From Being… Christian to Worn Stories – What to catch on TV this week

Looking for something to stream over the Bank Holiday Weekend?

With Easter set to be a bit chilly, you might be better off settling down on the sofa with some quality telly instead.

With thought-provoking documentaries, clever comedy shows, and reality TV gold on offer, why would you be doing anything else anyway?

BBC iPlayer

Meet The Khans: Big In Bolton

Now the Kardashians have finally thrown in the towel, there’s a vacancy for world heavyweight reality TV show champions.

And while Amir Khan never made it above the lighter weights in his boxing career, he’s clearly got his eyes on that prize by stepping into the highly competitive reality ring with wife Faryal Makhdoom in his corner.

She’s a beauty influencer, so if you’ve got an appetite for highly choreographed marital sparring mixed with a snoop behind the scenes at the blingy Khan homestead, then this one’s for you. Today Bolton, tomorrow the world.

Available now.

Being… Christian

Religious intolerance is a pernicious evil in the world but how many of us make much effort to truly understand the lifestyles and beliefs of other cultures?

This five-part Being… series offers a non-judgmental guide to what it means to be Sikh, Hindu, Jewish, Muslim or Christian as each faith travels though life’s births, marriages and deaths.

Available now.

BritBox

Staged

If you enjoyed the brittle thespian interplay between Michael Sheen and David Tennant in this inventive lockdown drama, then here’s the director’s cut.

Each episode has seven extra minutes of material that fleshes out the story of what happens when two egos go head to head via computer screen.

Available Friday.

The Naked Civil Servant

Just added to BritBox, here’s a classic that you really should see. John Hurt’s Bafta-winning portrayal of flamboyant author and eccentric Quentin Crisp proved a breakthrough role for the future star of Alien, Midnight Express and much more.

Hurt beautifully captures the essence of a man who bravely laughed in the face of the homophobia he faced throughout his life. It’s an acutely observed portrait of closed minded Britain in the 1960s and ’70s.

Available now.

Netflix

Worn Stories

Clothes maketh the man is a proverb with roots that reach back to Homer’s Odyssey.

This perky eight-part documentary takes the idea, broadens it out to be truly inclusive and dips into how much are clothes really do say about who we are.

Given that in lockdown some of us (ahem…) have scarcely been out of pyjamas, there’s plenty of inspiration for the rediscovery of self-expression as a succession of styles are paraded for our edification. Dressing down just doesn’t cut it.

Available Friday.

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