TV Picks: 4-10 July 2011 (Dynamo: Magician Impossible, Falling Skies, The Killing, Law & Order: UK, New Tricks, Nurse Jackie, Shark Tank, Teen Wolf, Tonight's The Night, etc.)

Pick of the Week: THE KILLING (USA) - Thursday, Channel 4, 9PM

MONDAY 4th

Stuck On Sheep Mountain (BBC1, 4.25pm) Series where two families sample life as Victorian hill farmers in Snowdonia. (1/5)
Pointless Celebrities (BBC1, 5.15pm) Celebrity run of the daytime gameshow. Hosted by Alexander Armstrong. (1/5)
University Challenge (BBC2, 8pm) Series 18 of the quiz show for competing universities. Presented by Jeremy Paxman. (1/37)
Antiques Master (BBC2, 8.30pm) Series 2 of the show where contestants put their antiques knowledge to the test. (1/12)
PICK OF THE DAY New Tricks (BBC1, 9pm) Series 8 of the detective drama about retired sleuths working present-day cases. Starring Amanda Redman, James Bolam, Dennis Waterman, Alun Armstrong & Trevor Bannister. (1/10)
Embarassing Bodies: Teen Special (Channel 4, 9pm) Spin-off series focusing on teenagers with medical problems. (1/4)
Dirty Sexy Things (E4, 10pm) Series about fashion photographers. (1/8)
Steven Seagal: Lawman (5USA, 10pm) Series following movie legend Steven Seagal, who moonlights as a sheriff's deputy in Louisiana.

TUESDAY 5th

Dragons' Den: Canada (Dave, 7pm) Series 1 of the Canadian version of the business gameshow.
Mexican Food Made Simple (Channel 5, 7.30pm) Cooking show specializing on Mexican cuisine. (1/8)
Restoration Home (BBC2, 8pm) Series where people renovate their homes. Presented by Caroline Quentin. (1/6)
Monster Moves (Channel 5, 8pm) Series explaining how enormous objects are moved and transported, beginning with a look at the USS Kittiwake. (1/6)
Next Door Nightmares (Sky1, 8pm) Documentary on the mediators who settle neighbourhood disputes. (1/3)
Sextuplets: The Little Lambs (ITV1, 9pm) Documentary on a couple who had sextuplets born three months prematurely. Narrated by Hugh Bonneville.
PICK OF THE DAY Falling Skies (FX, 9pm) Season 1 of the US alien invasion drama. Starring Noah Wyle, Will Patton & Moon Bloodgood. (1/10) [reviews here]
Undercover Boss (Channel 4, 9pm) Series 3 of the show going behind-the-scenes with adult retailer Ann Summers. (1/6)
Improvisation My Dear Watson (Dave, 10pm) Comedy gameshow in front of a greenscreen. Hosted by Mark Watson.
True Stories: Voices From The Killing Fields (More4, 10pm) Documentary on the Cambodian genocide of 1975-1979.
Nurse Jackie (Sky Atlantic, 10pm) Season 3 of the US medical comedy-drama. Starring Edie Falco, Peter Facinelli, Merritt Weaver & Eve Best. (1/12)

WEDNESDAY 6th

Dragons' Den: Ireland (Dave, 7pm) Series 1 of the Irish version of the business gameshow.
PICK OF THE DAY Jo Frost: Extreme Parental Guidance (Channel 4, 8pm) Series 2 of the show about parental advice. Hosted by Jo "Supernanny" Frost. (1/8)
The Removal Men: Pickfords (Channel 5, 8pm) Fly-on-the-wall series looking at removal men. (1/6)
Afghanistan: The Unknown Country (BBC2, 9pm) Documentary on the country, culture and people of Afghanistan.
The Perfect Suit (BBC4, 9pm) Documentary on the humble suit. Presented by Alastair Sooke.

THURSDAY 7th

Shark Tank (Dave, 7pm) Season 1 of the American version of business gameshow Dragons' Den.
Teen Wolf (Sky Living, 8pm) Season 1 of the US supernatural drama about a high school werewolf. Starring Tyler Poser. (1/12) [pilot review]
PICK OF THE DAY The Killing (Channel 4, 9pm) US remake of the award-winning Danish murder-mystery drama. Starring Mireille Enos, Joel Kinnaman, Billy Campbell & Michelle Forbes. (1 & 2/13) [reviews here]
Dynamo: Magician Impossible (Watch, 9pm) Magic series with street magician Dynamo.
New Cowboy Builders (Channel 5, 9pm) Series 5 of the show investigating bad builders. Hosted by Dominic Littlewood & Melinda Messenger.
Candy Bar Girls (Channel 5, 10pm) Documentary series about a lesbian nightclub in the heart of London's Soho district. (1/6)
iTunes Festival 2011 (ITV2, 10pm) Music festival featuring Coldplay, the Manic Street Preachers, Rumer, Katy B, Noah & The Whale, and The Arctic Monkeys. Hosted by Dave Berry & Alexa Chung.

