Geek shows and movies on UK TV in the coming week
Spooks ends. The Walking Dead arrives in the UK. Misfits is back. And The Royle Family get a special night to themselves. Plus lots of movies!
One of the highlights of the telly weekend arrives tonight, Friday November 5th in the highly anticipated debut of The Walking Dead, at 10:00pm on FX. The first of six episodes of the comic book-based zombie series is entitled Days Gone Bye, and gets off to a gruesome start from soon after the first few frames. We’re sure you’ll be hooked, if you can handle the extremely realistic effects, that is. Once you’ve watched it, catch up with our US speed review here and share your thoughts.
The ninth series of Spooks concludes with its final episode airing on Monday, November 8th at 9:00pm on BBC1. We’ll see how tightly the plot threads and nooses will be tied in what’s certain to be an action-packed ending. Who will survive and whether the series lives on remains to be seen, but we’ll be watching.
Here’s a bit of a personal admission, if I may. The flight that took me to my new country of England showed a marathon run of Only Fools And Horses, which I’d never seen before on the PBS channels that featured British shows in the US. While it took another year for me to figure out what the title meant, I understood the show and laughed along with everybody else.
But, as a transplanted American, I didn’t get The Royle Family at first. Although the concept eluded me, I knew I was watching something truly unique and I stuck with it long enough to be totally entranced by this family that rarely got off the couch. Now it’s a favourite and I’m happy to catch reruns and holiday specials any time they’re shown. So, I’m very much looking forward to two specials about the family that bickered, but never barked. The first airs this week and features cast and crew interviews and outtakes on The Royle Family: Behind The Sofa on Wednesday, November 10th at 9:00pm on Gold. I’ll be there on mine. Should be fun!
We’re truly being treated to the good stuff this week as the second series of the surprise hit, Misfits, hits our screens on Thursday, November 11th at 10:00 on E4. The first series was much more than we’d anticipated in a show described as ASBO owners with superpowers and the strong writing and portrayals made this programme much more than preteen snack viewing. We can’t wait to see where the dirt’s settled and hope to have a review soon after the episode airs. For now, we’ve got a spoiler-free review here.
Now, on to the films showing through the weekend and a bit beyond. 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 ‘6th’ in your browser’s Find box or window to highlight and/or tab through all movies shown on Saturday. Enjoy!
28 Weeks LaterOn: Film4Date: Wednesday 10th NovemberTime: 11:15pm
AuditionOn: horror channelDate: Wednesday 10th NovemberTime: 02:05am
Back To The FutureOn: ITV2 Date: Sunday 7th NovemberTime: 5:45pm (and 6:45pm ITV2+1)
BeetlejuiceOn: FiveDate: Saturday 6th NovemberTime: 3:30pm
BladeOn: TCMDate: Friday 5th NovemberTime: 11:35pm
Blade RunnerOn: BBC 3Date: Saturday 6th NovemberTime: 11:45pm
Bugsy MaloneOn: Film4 Date: Friday 5th NovemberTime: 5:10pm (and 6:10pm Film4+1)
Casino Royale (1967)On: ITV4Date: Monday 8th NovemberTime: 7:20pm (and 8:20pm ITV4+1, 6:20/7:20pm 9th Nov)
CrashOn: Film4Date: Sunday 7th NovemberTime: 9:00pm (and 10:00pm Film4+1)
