Yellowjackets, The Curfew and The Tony Blair Story: TV highlights this week

The 1% Club Valentine’s Special (Saturday 14/02/26, ITV1, 8.30pm)

Words by Rachael Popow

Does the couple that quizzes together stay together? Or should you avoid appearing on a game show with your other half unless you want to have an argument on national TV? We’re about to find out as Lee Mack invites couples (and singles) to compete in a special edition of The 1% Club in honour of what should be the most romantic day of the year.

If this is the first time you’ve seen the show – perhaps because your own partner is a fan and is insisting you stay in and watch it for Valentine’s Day – the format tests contestants on their lateral thinking rather than their general knowledge as it builds to a question that only one per cent of the population can get right.

For the contestants who make it all the way to the end, there’s a chance to win up to £100,000 (so let’s hope any couples appearing have already discussed what they’ll do with the winnings, as well as their gameplay strategy).

Host Lee admits he would be unlikely to get a shot at the jackpot on his own. Speaking to The Mirror, he said that when he first sees the questions, he often has no idea of the answers. “I have to be prepared, so it’s not the first time I’ve read them [on the show]. But in the rehearsals in the afternoon, the producers come and see me and we play the game – just the three of us to see if I can answer them as well. But yeah, I’m as confused as everybody else.”

He says his kids even let him play the quiz along with them when the episodes eventually air, as they know he will have forgotten the answers by them.

In fact, it seems he even doubts his qualifications to host the show. When it was announced last year that The 1% Club was being renewed for two more series, Lee said: “Well let’s be honest, the fact that I haven’t accidentally given a hundred grand to the wrong person or read out the answer instead of the question is as much a surprise to me as it is to everyone else. So, I’m delighted that ITV are risking me steering this ship once again!”

Some viewers would say that’s taking the self-deprecation a little too far. As Lee has demonstrated on Would I Lie to You?, where he’s a team captain, he’s one of the quickest-witted comedians on TV.

He’s certainly a big reason why this show has been such a hit – and he has the Bafta nomination for Best Entertainment Performance to prove it.

Lee will be showing off his skills tonight, but if you want to see a real test of his abilities, keep watching after Valentine’s Day is over. There’s reportedly another special episode in the offing – and it will see kids competing.

Yellowjackets (Sunday 15/02/26, ITV1, 10.15pm)

Words by Rachael Popow

Last week, BBC One launched a new adaptation of Lord of the Flies, and this week ITV1 brings us the free-to-air premiere of the thriller Yellowjackets, which draws inspiration from William Golding’s classic – but with a twist.

One of the drama’s stars, Melanie Lynskey, told NPR: “I’ve heard [the show’s creators] tell the story at a panel where they were reading the comments on Deadline or something, and people were like, ‘Oh, you can never do an all-female Lord of the Flies because what are they going to do? Compromise to death?’

“Like all these things about women: about women not being vicious, women not being violent and not being willing to do what it takes to survive. And Ashley [Lyle], who’s one of the show creators, was like, ‘These people have never met a teenage girl!’ And then they got inspired to tell this particular story.”

The story in question plays out over two timelines, the first one taking place in 1996, when a girls’ high-school soccer team from New Jersey (the Yellowjackets of the title) are flying to Seattle for a championship tournament. Their plane crashes in the Canadian wilderness, leaving the survivors stranded for over a year.

With food in short supply, the creepy opening scene makes it clear that the girls resorted to some very desperate measures.

Meanwhile, 25 years later, one of the girls who made it back to civilisation, Taissa Turner (Tawny Cypress), is launching her senate campaign which re-ignites media interest in the story.

In an intriguing touch, the current-day storyline features a trio of actresses who know what it was like to be in the spotlight as teens in the 1990s.

The aforementioned Melanie Lynskey plays Shauna, who now leads a seemingly mundane life with her husband and teenage daughter, but has a darker side she’s been repressing.

New Zealand-born Lynskey made her film debut at the age of 17 in Peter Jackson’s acclaimed movie Heavenly Creatures, in which she and a then-unknown Kate Winslet played a pair of teenage girls who were convicted of a shocking murder.

Natalie, who we first meet as an adult when she’s checking out of rehab, is played by Juliette Lewis, who gave an Oscar-nominated performance in Martin Scorsese’s 1991 thriller remake Cape Fear when she was still only 17.

