Geek shows and movies on UK TV in the coming week
Neil Gaiman's Doctor Who episode, Caprica finishing off its run in the UK, and South Park season 15 kicks off. Plus an animated feature worth checking out...
This weekend brings us what is likely to be the most eagerly anticipated episode of Doctor Who since the series relaunched or the then unknown property of Matt Smith’s Time Lord talents were yet to be tested.
Saturday, May 14th delivers the fourth episode in the sixth series, and its intriguing title, The Doctor’s Wife, is only a faint indicator of the real draw, and that’s that the episode’s been written by Neil Gaiman.
We have a spoiler-free review that may hold clues to just how excited we are about the episode, and even better, an interview with its author, Neil Gaiman, here.
We’re as eager to hear what everyone thinks of it as to rewatch it again tomorrow night, and we’ll race to get the review live as the credits roll, so you can comment away about your thoughts and whether The Doctor’s Wife met the high expectations its title and author’s involvement have teased. The episode airs at 6:30pm on BBC1.
Fans of the long-running South Park may have caught the start of its fifteenth season, airing on Comedy Central. If you missed that, a good place to jump in may be with episode 3, Royal Pudding, where the imperial proverbial is taken on the recent nuptials. This animated twist involves the Prince and Princess of Canada, however, and all that South Park can hurl at the subject, no doubt. It airs at 10:00pm tonight, Friday May 13th.
It’s been gone so long, it may be a fleeting memory, but Caprica returns on Monday, May 16th at 11:15pm on Sky 1. The tenth of the final episodes is entitled Unvanquished. If you need a refresher of where things left off (and we wouldn’t be surprised, as our last review was over a year ago), you can find prior episodes reviewed right here. Whether the show will end with anything approaching a satisfying conclusion is anyone’s guess right now. But if you want to see the finish of the Battlestar Galactica prequel, no matter what it holds, there aren’t many more weeks to do that.
Lastly, we’ll point out an animated feature airing on Film4 at 10:45pm Thursday, May 19th. Mary And Max is not one for children, despite its claymation characters. It deals with serious subjects using a talented voice cast. Rather than try and describe it, we’ll let the trailer speak for the film…
Now, on to those films showing through the weekend and a bit beyond. You can catch the flawed, but fun Judge Dredd film before Karl Urban puts his helmeted mark on the role, and Nic Cage film fans get two of his finest in Bad Lieutenant and Leaving Las Vegas.
Anyone wanting some quality telly viewing opportunities with the younger members of the family will find that Sunday is the day to book the couch and pop the corn, with The Any Bully, Willy Wonka And The Chocolate Factory, and Zathura: A Space Adventure all on the day, ending with Pirates Of The Caribbean: The Curse Of The Black Pearl, for those who can stay up till 10pm.
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 ’14th’ in your browser’s Find box or window to highlight and/or tab through all movies shown on Saturday. Enjoy!
Bad Lieutenant (2009)On: Sky Movies PremiereDate: Friday 13th MayTime: 10:00pm amd 11:00pm Premiere+1, then daily through 19th May)
Batman BeginsOn: TCM Date: Saturday 14th MayTime: 9:00pm
Battle RoyaleOn: Film4 Date: Friday 13th MayTime: 11:00pm (and midnight Film4+1)
BladeOn: TCMDate: Friday 13th MayTime: 11:00pm
Blood DiamondOn: BBC 2 Date: Saturday 14th MayTime: 9:45pm
