Geek shows and movies on UK TV in the coming week

Douglas Adams' holistic detective, Dirk Gently, has a return engagement tonight, Friday, May 20th at 9:00pm, this time on BBC 2. We reviewed this pilot here, and the reaction comments were mixed. The show's expected to return with new adventures next year, so now's your chance to get a foot in the quirky agency's door, and let us know what you thought of the first show and your hopes for future episodes.

Doctor Who airs at 6:45pm this week, tomorrow night, Saturday, May 21st on BBC1. The first of a two-parter, The Rebel Flesh was written by Matthew Graham and we spoke to him recently about the upcoming episode. Of his two stories, he told us: "The Rebel Flesh and The Almost People are different [from Fear Her, penned specifically for children]. As far as I'm concerned, this is proper, across the board Who. Adults, kids- if they can watch it, because it is scary. I showed it to my wife the other night, and there were a couple of images in it where she went, "Actually, that's quite scary. That's not very pleasant." And I notice that it's going out a bit later. I wouldn't be surprised if they put a warning out beforehand." You can read all of the interview here, and we'll have our review up as soon as we can on Saturday night.

There's a second chance, too, to catch the excellent Swedish detective series, Wallander, on BBC4 on Saturday, May 21st at 9:00pm. This is the Swedish-language version, adapted from the novels, with the second series starting with The Revenge. At ninety minutes, each episode is more like a feature-length film, with thirteen episodes in each series. It's well worth the investment of time, with excellent performances from a strong cast of characters.

Monday, May 23rd brings us the start of a new BBC2 documentary series by Adam Curtis, All Watched Over By Machines Of Loving Grace, detailing, in surprising and unique ways, how computers have become machine-assisted nature in our lives and affected our monitored view of ourselves and the world around us. The initial episode, Love And Power, looks at the idealised future that was envisioned at the start and we'll be fascinated to see where that beginning leads in the remaining two instalments. The series launches at 9:00pm.

Here's a tantalising trailer for the programme:

Primeval returns on Tuesday, May 24th, having moved to Watch for its fifth series. The channel will show all of series 4 episodes (which we reviewed here) in succession, earlier in the day, starting at 9:00am, and the new series premieres at 8:00pm, with the first of six episodes of the ARC team's constant struggle with the anomalies. Diehard fans fear not, as we'll be continuing with reviews of the show.

Now, on to those films showing through the weekend and a bit beyond. As if to combat the trend of remakeitis, the original (and best) versions of Flight Of The Phoenix and The Italian Job feature this week.

And another entry, Ravenous, could have easily made our list of Dinner invitations you should probably decline. It's not for suppertime viewing, but fans of Guy Pearce and Robert Carlyle are in for a feast.

As always, if we missed anything interesting, have a shout in the comments, with our thanks.

Please also note: the ordinal numbers for dates will help you scan through this simple list with your browser's search function. Enter '21st' in your browser's Find box or window to highlight and/or tab through all movies shown on Saturday. Enjoy!

Back To The Future Part III
On: ITV1   
Date: Sunday 22nd May
Time: 4:20pm

Carlito's Way
On: ITV4
Date: Tuesday 24th May
Time: 11:15pm (and 0:15am 25th May ITV4+1, 10/11:00pm 25th May)

Cellular
On: Film4
Date: Tuesday 24th May
Time: 11:25pm (and 00:25am 25th May Film4+1)

Changing Lanes
On: more4  
Date: Friday 20th May
Time: 9:00pm (and 11:05pm 25th May)

Cop Out
On: Sky Movies Premiere  
Date: Friday 20th May
Time: 10:00am (and 11:00am Premiere+1 & 6/7:00pm, then daily at similar times through 2nd June)

Déjà Vu
On: BBC 1  
Date: Saturday 21st May
Time: 10:25pm

Flight Of The Phoenix (1966)
On: Film4   
Date: Wednesday 25th May
Time: 2:25pm (and 3:25pm Film4+1)

Frantic
On: TCM  
Date: Tuesday 24th May
Time: 9:00pm (and 1:20am 25th May)

Freeze Frame
On: ITV1   
Date: Tuesday 24th May
Time: 10:35pm

Ghostbusters II
On: 5*
Date: Friday 20th May
Time: 9:00pm (and 10:00pm 5*+1, 7:50/8:50pm 21st May)

Good Morning, Vietnam
On: Film4
Date: Thursday 26th May
Time: 9:00pm (and 10:00pm Film4+1)

Gremlins
On: TCM   
Date: Thursday 26th May
Time: 11:25pm

Innerspace
On: TCM   
Date: Monday 23rd May
Time: 6:40pm (and 10:55am 24th May)

Iron Man 2
On: Sky Movies Premiere   
Date: Friday 20th May
Time: 3:45pm (and 4:45pm Premiere+1 & 8/9:00pm, then daily at similar times through 26th May)