FRIDAY 8th

Danger: Diggers At Work (Channel 5, 8pm) Documentary series looking at a digger hire firm. (1/6)
PICK OF THE DAY T In The Park 2011 (BBC3, 8pm) Coverage of Scotland's biggest music festival in Balado, Kinross-shire. Hosted by Edith Bowman & Reggie Yates.
Troubadors: The Rise Of The Singer-Songwriter (BBC4, 9pm) Music documentary.

SATURDAY 9th

PICK OF THE DAY Tonight's The Night (BBC1, 7.10pm) Series 3 of the wish-fulfillment show, featuring Dolly Parton, Wanted & Strictly Come Dancing's Artem Chigvintsev. Hosted by John Barrowman. (1/6)

SUNDAY 10th

PICK OF THE DAY Law & Order: UK (ITV1, 9pm) Series 5 of the cop/legal drama. Starring Bradley Walsh, Jamie Bamber, Harriet Walter, Dominic Rowan, Peter Davison, Freema Agyeman & James Fox. (1/6)
Grand Designs Australia (More4, 9pm) Australian version of the home deign show. (1/9)
Hunting Britain's Most Wanted (More4, 10pm) Documentary on Scotland Yard's Extradition Unit as they try to catch notorious criminals.

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Poll Result: who is your favourite chat show host?

Last week I asked you to name your favourite chat show host, and the results are now in! There were 51 votes and here's the outcome:

NO VOTES

Alan Carr (above-right), Chelsea Lately, Jimmy Fallon (above-left), Jimmy Kimmel, Jay Leno, Larry King, Craig Kilborn & Paul O'Grady.

ONE VOTE

Alan Titchmarsh* (2.50%) for his daytime ITV chat show.

6th – David Letterman, Ellen DeGeneres,
Piers Morgan & Stephen Colbert (2.56%)

A surprisingly low entry for David Letterman, who's one of the big-name US chat show hosts; a surprise show of support for Ellen DeGeneres (one of very few female chat show hosts); a slightly disappointing show of love for Stephen Colbert (the fact his show's not airing in the UK may be to blame); and a nod for Britain's own Piers Morgan now he's taken over from Larry King on CNN. (Americans still haven't realized he's an oily, sycophantic rat.)

5th – Conan O'Brien (5.13%)

In many ways more famous for the furor over his Tonight Show stint, which saw him replaced by his own predecessor, Jay Leno, after they both flopped in their new roles. Conan's always been the hipper alternative to the likes of Letterman and Leno, and it's no surprise he's popular in the UK because his style's perhaps closest to that of British chat show hosts. Still, his new TBS show isn't available to UK audience, which perhaps hampered his position in this poll

4th – Jon Stewart (7.69%)

More a satirical comedian and presenter than a chat show host, if we're honest, but The Daily Show has been a cult hit in the UK for a few years now—although that era was dealt a blow recently, when More4 stopped airing it.

3rd - Jonathan Ross (20.51%)

Like Conan, perhaps more famous for behind-the-scenes turmoil just lately (after his radio scandal with Russell Brand), but Ross has been chatting with the rich and famous for over 20 years to great acclaim in the UK. His recent show Friday Night was a highlight of the TV week (particularly in the mid-'00s), as his flippant and saucy attitude often charmed and astonished those on his sofa—particularly American stars, who were often visibly  amazed at how risqué and unrehearsed the conversation could get. It's just a shame Ross slowly became a parody of himself in later years (often overstepping the line and just becoming embarrassing), before the BBC effectively neutered him after his radio prank backlash.

2nd - Craig Ferguson (25.64%)

A very surprising entry, to me! Craig Ferguson's a very interesting case—as he's essentially found a way to bring some of his British-born wit and attitude to the strict format of the venerable US chat show. It's perhaps not surprising he has a strong British following, given his Scottish roots, and perhaps Americans appreciate his irreverence because it's in some way refreshing?