CellularOn: Film4 Date: Wednesday 18th MayTime: 9:00pm (and 10:00pm Film4+1)Detroit Rock CityOn: TCM Date: Sunday 15th MayTime: 01:55am
Die Hard 4.0On: Channel 4 Date: Sunday 15th MayTime: 9:00pm (and 10:00pm 4+1)
Dressed To KillOn: TCM Date: Friday 13th MayTime: 7:35pm (and 11:20am 14th May)
Enter The DragonOn: TCM Date: Friday 13th MayTime: 9:00pm (and 1:20am 14th May)
EraserOn: TCM Date: Saturday 14th MayTime: 11:40pmFalling DownOn: TCM Date: Tuesday 17th MayTime: 9:00pm (and 1:10am 18th May)
Final Destination 2On: Film4 Date: Saturday 14th MayTime: 10:45pm (and 11:45pm Film4+1)Futurama: The Beast With A Billion BacksOn: Sky1 Date: Saturday 14th MayTime: 4:15pmGet ShortyOn: ITV4Date: Saturday 14th MayTime: 11:55pm (and 00:55am 15th May ITV4+1)
Hollow ManOn: Channel 5Date: Wednesday 18th MayTime: 10:00pmHot Shots!On: Film4Date: Monday 16th MayTime: 7:20pm (and 8:20pm Film4+1)
Judge DreddOn: Sky1Date: Saturday 14th MayTime: 9:00pm (and 9:00pm 15th May Sky2, 9:00pm 17th May Sky1, 10:00pm 19th May Sky2)Lara Croft: Tomb RaiderOn: BBC 3Date: Wednesday 18th MayTime: 9:00pmLeaving Las VegasOn: ITV2 Date: Saturday 14th MayTime: 10:45pm (and 11:45pm ITV2+1, 11:50pm/0050am 16th/17th May)
Mary And MaxOn: Film4Date: Thursday 19th MayTime: 10:45pm (and 11:45pm Film4+1)Mortal KombatOn: ITV4Date: Friday 13th MayTime: 11:00pm (and midnight ITV4+1, midnight/1:00am 17th/18th May, 11:20pm 18th May TCM)Night At The MuseumOn: Film4 Date: Sunday 15th MayTime: 6:50pm (and 7:50pm Film4+1)
Pirates Of The Caribbean: The Curse Of The Black PearlOn: BBC 1 Date: Sunday 15th MayTime: 8:00pmPlanet Of The Apes (1968)On: Film4 Date: Sunday 15th MayTime: 4:35pm (and 5:35pm Film4+1)
Police AcademyOn: ITV4Date: Friday 13th MayTime: 9:00pm (and 10:00pm ITV4+1, midnight/1:00am 13th/14th May)
Pump Up The VolumeOn: TCMDate: Monday 16th MayTime: 02:05am
SneakersOn: SyFy Date: Friday 13th MayTime: 9:00pm (and 10:00pm Syfy+1, 8/9:00pm 14th May)
SpiderOn: Film4 Date: Monday 16th MayTime: 11:05pm (and 00:05am 17th May Film4+1)Tell No OneOn: BBC 4 Date: Saturday 14th MayTime: 9:00pm
The Ant BullyOn: WatchDate: Sunday 15th MayTime: 5:20pm (and 6:20pm Watch+1)The Bone CollectorOn: 5*Date: Monday 16th MayTime: 9:00pm (and 10:00pm 5*+1)
The Castle Of CagliostroOn: Film4Date: Thursday 19th MayTime: 11:00am (and noon Film4+1)The Cat ReturnsOn: Film4 Date: Friday 13th MayTime: 5:05pm (and 6:05pm Film4+1)The CoolerOn: Channel 4 Date: Sunday 15th MayTime: 02:40am (and 3:40am 4+1)
The Day Of The JackalOn: ITV4Date: Saturday 14th MayTime: 9:00pm (and 10:00pm ITV4+1, midnight/1:00am 19th/20th May)
The EnforcerOn: ITV1Date: Saturday 14th MayTime: 11:15pm
The FugitiveOn: ITV2Date: Wednesday 18th MayTime: 00:10am (and 1:10am ITV2+1)
The IslandOn: ITV2Date: Wednesday 18th MayTime: 11:00pm (and midnight ITV2+1)
The MaskOn: TCM Date: Friday 13th MayTime: 10:55amThe Pelican BriefOn: ITV1 Date: Tuesday 17th MayTime: 10:35pmThe PropositionOn: Film4 Date: Monday 16th MayTime: 11:20pm (and 00:20am 17th May Film4+1)The Sixth SenseOn: Channel 4 Date: Monday 16th MayTime: 10:00pm (and 11:00pm 4+1)
The Spy Who Loved MeOn: ITV1 Date: Sunday 15th MayTime: 4:10pmThe Stendhal SyndromeOn: horror channelDate: Friday 13th MayTime: 10:55pmUnforgivenOn: TCM Date: Friday 13th MayTime: 5:10pm (and 6:45am 14th May)
WaterworldOn: ITV2 Date: Sunday 15th MayTime: 10:00pm (and 11:00pm ITV2+1)Willy Wonka And The Chocolate FactoryOn: ITV3Date: Sunday 15th MayTime: 8:00pm (and 9:00pm ITV3+1)
Young Sherlock HolmesOn: Film4Date: Saturday 14th MayTime: 6:50pm (and 7:50pm Film4+1)Zathura: A Space AdventureOn: Channel Date: Sunday 15th MayTime: 6:00pm
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