Judgment Night
On: BBC 1    
Date: Sunday 22nd May
Time: 00:20am

Knocked Up
On: ITV2
Date: Friday 20th May
Time: 10:00pm (and 11:00pm ITV2+1, 9/10:00pm 24th May)

Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle Of Life
On: BBC 3
Date: Wednesday 25th May
Time: 9:00pm

Lara Croft: Tomb Raider
On: BBC 3  
Date: Saturday 21st May
Time: 9:00pm

Mars Attacks!
On: ITV4  
Date: Friday 20th May
Time: 7:55pm (and 8:55pm ITV4+1, 8/9:00pm 23rd May)

Mirrors
On: Channel 4    
Date: Monday 23rd May
Time: 10:00pm (and 11:00pm 4+1)

Moonraker
On: ITV1   
Date: Saturday 21st May
Time: 3:05pm

Office Space
On: Film4   
Date: Wednesday 25th May
Time: 11:00pm (and midnight Film4+1)

Orphan
On: Channel 4   
Date: Sunday 22nd May
Time: 9:00pm (and 10:00pm 4+1)

Queen Of The Damned
On: TCM
Date: Friday 20th May
Time: 11:30pm

Ransom (1997)
On: BBC 1   
Date: Friday 20th May
Time: 11:30pm

Ravenous
On: horror channel    
Date: Thursday 26th May
Time: 00:40am

Rear Window (1954)
On: 5USA
Date: Saturday 21st May
Time: 1:40pm (and 2:40pm 5USA+1)

Se7en
On: TCM
Date: Saturday 21st May
Time: 9:00pm

Spaceballs
On: SyFy  
Date: Sunday 22nd May
Time: 1:30pm (and 2:30pm Syfy+1)

Spider
On: Film4  
Date: Tuesday 24th May
Time: 01:10am (and 2:10am Film4+1)

Superman
On: TCM
Date: Saturday 21st May
Time: 3:00pm (and 7:20am 22nd May)

Tango And Cash
On: ITV1   
Date: Monday 23rd May
Time: 10:35pm

Tenebrae
On: horror channel  
Date: Wednesday 25th May
Time: 00:50am

The Accidental Tourist
On: TCM   
Date: Sunday 22nd May
Time: 6:40pm (and `0:25am 23rd May)

The Castle Of Cagliostro
On: Film4   
Date: Tuesday 24th May
Time: 5:05pm and 6:05pm Film4+1)

The China Syndrome
On: 5USA  
Date: Sunday 22nd May
Time: 12:30pm (and 1:30pm 5USA+1)

The Evil Dead
On: horror channel   
Date: Thursday 26th May
Time: 10:55pm

The Fugitive
On: ITV2
Date: Tuesday 24th May
Time: 00:05am (and 1:05am ITV2+1)

The Italian Job (1969)
On: Film4  
Date: Sunday 22nd May
Time: 7:10pm (and 8:10pm Film4+1)

The Last King Of Scotland
On: Film4  
Date: Tuesday 24th May
Time: 9:00pm (and 10:00pm Film4+1)

The Last Samurai
On: TCM
Date: Saturday 21st May
Time: 11:30pm

The Loved Ones
On: Film4
Date: Saturday 21st May
Time: 11:15pm (and 00:15am 22nd May Film4+1)

The Shadow
On: ITV4
Date: Friday 20th May
Time: midnight (and 1:00am 21st May ITV4+1, midnight/1:00am 22nd/23rd May)

The Shining
On: ITV4   
Date: Monday 23rd May
Time: 10:10pm (and 11:10pm ITV4+1)

The Way Of The Dragon
On: SyFy
Date: Saturday 21st May
Time: 00:10am (and 1:10am Syfy+1)

The Witches
On: Sky Living)    
Date: Sunday 22nd May
Time: noon (and 1:00pm Sky Living+1)

The Witches Of Eastwick
On: TCM
Date: Thursday 26th May
Time: 9:00pm

Tightrope
On: ITV1  
Date: Saturday 21st May
Time: 10:15pm

Waterworld
On: ITV2
Date: Saturday 21st May
Time: 10:45pm (and 11:45pm ITV2+1)

Willy Wonka And The Chocolate Factory
On: ITV3  
Date: Sunday 22nd May
Time: 2:10pm (and 3:10pm ITV3+1)

Wolf Creek
On: Film4   
Date: Friday 20th May
Time: 11:10pm (and 00:10am 21st May Film4+1)

Young Sherlock Holmes
On: Film4
Date: Friday 20th May
Time: 6:45pm (and 7:45pm Film4+1)

Zodiac
On: BBC 2     
Date: Sunday 22nd May
Time: 22:00pm