This week sees true love not as you know it, a detective return to the case and an eye-opening documentary looking at South America’s beauty pageants.
This week sees true love not as you know it, a detective return to the case and an eye-opening documentary looking at South America’s beauty pageants. As well as this Graham Norton invites more A-list guests onto his sofa for some cheeky humour. We kick off though with some nostalgia as ITV’s pop band reunion show returns.
1. The Big Reunion (Thursday, ITV2)
The nostalgic pop series returns with 90’s pop bands Eternal (minus Louise Redknapp), Girl Thing, 3T, A1 and Damage reuniting this time round. As well as that Blazin’ Squad’s Kenzie, ex-soap star turned pop star Adam Rickitt, Another Level’s Dane Bowers, Pop Idol runner-up Gareth Gates and one-hit wonder Kavana will be forming a supergroup. I doubt One Direction have got anything to worry about though!
2. Age Gap Love (Tuesday, Channel 5)
There’s still something taboo about age-gap relationships and there are plenty of cringe moments here, particularly if you’ve ever wondered what a pensioner looks like with a boob job! But it isn’t all hilarity as there are some touching moments between the couples, like Joan (68) who is determined to stay young for her 29 year old hoodie wearing Phil so he doesn’t leave her.
3. DCI Banks (Monday, ITV)
Stephen Tompkinson’s sleuth returns in the third series of the detective drama. DS Annie Cabbot (Andrea Lowe) returns and is at loggerheads with her maternity cover, DI Helen Morton (Caroline Catz), who is still around. The threesome are plunged into a child abduction case, when local tearaway Kyle Hearth vanishes with a couple posing as social workers. There are plenty of dark secrets brought to life in this pacy opener and you’ll have to wait until next week’s second part for the answers.
4. Extreme Beauty Queens: The Secrets of South America (Wednesday, BBC Three)
Billie JD Porter kicks off a three part series looking at the lives of young people in South America including Argentina’s attitude to sex, Brazil’s moneyed elite and struggling poor, and Venezuela’s obsession with beauty and body image. The first sees Billie spend six months with several competitors of the Miss Venezuela beauty contest, who will stop at nothing – including surgery – to win.
5. The Graham Norton Show (Friday, BBC One)
Irish comic Graham Norton seems to attract the biggest stars. Each week another great name perches their bottom on Graham’s sofa. And this week is no different as The Dark Knight Rises star Gary Oldman takes to the sofa to talk about his new role in the Robocop remake. Sharing the sofa is funny man Nick Frost promoting new comedy dance flick Cuban Fever – he may even show off some of the fancy footwork he’s had to learn.
Let us know what you’re looking forward to next week by tweeting @KettleMag and your tweet could feature in next week’s ‘What’s Brewing on the Box.’ 
