This week in TV Katie Finnegan – May 21st 2020

Katies recommendations on what to keep an eye out for this week on your TV. Listen to the full podcast here

TV News

We were talking about Patrick Dempsey in Devils recently, but he’s popped up again, a little closer to home this time

Northern Ireland businesswoman Olivia Burns has revealed she secretly hosted Hollywood star Patrick Dempsey for the past two weeks while he is in Ireland to shoot the Disney film Disenchanted, and said he “absolutely loved it here”.

The actor, who is probably best known for playing Doctor Derek ‘McDreamy’ Shepherd in Grey’s Anatomy, stars alongside Oscar-nominated actress Amy Adams in the sequel to the 2007 fairy-tale rom com Enchanted. Dempsey sent fans into a frenzy while sharing snippets of his time here on social media, previously shared a photo of himself with Burns’ donkey Neddy on his Instagram page.

The first trailer for Prince Harry and Oprah’s mental health series has been released,

This features interviews with Lady Gaga, Glenn Close and American basketball player DeMar DeRozan. The Duke of Sussex and Winfrey have collaborated on the documentary series The Me You Can’t See for Apple’s streaming service as co-creators and executive producers.

In the emotionally charged trailer, the British royal tells Winfrey: “To make that decision to receive help is not a sign of weakness. In today’s world, more than ever, it is a sign of strength.”

Prince Harry recently said the life of a royal was “a mix between The Truman Show and living in a zoo”. The Apple TV+ series will begin on Friday May 21st.

Sticking with Royal News…

Prince William says the BBC’s failures surrounding Martin Bashir’s 1995 Panorama interview with his mother “contributed significantly to her fear, paranoia and isolation” – and the episode should never be broadcast again.

His brother Prince Harry criticised the media following an inquiry into the interview, saying: “Our mother lost her life because of this, and nothing has changed.”

It comes after an independent inquiry found Mr Bashir, who has now left the BBC, “deceived and induced” Diana’s brother Earl Spencer to secure the landmark interview.

Some news form Cornation Street

Coronation Street is opening its doors to two guests for one night only, staying next door to the famous Rovers Return Inn.

The temporary Airbnb – a self-contained pop-up house – will be situated in the heart of the street, with guests taken on a private tour of the set followed by a hotpot dinner while watching classic Corrie episodes.

The area will include exteriors of Coronation Street sights including Preston’s Petals, The Kabin, and Fiz and Tyrone’s.

The bookable date will become available on the Airbnb website on Wednesday May 26 at 1pm, and will be offered on a first-come first-served basis.

Bridgerton

Netflix is to create a prequel to its hit series Bridgerton. The new series will tell the “origin story” of Queen Charlotte and will also feature a young Violet Bridgerton and a young Lady Danbury.

Shonda Rhimes will write the series and serve as executive producer and it has been a ratings hit for Netflix.

The company revealed in January that the period drama, which is filmed in the UK, was its biggest ever original series after it was viewed by a record 82 million households in 28 days.

It has previously been announced that Rege-Jean Page will not return for the second season of the drama.

Since the release of the “Bridgerton” soundtrack, Vitamin String Quartet (aka VSQ) has seen a 350% increase in streams and grown monthly listeners by over 50% on Spotify and Amazon Music. “Bridgerton” is currently the No. 1 soundtrack album on iTunes and No. 5 overall.

The Los Angeles based group, famous for their rock tributes feature in the series with classical covers of modern pop hits, including Ariana Grande’s “Thank U, Next”, Maroon 5’s “Girls Like You”, Shawn Mendes’ “In My Blood” and Billie Eilish’s “Bad Guy.”  The Eilish cover is used during a ballroom sequence.

We were speaking about the Elton John and Freddie Mercury biopics a few weeks ago, and there’s another on the way..

There’s going to be a film about Cher’s life.

The singer and actress, who turns 75 this week, announced the news on social media.

The biopic will be written by Eric Roth – the Oscar-winner behind Forrest Gump and A Star is Born.

What’s on TV

The Eurovision was on this week

The crazy costumes, catchy tunes and country flags were back with a bang as the first semi-final in the Eurovision Song Contest took place on Tuesday and the second semi-final last night.

Ireland fell at the first hurdle of Eurovision 2021 with Lesley Roy’s Maps eliminated in the semi-final.

Iceland will be in the Eurovision final this weekend, despite having had to pull out of the semis because of a positive Covid case.

They’re among 10 more nations who’ve qualified for Saturday’s show – including Portugal, Greece and Albania.

San Marino is also through, after US rapper Flo Rida joined Senhit on stage in last night’s semi final.

The last Irish contestant to reach the final was Ryan O’Shaughnessy, in 2018, and Ryan Dolan, in 2013.

The Pact

Another exciting new drama getting that started this week is The Pact, which follows four co-workers at a brewery who enter into an oath of silence after finding their boss dead. As a police investigation is launched, pressure starts to mount and the women become suspicious of each other’s involvement in the incident. This commission comes courtesy of BBC Cymru Wales, the channel responsible for other recent hits such as Keeping Faith and Hidden.

Innocent 

is a British television series, produced by that was first broadcast on ITV for four consecutive nights between 14 and 17 May 2018. The first series tells the story of David Collins (Lee Ingleby), who was convicted of murdering his wife Tara. After serving seven years in prison he was acquitted on a legal technicality. The story revolves around attempts to reveal the truth of who actually killed Tara, with the plot involving the police.

The TV show was renewed for a second season in September 2020, which began on Monday. And ran up until last night. This season does not follow on from the events of series one, and it will instead include a new cast and plot. 

The new season will follow actress Katherine Kelly’s character, who is believed to have been having an affair with a 16-year-old pupil. The student is later stabbed with a broken cider bottle and the fingers are all pointing at the teacher as a suspect.

However, new evidence comes to light that proves her innocence, but this does not mean her reputation is intact. She is then forced to rebuild her life after being wrongly convicted, and it is not an easy task. 

You don’t often talk about Apple TV Shows, but you looked at one this week..

Trying season 2 – Apple TV+ (Out today)

Andy Wolton’s Apple TV+ comedy Trying is back with a second series starring Rafe Spall and Esther Smith as hopeful parents going through the adoption process. Featuring an original Trying season 2 soundtrack from Maisie Peters, the new episodes see the couple tackle the various obstacles that come with adopting whilst trying to keep things civil between their recently separated friends Erica (Ophelia Lovibond) and Freddy (Oliver Chris).

And what has this got to do with the Crown?

Fans of the The Crown are still coming down from the fourth season, which once again featured Olivia Colman wearing the titular crown. But devotees have one final Queen Elizabeth to look forward to, who’ll ascend the throne for seasons five and six Esther Smith and Rafe Spall (PR: Rayfe spawl) say they think Imelda Staunton’s changed since being cast as the Queen for the next series of The Crown. The three actors all star in parenting comedy Trying – which returns for a second

And finally – Who killed Sara on Netflix?

Alex, a man convicted of a crime he did not commit, is released after 18 years behind bars. Upon leaving, he only wants revenge on Rodolfo Lazcano, the person responsible for the death for which he was sentenced. Things get complicated when Alex starts a sentimental relationship with Elisa, the Lazcano’s youngest daughter, and when he discovers that Rodolfo is innocent and that someone else, who has skillfully kept in the shadows, was the true cause of his disgrace.

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