TV

PREVIEW

ER Channel 4, Wed 3 Feb, 9pm.

Smart but casualty: the ER cast

'Get me 50((s of (he'n seven and order a blood gas and a portable (hest'

does anyone Isll()\.'. tunat the medrtal Jargon spouted !H ER a<tually means? Probany l‘.()T, but rt doesn't matter What makes the sho\.‘.' unmrssable, even as :t begrns thrs frith serres, s the perfettly prdged (ornbrnatron of personal trauma and trauma room trauma, meanrng nae (are as mu(h about Doug and Carol's romante as we do about the latest trash \.r(trm berng

Soapbox

Boat disasters, lesbianism, mad axeman . . .

It's nearly the end of the affarr for the Harts rn Channel 5's t'lagshrp soap Family Affairs The .nfamous axeman of Coronatron Street, Brran Park, has been brought rn to try and boost yxex'ang trgures beyond the lrrends and relatrons of the (as! Hrs prr(e for takrng the rob7 The s<alps of the slrghtly (lull t'am:ly tna taere desrgned to be the nutleus of the show The Harts are shortly to meet a gory end rn a boat drsaster‘ at mrddle daughter l.lelanre's \.'.'edu”ng

Hard I:r(k on the a(tor's but at least they get to go out mth a bang, both rn the explodrng boat, and rn the storylrnes xxhrtn have been sprted up retently Chara<ter (redrbrlrty has been drtthed, 2';th ea(n t'aemly member tangled rn (orr‘plr(ated rntrrgues to make the er‘.d surtably rronr<

Preyrousiy sensrble mum Annre rs suddenly l‘.a‘~."rng a torr'rd at'farr x.‘.‘rth one of her husband's ( hums, ‘.'.'ho ( Iarms lie (an't leave has iyrng \.‘.rt'e but rs reain rn love atrth elder Hart daughter Holly a lesbian, natur‘al'y

l,'r(nrr‘.r.'.l1rle, young Ja'nre may not be (hunky dad (_I‘.'es's son after all, srn(e rt turns oat that Arrnre nau’ already got rr-ore than matey ‘.'.'th ers other pal, llrrk ()r‘ly ‘.'.ee<s ago, gra"da(t otted granny then At trtrs

'aft' the (-'HI (one as a rrtrrrhd

gassed hrrrseil

retease a'l roued Attaai y We :n(estt.ous rtatu'e of rt

ai: p'obab y Makes sense of Park's

102 THE LIST /' Irz' ~18»: ":8":

(atapulted along trled (orrrdors on a gurney

Speed rs a \.'rtal (omponent to every aspett ol Irfe at County General, extendrng even rnto the Io\‘e Irte of Do<tors Benton (Errg La Ballet and (Lor‘det lAlex Krngstonr who rndulge rn a suture room gurtkre rn the lust eprsode of the new season

Enterrng as a new (hara(ter (omes thrr'd year med student l.u(y Knrght rKellre ltlartrnl, \'.'ho manages to I)()I(It the treatment of a (anter patrent, (omlor't a \‘.oman at the moment of mrs<arrrage and weep at the bedsrde of a (oma patrent all on her frrst day Thrs berng US rret\‘-.'ork televrsron, luty rs as (ute as she rs smart, so expe(t sparks to fly \rrth Dr Carter rNoah Wyler, on-the-rebound and yrsrbly prnrng for the departed Del Amr(o beneath a frankly unetrse beard

Fans of the lovely George Clooney mll be pleased to frnd that he rs as puppy dog adorable as ever, but must prepare themseh;es for the moment \‘.hen Dr Doug hangs up hrs stethostope rn 22 eprsodes trrne As \.'.'rth last year, the programme's only \'.eak lrnk remarns Alex Krngston, serrously over‘playrng the linglrsh ettentrrt (ard rn a pair of «for Chrrst's saker (oxaboy boots

(.r'ossrng the Atlantrt rn the opposrte drr‘ettron :s Dr (ireene, as Anthony Ld‘t.'.ards stars rn the forthtomrng Br’rtrsh r'omantr( (omedy Don’t Go Breakrng My Heart See the next rssue of The lrst to frnd out rl the frnrshed rnoyre rs any better than rts trtle, but, for the monient, enjoy FR (Rob Fraserr

Mother loose: Annie Hart in Family Affairs

detrsron Basrng an entrr‘e soap around one t'arnrly unrt may be rnrro‘satrye, but rt makes for (lull yrexxrng There (an only be a Irrnrted perrnutatron of relatronshrps bet\.'.'een (haratter‘s, and oniy so many ex<uses to brrng rn t‘.(“.‘.

lanrr/y Affar/s rs defrnrtely better thar‘ rts ( ‘) I()((tli()!l would suggest, but the o( < asronal ‘.re‘.‘.'er‘ \.'.'rII trnd rt drags on a bit Ior every ,:ur(y storylrrre you llthltl begrn to (are about, there's a (Irrhed (harat ter I=ke the gh. stIy Sadie, a ha'rrdar‘ exrlhoot'er, to put you off

It la/nrl,’ Atta/rs rs to sur‘.r‘.'e ‘.‘.rthout .ts llarts, true axerrra'r '.'.:i. hate to keep on s‘.'.rr‘.g-rrg tor a Irtt e bat longer Andrea ll; 'aney“

PREVIEW

Building A Nation BBCZ, Thu 28 Jan, 8pm.