1st – Graham Norton (28.21%)

The clear winner was Graham Norton, who's on something of a roll just now with his Friday night chat show, which recently won a BAFTA. It also helps that his show gets aired in the US on BBC America, only a few weeks behind the UK broadcast. Norton's never quite managed to better his Channel 4 series So Graham Norton, which was considerably more rude and daring, but his BBC show has started to find a good balance just lately. In particular, the format of having three guests on together (usually a big US star, a UK star, and a comedian) has been a real masterstroke. The four-way conversation works surprisingly well and can be very entertaining if the dynamic is right between the celebs, and the ensemble feel to the chat is like a breathe of fresh air in chat show terms. It also helps that the guests are apparently plied with booze beforehand, so everyone's very relaxed and often more daring with their anecdotes. Norton himself is an acquire taste perhaps, but his impish good humour works well to assure guests they're in safe hands, assured of a good time, and can perhaps go that extra mile.

Talking Point: which US TV show (that's never aired in the UK) do you want to see most?

The cast of PARKS & RECREATION: unseen by British viewers

These days, the best US drama/comedy usually arrives in the UK, even if it occasionally takes 9 months (I'm looking at you FX, with your indolent scheduling of Dexter). The birth of digital TV in the mid-'90s meant there were suddenly dozens of extra channels in the UK, many on 24/7 schedules and consequently desperate to fill their airwaves with programming. The two options available to them are: (a) repeats of UK shows, or (b) airing US imports. Some channels specializing in those areas, like Dave or 5USA, respectively.

But even in the year 2011, there are numerous gaps in the UK TV landscape when it comes to some American shows. For whatever reason, some shows have never been picked up by a British broadcaster, and I'd love to know why. Too expensive? Very unlikely. I hear it's because some shows are perceived as being "too American" for British audiences (despite the fact we're very Americanised these days), or just not something anyone's interested in buying.

Here are a few US shows that have never been broadcast in the UK: The Colbert Report (strange, seeing as The Daily Show was a notable part of More4 for awhile*), Men Of A Certain Age, The Middleman (short-lived, but perfect for Syfy), Parks & Recreation (great fit for Comedy Central, who show its spiritual antecedent The Office USA), and the United States Of Tara (starring Toni Collette, whom Brits took to their hearts in Muriel's Wedding). It's actually rather interesting whenever Collette appears on a UK chat show and can't even discuss Tara, a project she did from 2009-11, because nobody's seen it here.

So today's Talking Point is simple: are there any US TV shows you've been longing to see come to UK TV, that hasn't arrived yet? And if so, do you have a theory for WHY that's the case? Do you think most US shows that don't air here are deserving of that fate? Or is it ludicrous in some cases?

* I've since been told The Colbert Report aired on FX here for awhile.

Infographic: DEXTER

I just thought I'd post this infographic for Showtime's Dexter, which gives you lots of interesting trivia about the show. Strange to note that Dexter Morgan kills 10 or 11 people over the course of every single season--is that some kind of agreed quota the writers have to hit? Curious. The infographic doesn't include fifth season data, unfortunately, but I'm sure it'll be updated at some point.

[via The Guardian]

Jump the Blast #20 & #21 - Falling Skies & White Collar

It's the final edition of Jump the Blast, so here comes a double-bill courtesy of regular reader David H. The first is taken from the pilot of sci-fi drama FALLING SKIES, with Ben Mason (Noah Wyle) flung through the air after an alien "mech" takes a shot at him. A well-timed jump, arms nicely spread apart, so he'll live to fight invading ETs another day. Perfect.

And finally, David's next submission comes from the season 1 finale of WHITE COLLAR, where notorious thief Neil Caffrey (Matthew Bomer) is about to get on a plane to escape the police, only for it to explode--along with his dreams of starting another life with his girlfriend. I particularly like the way the explosion appears to bend Caffrey's spine slightly, although the "jump" becomes more of a forward stumble in the end.

And that's it! I think 21 submissions since January is enough. I may revive this feature again someday, you never know, but not if I find something more popular. A huge thank you to the handful of people who submitted screengrabs over the past six months—specially Laura Schumacher, who was almost keeping the whole feature alive these past few months. It's a shame more people didn't get involved and e-mail me screengrabs, but also understandable. I hope it was in some way entertaining for everyone. It certainly helped plug a few gaps whenever there was a slow news day or nothing worth reviewing on TV. Um, like today!

If you want to take a look at all the Jump The Blast moments, simple click this link for a trip down memory flame...

Trailer: THE HOUR (BBC2)

The BBC have released the first trailer of their '50s newsroom drama THE HOUR, written by BAFTA-winning Abi Morgan, starring Dominic West (The Wire), Ben Whishaw (Perfume), Romola Garai (Atonement) and Anna Chancellor (Spooks). The six-part drama follows a British topical news show during the Suez Crisis of 1959.

