TV Times top picks for tonight
What’s on telly tonight? Here the TV Times team of expert reviewers highlight the best shows on Friday 24th August
Pump Up the Bhangra, 10pm, BBC4
BBC Asian Network DJ Bobby Friction takes a journey back to his youth in this celebration and history of Bhangra music. Bobby’s infectious enthusiasm reaches fever pitch when he meets some of his musical heroes, such as drummer Gurcharan Mall (who he likens to Animal from The Muppets), and reminisces about bunking off school to go to daytime Bhangra discos, as thousands of Asian teens did in the 1980s. The DJ laments the fact that Bhangra has never made it big in mainstream culture, despite countless tapes sold in Asian corner shops and it providing the soundtrack to every Asian family party. A feel-good, toe-tapping extravaganza! Rating: *****
Gardeners’ World, 8pm, BBC2
Carol Klein wants us to make the most of the glorious recent weather by giving us her advice on some of the plants that are at their peak at this time of year, and one that will give your garden the wow factor when it gets cooler – the Monarda. Meanwhile, Monty Don looks ahead with his guide to pruning blackcurrant bushes, and Adam Frost adds the finishing touches to the garden he helped a Leicestershire couple create. Rating: ****
Extraordinary Rituals, 9pm, BBC2
The theme of this second episode is ‘Great Gatherings’, as it zips around the globe exploring some of the most bizarre and fascinating rituals on the planet. From Italy’s Palio – a daredevil horse race through the town of Siena – to an awe-inspiring fire race down a mountain in Japan, devotion and community are amplified by gatherings of thousands, sometimes millions, of people. In Indonesia, farmers become warriors to viciously battle each other in a horseback war, and in Nevada, USA, we visit Burning Man, an event at which 70,000 people are united by grief, fire and a search for a deeper meaning to life. Rating: *****
More previews tomorrow
