Thursday's TV tips
The second series of Under The Dome continues on RTÉ Two.
The massive US drama is based on Stephen King’s bestselling novel about a small town that is suddenly and inexplicably sealed off from the rest of the world by a massive transparent dome.
The premiere episode of the second series was written by the bestselling author and executive producer Stephen King, who also makes a cameo appearance, and was filmed on location in Wilmington, N.C. Eddie Cahill and Karla Crome join the cast as series regulars.
Julia takes over as the leader of Chester’s Mill after the town becomes divided in the wake of Big Jim and Rebecca’s plans for population control.
Meanwhile, Joe and Norrie help Melanie search for more clues about her identity at the Dome wall.
It’s been a busy 12 months for Rob Brydon, juggling his assorted game show duties (The Guess List and Would I Lie To You?) while providing the lion’s share of the rib-tickling on Steve Coogan and director Michael Winterbottom’s sublime comedy The Trip To Italy.
Now one of Swansea’s brightest stars is back on the box, but in vocal form only as he narrates this fascinating wildlife strand.
It centres on The Wyoming Wetlands Society, a non-profit organisation relocating beavers that have been damaging expensive landscaped areas and flooding yards and roads with their dam-building activities in Teton County.
This documentary follows the work of Drew Reed as he traps the problem animals and takes them to drainage areas of the Gros Ventre River, where the beavers help to restore and enhance wetland habitats, providing many direct and indirect benefits to both wildlife and people.
For many folks growing up from the 1950s onwards, kids playing with toy guns was the norm thanks to the success of Westerns and TV shows.
However, across the Pond, the line between fake firearms and the real thing has become blurred in recent years as this documentary reveals.
The right to bear arms is one of the most controversial issues at the heart of American culture, as Michael Moore addressed in his movie Bowling for Columbine a few years ago.
Some parents are against the sale of toy guns, while others think it’s fine to buy children the real thing – despite more than 3,000 youngsters being killed or injured every year in accidental shootings.
Here cameras follows three families tackling the difficult issues behind the American relationship with firearms, and reveals some of the stories behind the horrifying statistics.
After this film you may never look at a toy gun in the same way again.
If you study comedy and TV shows long enough, you’ll know that all great comedy shows need at least one series to bed in, and it’s not always the surefire shows that work straight away.
The likes of Blackadder and Men Behaving Badly both had a few wrinkles to iron out before they hit their stride, and the same could be said of this colourful offering from the surrealist funnyman.
Thankfully E4 do produce some of the best new comedy around, when they’re not showing endless repeats of The Big Bang Theory and How I Met Your Mother that is, so lets hope Noel and company can find their feet this time around.
The new run is set in a coffee shop on the edge of a volcano in Hawaii. Episode one sees the cast of Magnum PI attempting to sacrifice Noel. Will internet sensation Paul Panfer stage a daring rescue? Doubtful.
Dolly Wells also stars.
At age 40, Andy Stitzer has got a cushy job stamping invoices at an electronics superstore, a nice apartment with a fine collection of action figures and comic books and some good friends.
But there’s just one little thing he hasn’t quite got around to doing yet – losing his virginity.
His shocked colleagues set him up on a series of potentially passionate dates and when he falls for a single mum, his pals think he’s finally on course for a lusty liaison.
There’s something about this comedy that transcends the mundane aspects of the plot. A super-sharp script, written by co-producers Judd Apatow and Steve Carell, utilises the comic talents of Carell, who’s hugely appealing as the hapless innocent.
Steve Carell, Catherine Keener, Paul Rudd, Romany Malco, Seth Rogen
If you thought the Western genre was dead and buried, this haunting offering will change your mind.
Brad Pitt plays the infamous outlaw, whose lawless ways win him the respect of his sidekick’s impressionable younger brother.
But when the latter joins the James gang, he realises just how flawed his hero really is – and after becoming increasingly disillusioned, plots to kill him.
This is asily one of the best films of the past few decade, this brilliant Western will live long in the memory. Although Pitt gains the most headlines, it’s Casey Affleck who steals the show as Ford.
Brad Pitt, Casey Affleck, Sam Rockwell, Sam Shepard, Mary-Louise Parker, Zooey Deschanel
