Telly Today: footie, education and trolls
Today’s telly top picks with ATV Today Editor Doug Lambert.
Thursday TV treats include education in Manchester, a focus on footie, trolls and rules.
Channel 4 tonight follow on from ITV’s Manchester: 100 Days, which aired earlier this week with the incident earlier this year at the Manchester Evening News area touched upon in Educating Greater Manchester, 9pm.
The warm and honest series that explores what life’s like for school students and teachers returns, at a new school. Harrop Fold Secondary in Salford, Greater Manchester is a school at the heart of a changing community, dealing every day with everything that that throws at them. In this first episode, the pupils at Harrop Fold are comparing Trump’s hairstyle with Hitler’s, writing rude words on the back of a delivery van, and adjusting to an influx of students from a range of foreign countries. Rani, who’s 11, is originally from Syria. He joined Harrop Fold a few months ago after fleeing his war-torn home with his family.
Jack is also in Year 7. He’s old before his time and full of northern charm. A new friendship flourishes between Rani and Jack, and they both claim it will last forever. And the school also has to respond to the shockwaves of the terrorist attack at the Ariana Grande concert, which eight of the pupils and one teacher attended.
BBC One and football fans will be keen to catch up with Football Focus: Transfer Deadline Day Special, at 10.45pm. In this half hour special the beeb joins Dan Walker and the Football Focus team as they round up all the major transfers on deadline day, with news and reaction from around the country.
After months of speculation over the future of some of the Premier League’s biggest stars, top-flight clubs have until 11pm to strengthen their squads. Last summer, English clubs spent over £1bn in the transfer window, with deadline-day moves including David Luiz’s return to Chelsea from Paris St-Germain.
Dan Walker hosts Football Focus on BBC One at 10.45pm
Sky Sports keeps with the footie theme as the World Cup qualifying race edges towards its end. At 7.40pm tonight on Sky Sports Football its France v Netherlands. The Race to Russia ratchets up this week, with match days seven and eight providing the latest dramatic chapters in the campaign to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
An intriguingly poised set of groups means the qualification race is wide open. With just one team qualifying automatically from each, coming top is vital, and it’s tight in many of the tables – France and Sweden have 13 points each at the top of Group A, while Spain and Italy both have 16 points atop Group G. Closer to home, England seem in control of their path to Russia, while Scotland look on their way out. Northern Ireland could head into the playoffs – they’re unlikely to catch Germany but should finish second – and both Wales and the Republic of Ireland are battling it out in a tight Group D.
In these rounds of games, which run into the middle of next week, there are some absolutely pivotal matches. Ireland face a huge clash with Group D rivals Serbia in Dublin next week, Northern Ireland meet group rivals Czech Republic, Wales face Austria in Cardiff, and two of world football’s biggest names face off as France meet the Netherlands in Paris.
ITVBe for those who aren’t interested in sport but like a bit of lowbrow telly can head over to ITV’s female slanted channel. At 9pm its Vanderpump Rules which follows the exploits of Lisa Vanderpump and her staff, at her exclusive West Hollywood restaurant SUR, continues its fourth series. Vanderpump came to reality TV fame as a star of the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, but is also a well-known restaurateur. In her restaurant, drama, gossip and scandal are always on the menu.
In tonight’s episode, new girl Lala arrives and Katie and Scheana quickly teach her that there is no such thing as a secret at Lisa’s restaurant. As rumours spread that James has been unfaithful to her, Kristen must make a tough choice. Jax’s new girlfriend arrives from Kentucky. Scheana continues to feel the heat from Ariana over her friendship with Kristen.
Channel 5 at 10pm bring us Celeb Trolls: We’re Coming to Get You. In this series well known names, from the talented to the famous just because they are, track down people who have abused them online with insults, threats and suggestions of self improvement.
Tonight Frankie Bridge tracks down and confronts internet trolls. A dramatic confrontation ensues when Frankie and her team target a troll who sent vile messages to The X Factor star Chloe Jasmine, WAG Rebekah Vardy talks of the horrendous online threats she and her family received, and 20-year-old Joshua talks of how he turned his life around after being bullied.
