooked by an impressive hilltop castle, Bamburgh is also home to a seventh century Christian burial ground: as Robinson reveals, we can learn a lot about the diet and lifestyle of ancient Britons by examining the state of their teeth. He also peers into an ancient well and explains how, many moons ago, this humble little village established a prototypical version of the welfare state.
The Tower – Monday to Wednesday, STV, 9pm
ITV’s never-ending slew of crime dramas continues with this three-part series, which begins with a teenage girl and a policeman falling to their deaths from the top of a residential tower block. So far, so gloomy, but this is an obvious cut above your standard ITV cop show fare; it has slightly more grit and depth than the likes of The Long Call. It’s concerned with organised crime, human trafficking and police corruption. The excellent Gemma Whelan delivers a sensitive, understated performance as the DSI tasked with solving this mystery, the details of which are gradually revealed via flashback. NB: I only had access to episode one, so apologies in advance if it all falls apart.
Grand Tours of Scotland’s Rivers – Wednesday, BBC One, 7:30pm
Paul ‘Not Paul Merton’ Murton and his familiar wide-brimmed hat – Crocodile Dunoon? – return for another wander around the watery veins of Scotland. This week’s destination is the River Garry in Perthshire. Our genial guide never shies away from some of the darker tributaries of Scottish history; Garry and its surroundings are beautiful, but this episode serves as a reminder that many of the picturesque environments we all enjoy today were once scarred by weirdness, horror and violence. Something to think about during your next family picnic. But Murton keeps it light for the most part. That’s his M.O. He’s the 21st century Tom Weir, and I can think of no higher praise than that.
Nadiya’s Fast Flavours – Thursday, BBC Two, 8:30pm
The effervescent Nadiya Hussein hosts this new home cooking show, which, as the title suggests, is primarily concerned with the ways in which a dash of extra flavour can improve your everyday meals. Feel free to experiment, people! Her macaroni and cheese recipe – which is seasoned with beefy yeast and Worcestershire sauce – looks delicious. Yes, this is just another aspirational lifestyle series in which a solvent expert dispenses advice from their vast, perfect, sunlit kitchen; but Hussein is such a likeable presence, her programmes never come across as bizarre and vaguely unsettling upper middle-class fantasies a la Nigella Lawson and her almost Lynchian transmissions from a parallel universe. Hussein is only here to spread some hungry cheer.
The Trial of Louise Woodward – Thursday, STV, 9pm
24 years ago, British au pair Louise Woodward was convicted of the involuntary manslaughter of Matthew Eappen, an eight-month-old infant in her care. Woodward, who was 19 at the time, became the subject of intense media scrutiny. The details of her court case were shared both here and in America, where the crime took place. This documentary, which wasn’t available at the time of writing, boasts access to key figures associated with the case. It examines each stage of Woodward’s trial while taking in the aftermath. I’m cautiously recommending this programme, as one hopes – for the sake of all of those directly concerned – that it’s a sensitive and responsible account of a terrible tragedy.
