BACK for a second series, The Sarah Jane Adventures continues in a more likeable and effective vein than its fellow Doctor Who spin-off, Torchwood. Its lack of unconvincing sexual chemistry, self-conscious posturing and Burn Gorman's face certainly helps.
This lively CBBC series is, in its straightforwardly enjoyable way, endearingly reminiscent of classic Doctor Who which, for a hopeless fan such as me, is no bad thing.
This enjoyable opening episode featured several elements which wouldn't have
looked out of place in a mid-1970s episode of its parent series. Included were a spooky opening sequence featuring a pretty girl screaming at an unseen assailant, invisible force fields, a remote scientific retreat (located at Goblin's Copse, which should be pronounced with caution), a hypnotised drone acting in an obviously zombified manner, lines such as "resistance will be crushed!", the villain helpfully explaining his plan to the heroes, and a neat cliff-hanger. Throw in a solitary and distinctly brassed-off Sontaran stalking through a forest, and I half expected Jon Pertwee to swish into view brandishing a scientific doobrey fashioned from copper wire and corks.
The plucky Ms Smith (the virtually ageless Elisabeth Sladen) has, of course, bumped into those warmongering clones from the planet Sontar twice before, in the 1970s serials The Time Warrior (her first ever story) and The Sontaran Experiment to be precise, although I trust I'm not telling you anything that you don't already know.
In fact, The Last Sontaran was a sequel of sorts to a Doctor Who adventure shown earlier this year. Such cross-pollination between series could prove self-indulgent and – please excuse the term – alienating, but it's probably safe to say that any regular Sarah Jane viewer will almost certainly be an avid follower of the Doctor's adventures too. In any case, the writing is so deft and assured that any concerns about continuity overkill were effortlessly quelled.
The effectiveness of this series is all the more remarkable when one considers how lousy the initial idea seemed. When I first heard about it, I doubted that young kids would be interested in the Earthbound adventures of a middle-aged spinster who only older fans of the original series would remember.
I was also concerned that, along with the patchy Torchwood, BBC Wales were in danger of oversaturating the market with substandard Who spin-offs. After all, as every farmboy knows, a cow can only be milked for so long before it collapses in an exhausted, mooing heap.
As it transpired, I was wrong on both counts, which probably explains why I'll never be as rich, fat and venerated as Russell T Davies. It seems obvious now that Sarah Jane – rather than behaving like a lonely menopausal sourpuss – would act as a surrogate Doctor figure and be surrounded by a small coterie of agreeable child characters for easy viewer identification. I also didn't take into account the undeniable fact that Davies and Co are obviously much better at writing sci-fi/fantasy adventures for a child/family audience than they are for adults.
So while it's hardly essential viewing for grown-ups (although it's better and no more unbelievable than New Tricks, say), The Sarah Jane Adventures is nonetheless a charming confection devised by a team that knows just how to cook up quality children's television. Just as my generation fondly recalls the likes of Chocky and Stig of the Dump, in years to come Sarah Jane's young viewers will doubtless regard the show with lingering affection.
LOSING IT: GRIFF RHYS JONES ON ANGER
BBC2, 9pm
The second and concluding part of gruff Griff's look at what makes him lose his rag. It's funny and well observed, and for once the talking heads here actually bring something to the debate.
JAMIE'S MINISTRY OF FOOD
Channel 4, 9pm
New four-part series in which the mockney chef once again comes over all public service on us. He's sorted out school dinners and weighed in to save battery chickens – now he's determined to re-educate us and our slovenly food ways. In this first episode, we meet a five-year-old girl from Rotherham who most evenings eats kebab and chips from the local takeaway because her mum has never used the eight-burner hob in her kitchen to make the family a meal. Enter Jamie, who hopes to show the townsfolk – and the country – that good home cooking is easy, and need not cost the Earth.
DAWN PORTER: FREE LOVER
Channel 4, 10pm
Dawn Porter, below, flits from the Beeb's digi-channels to a new show on Channel 4, in which she travels the globe to look at the different ways that relationships can work. First up she looks at polyamory, visiting California and Germany to see who it works in practice.
UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: VILLARREAL VS CELTIC
STV, 7:30pm
Gordon Strachan's Celtic have done well in the competition in previous years, but after a home draw last time out, the pressure is on in Spain.
TIGERLAND
BBC1, 12:05am
Joel Schumacher eschews the worst excesses of his Batman days and goes back to basics with this visceral movie focusing on the tough jungle training of US infantry conscripts before being shipped out to Vietnam. Colin Farrell, in one of his early leading roles, plays a disruptive dissenter who just wants out of the army and who will stop at noting to get his wish. Low budget and filmed in an in-your-face, almost documentary style this is potent screen drama.
DOGVILLE
Channel 4, 1:05am
Director Lars von Trier shows Joel Schumacher just how stripped back film-making can be in this stylised but satisfying and powerful morality fable, played out on a bare sound stage, with the set suggested merely by chalk outlines and props. Nicole Kidman is the Depression-era runaway who places herself at the mercy of the residents of a remote village in return for their protection from the Mob. Paul Bettany and Lauren Bacall also star.
Matt Brereton
LONDON TO BRIGHTON IN 4 MINUTES
BBC4, 9:55pm
An undercranked film camera is affixed to the front of a train as it journeys from London to Brighton, meaning the whole journey takes just four minutes. It sounds simplistic and dull, but is quite fascinating to watch.