The official BBC blurb:

Romola Garai, Dominic West and Ben Whishaw star in The Hour, a thrilling six-part drama which takes viewers behind the scenes of the launch of a topical news programme in London 1956, written and created by Bafta award-winning Abi Morgan.

With a highly competitive, sharp-witted and passionate love triangle at the heart of the series, it's through the lives of enigmatic Bel and her rivals, Freddie and Hector, that viewers will witness the decade on the threshold of change—from the ruthless sexual politics behind the polite social façade of the Fifties to the revelations that redefined the world for a new generation.

Over the six episodes, the interplay and intense ambitions between our rising news team play out against the backdrop of a mysterious murder and Freddie's controversial and dangerous investigation.

Ben Whishaw plays Freddie Lyon, a brilliant and outspoken journalist, whose passion endlessly lands him in trouble. Getting to the truth of a story can be a dangerous and risky business and it's Bel, his contemporary and best friend, who is always there to bail him out. For Freddie, Bel is so much more as well—if only he were brave enough to tell her.

Romola Garai plays Bel Rowley, spirited and ambitious and facing the most exciting and daunting challenge of her life—running The Hour. Can her passion for the truth survive the political pressure the job will bring—and will her friendship with Freddie survive her undeniable attraction to front man Hector?

Dominic West plays Hector Madden, charming, charismatic – a man whose upbringing and education have instilled in him a sense of entitlement and whose glamorous young wife has the family connections to get him the job as front man on The Hour. But, beneath the confident façade, Hector has a lot to prove. Bel provides the challenge –- and the spark.

The Hour's supporting cast includes Tim Pigott-Smith and Juliet Stevenson as Lord and Lady Elms; Anton Lesser as Clarence Fendley, the BBC's Head of News; Anna Chancellor as Lix, The Hour's brave and maverick hard-drinking foreign correspondent; Julian Rhind-Tutt as Angus McCain, the Prime Minister's eyes and ears; and Oona Chaplin as Marnie Madden, Hector's spoilt beautiful wife.

I can only hope it's as good as it sounds, and not how this trailer makes it look. I'm all for minimalist pop-art, but this trailer just makes the show look horrendously cheap and dull. The buzz surrounding The Hour had insiders describing it as "the British answer to Mad Men", but we'll have to see if that's justified—or if they just share a professional setting in the same era. However, based solely on this trailer, my enthusiasm has dipped, sorry to say--how about you?

The Hour will premiere on BBC2 later this month.

DVD/Blu-ray Releases: JULY 2011 (Adjustment Bureau, Battle: Los Angeles, Caprica S1, Drive Angry, The Kennedys, Luther S2, Primeval S5, Rango, Stargate Universe S2, etc.)

4 JULY

The Adjustment Bureau [DVD] [BLURAY]
Caprica: Season 1, Volume 2 [DVD] (**½ out of four)
Coast: Series 1-5 [DVD] (*** out of four)
Drive Angry [DVD] [BLURAY]
Hall Pass [DVD] [BLURAY]
The Kennedys [DVD] (*½ out of four)
Law & Order UK: Series 1-4 [DVD]
Law & Order UK: Series 4 [DVD]
The Shadow Line [DVD] [BLURAY]
Primeval: Series 5 [DVD] [BLURAY] (*½ out of four)
Scott & Bailey: Series 1 [DVD]
Stargate Universe: Season 2 [DVD] [BLURAY]
Uncle Buck [BLURAY] (*** out of four)

11 JULY

Battle: Los Angeles [DVD] [BLURAY]
Conan The Barbarian [BLURAY]
Doctor Who: Series 5, Part 1 [DVD] [BLURAY] (*** out of four)
Fair Game [DVD] [BLURAY]
Ideal: Series 7 [DVD]
Ironclad [DVD]
Lead Balloon: Series 1-4 [DVD]
Luther: Series 1 & 2 [DVD] [BLURAY] (*** out of four)
Luther: Series 2 [DVD] [BLURAY] (*** out of four)

18 JULY

Coast: Series 6 [DVD] [BLURAY]
Numbers: Season 6 [DVD]
Psych: Season 4 [DVD]
A Turtle's Tale: Sammy's Adventures [DVD]
Unknown [DVD] [BLURAY]

25 JULY

Blackadder (Remastered) [DVD] (*½ out of four)
Blackadder II (Remastered) [DVD] (***½ out of four)
Blackadder The Third (Remastered) [DVD] (*** out of four)
Blackadder Goes Fourth (Remastered) [DVD] (***½ out of four)
The Eagle [DVD] [BLURAY]
Rango [DVD] [BLURAY]