Then there’s the eccentric nurse, Misty Quigley, who is played by Christina Ricci. She made her film debut playing Cher’s daughter in the 1990 comedy-drama Mermaids at the age of just 10, and had her breakout role a year later when she was cast as a darkly deadpan Wednesday in The Addams Family.

Meanwhile, the young cast in the 1990s timeline is bursting with rising stars too, including Ella Purnell and Sophie Thatcher.

We’re introduced to them all in tonight’s opening double bill, which begins with the devastating crash.

Or at least it’s devastating for most of the team. As the second episode in this opening double bill shows, outsider Misty (played as a teen by Sammi Hanratty) rather enjoys being in demand for once due to her first-aid skills.

The Curfew (Monday 16/02/26, 5, 9pm)

Words by Sarah Morgan

You could describe new six-part drama The Curfew as being ‘ripped from the headlines’.

The safety of women is a subject that’s rarely been out of the news over the years, so the series – the first three episodes of which are being broadcast on consecutive days this week – could be described as topical. The premise, however, may sound rather familiar – the show is making its debut on traditional TV after debuting on streaming service Paramount+ in 2024.

The story is based on Jayne Cowie’s novel After Dark and takes place in an alternate universe in which men are not allowed to roam the streets between the hours of 7pm and 7am; at all other times, their whereabouts is monitored by an ankle tag.

“I think the show is trying to start a debate about what compromises women make for men’s violence, and what are the compromises that men might make, and that’s a really interesting debate,” says Sarah Parish, who heads the cast as veteran detective Pamela Green.

“The curfew, though, as ridiculous as it sounds, is something that would never happen. However, it is very realistic for the police to advise women to not go out on their own after seven o’clock at night, nobody blinks an eyelid at that. Whereas, the idea of men having to stay in sounds terrible to others.

“I mean, obviously I’m not saying a curfew is a good thing at all, because I don’t think it would work, (but) it’s about educating people. It’s about people starting that conversation and just being a bit more aware of the violence towards women, because it is prevalent, and it’s out there, and it’s frightening, you know? And I think it’s a very on point show at the moment.”

The plot follows Pamela as she and her team investigate a murder, which she is convinced was carried out by a man, despite the fact it took place during the curfew. Her theory is dismissed, so she sets out to prove she’s right, with help from Eddie (Mitchell Robertson), a rookie police officer who’s learning the ropes by shadowing her. Much of the story is seen through Eddie’s eyes.

“As a character, Eddie is soft and gentle,” claims Robertson “I think it’s important even just to see that on screen, someone who also wants to work in a job where you imagine that you have to be aggressive to get ahead. Actually, he’s the opposite of that, and has found himself top of the class and in a position where he can prosper in that career. I think it’s important, because that’s what drew me to him.”

Generational differences in the approach to the curfew are also explored in a thought-provoking tale that also stars Mandip Gill, Alexandra Burke, Lucy Benjamin and Anita Dobson. Expect to be discussing the issues it raises around the watercooler at work – and don’t forget to tune into next week’s final trio of episodes either as the chilling truth is revealed.

The Tony Blair Story (Tuesday 17/02/26, Channel 4, 9pm)

Words by Damon Smith

We are slowly approaching the 30th anniversary of the “New Labour” landslide general election victory, which swept Tony Blair to power after 18 years of Conservative rule on a manifesto of hope and change, pointedly soundtracked to D:Ream’s chart-topping dancefloor anthem Things Can Only Get Better.

For a while, the song seemed to echo positive sentiment across the nation and Labour remained in power for 13 years, mostly under Blair’s premiership, until the 2010 election when a hung parliament forced the Conservatives, led by David Cameron, to form a coalition with Nick Clegg’s Liberal Democrats at the tail end of a bitterly divisive Iraq War which had weakened Blair’s political grasp and contributed, in part, to his downfall.

A three-part factual series directed Michael Waldman chronicles the life, leadership and legacy of Blair on consecutive nights. The documentary has been made the team responsible for the 2024 series The Rise and Fall of Boris Johnson, which traced a narrative arc from the former Prime Minister’s chaotic childhood, through the 2016 Brexit referendum victory which shocked pollsters, and through Boris’ premiership, which included the Covid and Partygate scandals that ignited a public outcry and led to his own MPs turning against him.

The Tony Blair Story is an equally bumpy ride, going beyond the sensationalist tabloid headlines to explore the life and leadership of a man who transformed the Labour Party, as told by his political opponents, allies, family and friends including, his wife Cherie and their four children.