Krr‘sty Wark may be used to the storreuallrng of [)()Irll( rans on Neat/wright, but one essentral attrrl)ute gualrf'es her to present a pr'ograrrzme on the great burldrngs of S(otland a grand passron for the subre(t ‘Arthrte(ture rs as rnsprratronal as a good book or a great parntrng,’ says Wark 'ere our lands( ape, rt rs the

physr<al ernbodrrnent of S(ot|and ' - ; Bur/drng Tire Nat/on rs a srx-part ' t I All -, ; weekly serres takrng a broad look at -’ l ,. I I r v - i

the last 500 years of Stottrsh ,1 L" arthrtetture The serres, tx'hrth tres rn ' wI \‘.'rth (jlasgovfls tenure as UK Crty of Arthrtetture and Desrgn, arms to hrghlrght the extraordrnary drversrty and beauty of S<otland's t)t.rI(I!rtgs and brrng to publrt vrev.’ some of the best kept an hrte( tural set r‘ets rn the (ountry

The frr‘st programme deals mth the renarssan<e burldrngs of the Ste\.'.'ar't Krngs rntludrng Lrnlrthgox': Palate and Strr‘lrng Castle, rrle future eprsodes deal mth exerythrng from Alexander 'Car‘eek' Thomson's monumental (hurthes to (jurrtbernauld New To\.'.'n Peter Ross»

FILM OF THE FORTNIGHT Jude BBCZ, Thu 21 Jan, 9.30pm.

A ltt()lt()(Ilt'()ll‘.(‘ openrng seguen<e r'ernrnrs(ent of Dayrd Lean's O/rver Tun/rst sets the tone for the rest of l‘.lr(hael \“/rnter'bottorn’s Thomas Hardy adaptatron beautrful but rntredtbly bleak Thrs rs no (osy, Sunday tea-trme perrod drama It's full of anger, sex and death espetrally death

Chrrstopher [1((Ieston spe<ralrses r'r earnest young men, but that shouldn't detra<t from a per'lor‘mar‘.(e \.‘r.'Irr(It rs probably a (areer‘ best H=s Jude l'a\.'.ley rs (omplex, :ntellrgent, stubborn and doomed lven better than the glo\'.'er'rng l.lan(unran rs Kate \"Jrnslet, from the pre-T/ta/m era \‘.hen didn’t (are about her prrvate lrfe or uress sr/e, and \'.'ere happy to marvel at the strrng of roles rf-leaven/y Creatures, Sense (‘ir Sensrbr/ty, et( r \.'.hr(h saw her establrshed as the best Br'rtrsh attress of her gener‘atzon Here, as Sue Brrdehead, she rs the heart of the frlm :rtrtrally vrtal and passror‘ate, but ultrrnately broken

Best Bit: The fate of the Eavxley (hrldren rs one of the 90s most drstr'esszng seguentes (Rob lraserl

REVIEW

History Of Alternative Comedy

BBCZ, Sun IO & 17 Jan

Hands up all those who ursh to see less of Angus Deayton on the box7 l-lrs trr‘esorne metaphors and (austr( delryery are the only thrngs sporlrng the l/rstory Of A/ternat/ve (‘onrer/y Part one looked at the \.‘.ay rn \'.hr(h the 19/9 genesrs of the ‘mo\.'ement' rn Soho (ornedy (Iubs (orntrded ‘.'.rth lhatther berng \".IIISI((‘(I over the threshold of Number len thereby gryrng the nev. \'.a\.'e of (omrts rdeal

g, l

Home bodies: Kirsty Wark and friends

s Hardy perennials: Chris Eccleston and Kate Winslet

r'a\.'. rrraterral Part txro to<used on the telexrsron

explosrorr of landmark shouts Irke Me Young Ones and Tire (om/t Str/p Presents l‘.lu(h of rt \.'.as routrne l.lannrng-bashrng and rrrrsty-e\.'e(l nostalgra from the Irkes of Rtk .‘.layal and

Ubiquitous Chap: Angus Deayton

Alexer 8aer I.Ill(.". more rntrrntr ng \.'.'as the 'rr-t.(;rrtrng I)et‘.'.ee". ste'iester's, rnr Iudzng the fall-out ‘.'.I‘.r(h pretented Peter th hardson tron: (:ei'. ng t"e we ()1 Mike :r‘r lire Young Ones

Iutta'e eprsodes v.12 tra<e the (rezeloprrtent of a ternatrxe ton‘eu‘, ap to the

present day Brran Donaruso'r