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TV week: Comic relief needed in a heavy week
Conrad Astley25/11/2005
HAVING a go at any member of the royal family, no matter how
minor, is guaranteed to get you a bit of free publicity.
The Queen's Sister (Sunday, Channel 4) has got to
be worth watching if only because it wound the Daily Mail up, and
while the Radio Times prudishly assumes many would give it a wide
berth because of reports it portrays Princess Margaret as a
"bisexual, drug-taking sex maniac," surely that's the only reason
anyone would tune in.
The programme makers were clearly aware of the power of
controversy, but in reality the drama may consist of nothing more
shocking than the princess being taken to a pub.
Hopefully young Harry's going to put more effort into his wayward
lifestyle, then at least our grandkids will have some decent telly
in 50 years time.
Who could resist a programme called
Sleeping With
Teacher (Monday, Channel 4)?
The documentary - part of a series called The Dark Side of Modern
Love - is in fact a million miles away from the Carry On humour
sometimes associated with this taboo subject.
Scenes in the programme, like the nervous 43-year-old sitting next
to his pregnant 16-year-old girlfriend, make uneasy vision.
But anyone wanting a bit of perspective should look no further than
Born In The USSR: 21 Up (Tuesday, ITV1). While
Granada's Seven Up series threw up heartbreaking and heart-warming
stories about British life, the version from across the former iron
curtain is a more relentless affair.
The documentary's subjects all have grim tales to tell and faces
older than their years. While Alonya lives in Georgia and says her
baby died after a misdiagnosis, Almaz and his family live in one
room in Kyrgyzstan, and Siberian orphan Andrei was abandoned by his
adopted American family.
A brief bit of comic relief is provided in
A Midsummer
Night's Dream (Monday, BBC1) the last of the Shakespearean
reworkings.
Johnny Vegas continues his move towards serious acting, but with
talents like Shameless' Dean Lennox Kelly and Blackpool writer
Peter Bowker involved, this should do the Bard proud.
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