An in-depth interview with Blair is also carefully threaded through the three episodes, beginning in tonight’s instalment with his reflections on the traumas during his formative years that propelled him into the beating heart of political life. He also recalls how he repeatedly failed to be selected as a candidate for Parliament until realising his dream by winning the last seat left in the country.

On Wednesday, Blair thinks back to his second election victory, which he used as a springboard to build a close relationship with American President George W Bush. The coordinated September 11 terrorist attacks proved instrumental in building support for a US-led war in Afghanistan and when President Bush revealed that he intended to displace Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, the British Prime Minister had a decision to make that would define his second term in office. He talks on camera about the decision to go to war in Iraq.

The series concludes on Thursday night with Blair battling to a third successive election victory despite his weakened position as a result of the conflict. Also featured are his handling of a major domestic terror attack on home soil and how he put global poverty on the international agenda.

Eventually forced out of power by his own party and replaced by Gordon Brown, Blair faced criticism about his years in power and vociferously defended his time in No10 Downing Street while attempting to build a new legacy.

A lifetime over three nights: a week is a long time in political documentaries.

Alice Roberts: Our Hospital Through Time (Wednesday 18/02/26, 5, 8pm)

Words by Damon Smith

Founded in 1123 by a courtier of King Henry I called Rahere, St Bartholomew’s is the oldest hospital in Britain still operating on its original site in the City of London. Known affectionately as Barts, the institution is revered as one of the global leaders in cutting-edge medicine and the groundbreaking work of hospital staff continues a rich tradition dating back almost 1,000 years.

A six-part series presented by Professor Alice Roberts is granted unprecedented access to the hospital’s modern wards and its private archive, which boasts unique items and articles spanning centuries of medicine unlike any other collection in the world. Diving into this treasure trove of fascinating and priceless artefacts, the anatomist and historian reveals how centuries of risk and innovation shaped modern medicine from brutal early surgeries to robot-assisted operations that push the technological boundaries in order to save lives.

The first episode begins, fittingly, in Barts’ extraordinary archive, which is filled with nearly 900 years of documents and keepsakes. Alice is granted special access to one of the hospital’s most precious items: a grant signed by Rahere dating back to 1137, which still bears its original wax seal. It’s a striking reminder of the hospital’s origins, which is in stark contrast to what’s going on across the courtyard in the King George V Building, where a high-tech future unfolds in 10 state-of-the-art catheterisation laboratories. Here, a crack team of cardiologists saves the lives of thousands of heart patients each year using minimally invasive technology.

Urgent cardiac emergencies are rushed into Barts and cameras follow doctors as they use a live x-ray feed to identify a blocked blood vessel and guide a tiny stent into a patient’s heart. X-rays are a routine part of medicine today but in the Pathology Museum, Alice finds evidence of their grisly history, including the amputated fingers of early practitioners who got too close to the radiation. Barts uses the technology safely to treat cancer and down in the hospital’s basement, army veteran Terry receives radiotherapy treatment for a tumour on his eyelid.

Like Terry and other patients that come through its doors, the hospital building itself also receives timely treatment, and the oldest part of the site is undergoing a £9.5 million restoration. The North Wing boasts an imposing Great Hall and a magnificent staircase but contractors are focused on painstaking work to rebuild the 250-year-old slate roof to protect patients and staff from the unrelenting elements.

Allocating beds at Barts falls under the remit of Head of Clinical Site Management Jason Morley-Smith and his logistical skills are tested by a rush of cardiac emergencies. Reflecting on the past, Alice and fellow historian Ruth Goodman explore how early patients might have slept on the floor. An original copy of The Surgeon’s Mate, one of the earliest English manuals for surgery dating back to the 1600s, inspires Alice to head The Old Operating Theatre to re-enact (but not literally) the gruesome amputation of gangrenous limbs. Not for the faint of heart.

Cecil: The Lion and the Dentist (Thursday 19/02/26, Channel 4, 10pm)

Words by Sarah Morgan

On seeing the title of this feature-length documentary, you could be forgiven for thinking it follows the efforts of a brave tooth expert to give the titular big cat a quick examination and brush up. And while that sounds like rather a good premise for a TV show (well, there are far worse currently doing the rounds), it’s rather more serious than that.