Dodgeball: A True Underdog StoryOn: Film4Date: Saturday 6th NovemberTime: 9:00pm (and 10:00pm Film4+1)Day Of The Dead (1985)On: BBC 2Date: Saturday 6th NovemberTime: 00:50amDragnetOn: ITV4Date: Saturday 6th NovemberTime: 6:50pm (and 7:50pm ITV4+1)Dressed to Kill (1980)On: TCMDate: Wednesday 10th NovemberTime: 11:05pm
El MariachiOn: Sky Movies Indie Date: Saturday 6th NovemberTime: 11:45am (and 10:00pm)
GhostbustersOn: FIVERDate: Friday 5th NovemberTime: 9:00pm (and 10:00pm Fiver+1, 5:50/6:50pm 6th Nov)Harold And Kumar Get The MunchiesOn: FiveDate: Sunday 7th NovemberTime: 11:15pmHoney, I Shrunk The KidsOn: E4Date: Sunday 7th NovemberTime: 2:35pm (and 3:35pm E4+1)
HostageOn: E4 Date: Sunday 7th NovemberTime: 10:00pm (and 11:00pm E4+1, 10/11:00pm 9th Nov)Invasion Of The Body Snatchers (1978)On: more4Date: Thursday 11th NovemberTime: 11:50am
Lethal WeaponOn: TCMDate: Sunday 7th NovemberTime: 01:20am
Mr Saturday NightOn: ITV3Date: Sunday 7th NovemberTime: 01:05am (and 2:05am ITV3+1)Planes, Trains And AutomobilesOn: Sky Movies Comedy Date: Saturday 6th NovemberTime: 08:35am
RayOn: ITV3Date: Friday 5th NovemberTime: 11:10pm (and 00:10am 6th Nov ITV3+1)
RoboCopOn: TCMDate: Saturday 6th November 2Time: 11:15pm
Se7enOn: Five Date: Monday 8th NovemberTime: 10:00pm
South Park: Bigger, Longer And UncutOn: Comedy CentralDate: Saturday 6th NovemberTime: midnight Friday 5th November (and 1:00am 6th Nov CC+1)
Stand By MeOn: FiveDate: Sunday 7th NovemberTime: 2:40pm
Star Trek: The Motion PictureOn: Film4Date: Sunday 7th November 2Time: 6:25pm (and 7:25pm Film4+1)
Stir Of EchoesOn: SyFy Date: Friday 5th NovemberTime: 11:40pm (and 00:40am 6th Nov Syfy+1)
TenebraeOn: horror channel Date: Thursday 11th NovemberTime: 00:50am
The Cat O’ Nine TailsOn: horror channel Date: Friday 5th NovemberTime: 10:55pm
The Cannonball RunOn: Five USADate: Saturday 6th NovemberTime: 8:05pm (and 9:05pm Five USA+1, 12:15/1:15pm 7th Nov)
The Day The Earth Stood Still (1951)On: more4Date: Saturday 6th NovemberTime: 12:55pm
The Dirty DozenOn: FiveDate: Sunday 7th NovemberTime: 6:05pm
The Long Kiss GoodnightOn: ITV4 Date: Friday 5th NovemberTime: 11:50pm (and 00:50am 6th Nov ITV4+1)The Matrix ReloadedOn: ITV2 Date: Monday 8th NovemberTime: 11:45pm (and 00:45am 9th Nov ITV2+)The Night Of The HunterOn: TCMDate: Sunday 7th NovemberTime: 9:00pm (and 1:20am 8th Nov)
The Parallax ViewOn: Sky Movies Crime and Thriller Date: Monday 8th NovemberTime: 09:00am (and 5:00pm)
The Secret Of My Succe$sOn: ITV3Date: Sunday 7th NovemberTime: 3:10pm (and 4:10pm ITV3+1)
The Way Of The DragonOn: SyFyDate: Friday 5th NovemberTime: 10:00pm (and 11:00pm Syfy+1)
The WitchesOn: FiveDate: Saturday 6th NovemberTime: 1:40pm (and 2:10pm Five+1)
The X FilesOn: Film4Date: Friday 5th NovemberTime: 9:00pm (and 10:00pm Film4+1)
TronOn: Sky Movies Sci-Fi/Horror Date: Sunday 7th NovemberTime: 09:45am (and 3:50am 8th Nov, 3:20pm 10th Nov)
Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With MeOn: horror channel Date: Saturday 6th NovemberTime: 10:55pm
UnforgivenOn: TCM Date: Friday 5th NovemberTime: 9:00pm (and 1:55am 6th Nov, 10:45/11:45pm 7th Nov ITV4/+1)
V For VendettaOn: WatchDate: Saturday 6th NovemberTime: 10:00pm (and 11:00pm Watch+1, 9/10:00pm 7th Nov)
Willy Wonka And The Chocolate FactoryOn: ITV3Date: Sunday 7th NovemberTime: noon (and 1:00pm ITV3+1)
You Only Live TwiceOn: ITV1Date: Saturday 6th NovemberTime: 3:15pm
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