The Count of Monte Cristo<\/p>\n
9pm, BBC Four <\/p>\n
Hot on the heels of last year\u2019s ludicrous Jeremy Irons and Sam Claflin adaptation of Alexandre Dumas\u2019 classic novel comes this four-part French-language version. It takes the enjoyable romp that was the 2024 movie adaptation, then turns it into TV by splitting it into four episodes. By the end of the first instalment, our hero Edmond is attempting a prison break. Alexi Duggins<\/p>\n
Blankety Blank<\/p>\n
6.25pm, BBC One <\/p>\n
Bradley Walsh barely controls another intensely low-scoring edition of the vintage word-matching quiz. When they\u2019re not waving furiously from a revolving dais, the contestants seek help from Joe Marler, Sue Perkins, Trevor Nelson, Josh Pugh, Tasha Ghouri and Sara Barron, none of whom is the slightest use. Jack Seale <\/p>\n
Secret Africa: Into the Wild<\/p>\n
7pm, Channel 4 <\/p>\n
The final leg \u2026 Secret Africa: Into the Wild on Channel 4. Photograph: Channel 4<\/p>\n
\u201cWe really are where the wild things are now!\u201d Explorer Lucy Shepherd has never actually seen hippos before \u2013 how many will she spot on this last leg of her journey across Tanzania? That\u2019s not all: she and the team (nomadic Hadza and Akie tribesmen) trek to a sacred volcano, passing dangerous lion prides en route. HR<\/p>\n
World\u2019s Most Secret Hotels<\/p>\n
8pm, Channel 4 <\/p>\n
More unusual luxury retreats get the once-over in this superfluous but oddly diverting series. This time, caves in South Africa, a lighthouse in Sweden and, perhaps most notably, the old Bodmin Jail in Cornwall, which has been refitted and now boasts an opulence beyond the wildest dreams of its former inhabitants. Phil Harrison<\/p>\n
Casualty<\/p>\n
8.45pm, BBC One <\/p>\n
False alarm: after last week\u2019s panic, it turns out there isn\u2019t a new pandemic outbreak. It is, in fact, a chemical issue \u2013 but the Holby team are still trying to figure out what the source is. Elsewhere in the hospital, a grisly scene that could rival The Pitt, as doctors drill holes in a patient\u2019s skull to remove a blood clot. HR<\/p>\n
Saturday Night Live UK<\/p>\n
10pm, Sky One <\/p>\n
The British version of the venerable US weekly sketch show has been much better than was generally expected, its canny mix of timeless skits and gentle satire showcasing a silly streak that\u2019s hard to dislike. The White Lotus star Aimee Lou Wood is the celebrity host this time, with music from Meek. JS<\/p>\n
Film choice<\/p>\n
Spinal Tap II: The End Continues, 8am, 4.10pm, 10.25pm, Sky Cinema Premiere <\/p>\n
Fifteen years after the band split, film-maker Marty DiBergi (Rob Reiner) is back to document the build-up to their reunion concert in New Orleans. It\u2019s an elegiac outing for Christopher Guest, Michael McKean and Harry Shearer\u2019s trio \u2013 more grizzled, slightly wiser, less inadvertently comic \u2013 as they rehearse and bicker between starry cameos from the likes of Paul McCartney and Elton John. There are pleasing callbacks to the first film\u2019s big laughs \u2013 cursed drummers, Stonehenge \u2013 plus a fair bit of rather accomplished rock. Simon Wardell <\/p>\n
From Here to Eternity, 4.35pm, Talking Pictures TV<\/p>\n
Oscar-laden drama \u2026 From Here to Eternity on Talking Pictures TV. Photograph: PictureLux\/The Hollywood Archive\/Alamy<\/p>\n
Fred Zinnemann\u2019s Oscar-laden drama, based on James Jones\u2019s semi-autobiographical novel, is set on an army base in Hawaii in 1941. But it\u2019s not about the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor; that\u2019s relegated to a postscript to the tale of two intense romances on the outer edge of respectability. Montgomery Clift\u2019s new arrival is bullied after refusing to box for his company, but finds respite with Donna Reed\u2019s club hostess. Meanwhile, Burt Lancaster\u2019s sergeant starts an affair with the captain\u2019s wife (Deborah Kerr). SW<\/p>\n
Black Box, midnight, BBC Two <\/p>\n
This 2021 French film is a gripping throwback to the great US paranoia thrillers of the 70s, in particular Coppola\u2019s The Conversation. Pierre Niney plays obsessive air-crash investigator Mathieu, whose expertise is in analysing the cockpit voice recorder, AKA the black box. When a plane goes down in the Alps, killing all on board, Mathieu is called on to provide an explanation. But can he trust what he hears on the recording? And why has his boss suddenly gone missing? Mathieu plunges down a rabbit hole of conspiracy where the truth may or may not be on the tape. SW<\/p>\n
Live sport<\/p>\n
Snooker: The World Championship, 10am, BBC Two The second semi-final continues.<\/p>\n
Women\u2019s Champions League Football: Lyon v Arsenal, 1.30pm, BBC Two Leah Williamson and her team take a 2-1 lead to France for the semi-final second leg.<\/p>\n
Horse Racing: Newmarket, 1.15pm, ITV 1 Including the 2,000 Guineas.<\/p>\n
Premier League Football: Arsenal v Fulham, 5pm, Sky Sports Main Event Man United v Liverpool is on Sun at 2pm; Aston Villa v Tottenham is on Sun at 6pm on TNT Sports 1.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Count of Monte Cristo 9pm, BBC Four Hot on the heels of last year\u2019s ludicrous Jeremy Irons…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":407999,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[156,111,139,69,437],"class_list":["post-407998","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tv","tag-entertainment","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-tv"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/407998","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=407998"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/407998\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/407999"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=407998"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=407998"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=407998"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}