Before his death in 2015, Cecil the lion wasn’t quite as famous as Elsa, the female cub raised by game warden George Adamson and his wife Joy in the 1950s after being orphaned at just four days old, and whose story was later immortalised in the beloved film Born Free. Even Clarence the cross-eyed lion, who had his own movie in 1965 before becoming the ‘star’ of US family TV show Dakar, and Simba of The Lion King could be said to have been more prominent.

However, all that changed after Minnesota dentist and recreational hunter Walter Palmer wounded Cecil with an arrow at Hwange National Park in Matabeleland North, Zimbabwe. The lion survived a further 10 to 12 hours before he was tracked down again and Palmer finished the job with a compound bow.

As we’ll see in the programme, Cecil was a hugely popular figure. Named after explorer Cecil Rhodes, he was 13 at the time of his death and known for his tolerant behaviour around humans. Unlike some of the park’s other residents, he let visitors get as close as 10m from him in their vehicles without running away; this allowed him to be photographed many times, becoming Hwange’s figurehead or poster boy in the process. He had also been tagged and monitored as part of an Oxford University research project.

So when his body was eventually found, skinned and minus its head, there was – pardon the unwanted pun – uproar among those who had enjoyed watching him stride majestically across the plain. It was an undignified end for such a magnificent and beloved creature.

As Palmer had purchased a permit (and reputedly paid $50k to a professional hunter-guide for the ‘privilege’ of being able to kill a lion), he wasn’t charged with any crime, but the furore forced him to issue a statement in which he claimed he regretted his actions.

“I relied on the expertise of my local professional guides to ensure a legal hunt,” wrote Palmer. “I deeply regret that my pursuit of an activity I love and practise responsibly and legally resulted in the taking of this lion.”

Produced and directed by Bafta-winners John Smithson and Arthur Cary respectively, the documentary explores Cecil’s life and his death, revealing how it may have shone a light on conservation, the far-reaching impact of colonisation and the issue of big-game hunting.

Among those offering their opinions are safari operators, members of the local community, trophy hunters and individuals directly involved in what happened that fateful day in July 2015.

Cecil may not have been Disney’s Lion King, but as we’re about to see, he was a prince among his species, and one who may have a lasting legacy.

Death in Paradise (Friday 20/02/26, BBC1, 9pm)

Words by Rachael Popow

Working on the island of Saint Marie may seem like a dream job for a police officer – it’s sunny, your colleagues are welcoming, and while the crime rate may be high so is the clean-up rate.

However, most of the detectives who have found themselves seconded there have initially struggled to fit in, and DI Mervin Wilson, played by Don Gilet, is no exception.

Luckily, now he’s on his second series, the cop seems to be adjusting to life on Saint Marie and his team, although it’s not entirely smooth sailing.

Don explains: “Just by his nature and the way he is when it comes to his work and the way that his mind works, there’s always going to be a bit of kickback with the people he deals with. Last year, there was this antagonism between Mervin and the team because they just worked in very different ways, and both had to earn the respect of each other in the way they work.

“And let’s not forget, he didn’t want to be on the island, so he was going to be particularly reluctant to work with these people because of the personal issues he was dealing with.”

He adds: “But as time has moved on, he’s realised that he needs these people. They are now gelling, they’re working as a team – now it’s cracking the cases that frustrate him, and they become frustrated as a group. You’ll still see him sometimes working at odds with the team, but they know each other now and can allow for that a little more.”

In this episode, Mervin makes a concerted effort to feel more at home on the island, even if it’s by bringing a little bit of London to Saint Marie.

Of course, there’s still a crime to solve as the cops are called to a local church, St Vincent’s, where an elderly parishioner died after the large cross she was dusting apparently fell on top of her. It seems like a tragic accident – not only was the church locked from the inside, but there’s no obvious motive for anyone to kill the sweet, God-fearing Mrs Godwin.

Mervin still suspects there’s more to her death than meets the eye, but the investigation could prove difficult for Seb. His mother is the long-time pastor at St Vincent’s and he grew up with this congregation – could one of them really be capable of murder?

While it may be uncomfortable for the young cop, actor Shaquille Ali-Yebuah is pleased to be able to show a different side to his character. He says: “It’s great that we get to explore Seb’s life outside of work because we’ve only seen him at work, and how bubbly and energetic he is, so it’s good to see what his home life is and what his upbringing has been like.

“We meet his mum and see what their relationship is like. Audiences will also get a better understanding of why he has a fidgety brain, seeing him from this different perspective.”