Around the World in 20 Years, Tuesday 9pm, BBC1

Posted by Tom Murphy

Our rating:

In a not-too-distant parallel universe, 1988 saw golden-tressed licence-fee rebel Noel Edmonds recreate Phileas Fogg's journey in Around the World in 80 Days, kicking off the now-blooming genre of celebrity-led travelogues.

Thankfully, in our version of reality, Edmonds didn't fancy the gig and Monty Python's Michael Palin fished out his passport instead. In doing so, he began a new career as a traveller that has taken him all over the globe and propelled him to National Treasure status.

To mark the 20th anniversary of his journey (and to promote a new edition of the accompanying book), Palin set off to track down some of the travellers who accompanied him on one of the most memorable legs of his journey.

Strictly Come Dancing, Saturday, BBC1

Posted by Liberty Jones

Underdog Tom Chambers sensationally stormed to victory in the most closely contested final of Strictly Come Dancing ever. The Holby City star had finished bottom of the leaderboard last week, but due to a voting blunder all three couples went through to the final.

As the competition got underway, it seemed to be anyone's game. Lisa and partner Brendan Cole set a sizzling standard by notching up a maximum 80 points for their two dances. Judge Bruno praised the "mythical glamour and technical excellence" of the pair's foxtrot, while he pronounced their cha cha cha "truly eye-popping".

And Rachel showed what she was made of as she bagged 40 for her ballroom and 39 in the Latin. The judges heaped praise on the singer, with Arlene saying her raunchy rumba displayed "raw emotion, great musicality and an instinct for dance I didn't think you had".

Tom, meanwhile, was trailing behind the two girls on 73 points as the first elimination loomed. He got off to the worst possible start, as he stumbled during the foxtrot – a mistake that cost him dear. His salsa fared better, with head judge Len saying: "I'm knocked out, that was absolutely brilliant."

Despite being the judges' favourite, Lisa could only manage third place after failing to win the viewers' hearts, leaving Tom and Rachel to go head to head in a Viennese waltz, followed by the no-holds-barred showdance.

At this point, we must admit we were rooting for Rachel and her partner, Italian sex thimble Vincent Simone. The former S Club star has, as the judges pointed out, displayed the most consistency throughout the competition and her footwork is second to none. However, her showdance – though technically competent – failed to dazzle.

By contrast, Tom's performance with partner Camilla Dallerup was stunning – the best showdance we've seen in any series of Strictly. The comedy-filled routine saw Tom perform some of his trademark tapdancing before he pulled off a tricky round-the-world lift. The judges were equally impressed – Craig put it best as he told the actor: "You're like Bisto gravy, darling... you saved the best till last."

The viewers at home agreed and, as a teary Tom and Camilla lifted the coveted trophy, we couldn't help feeling happy for them. But was Tom the show's best celebrity dancer? Absolutely not. Who do you think deserved to win?

Picture: BBC

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Time for Brucie to say bye-bye?

Posted by Stewart Turner

It’s not just Rachel Stevens, Lisa Snowdon and Tom Chambers who’ll be desperate to impress the Great British Public with their skills this weekend. Strictly Come Dancing host and all-round national treasure Bruce Forsythe has been under fire for much of the series following a series of high-profile gaffes.

Notable Brucie bloopers from the past few months include referring to ex-EastEnder Jesse Wallace as “Jelly” – although the quick-thinking octogenarian was quick to qualify that remark by quipping “well, you were wobbling a bit in that dress” – and warning Ian Waite, who danced with model and keen polo player Jodie Kidd, not to injure his leg “or she may have to get the vet to shoot you”. Pretty funny if you ask me, but there you go.

Jamie Cooks Christmas, Thursday 9pm, Channel 4

Posted by Will Parkhouse

Our rating:

In recent years, Jamie Oliver has given us such cookery campaigns as Jamie's Kitchen (turning disadvantaged youths into professional chefs), Jamie's School Dinners (turning junky school dishes into food you can actually eat) and Jamie's Ministry of Food (turning the UK population into people who actually cook food, one town at a time) – so was this return to the classic instructional cookery show format Jamie's Big Comedown?

Well, aside from frequent hints that the Naked Chef sees festive food as something not only to be horsed down, but to bring people together, Jamie Cooks Christmas was a step away from his do-gooding campaignery and back to the old school – but also a reminder of why Jamie's kitchen antics caught on in the first place.

Die-hard Oliver-haters were gifted a ready-written joke when he explained how to make "an incredible jerk", but others should have found it hard to resist his charms. This one was all about turning leftovers into the kind of delicacies that'll make your in-laws actually like you, but unlike the more voyeuristic TV cookery shows, they genuinely did make you think, "hold on, I could feasibly make that!"

If you could get past the host's occasional unintentionally hilarious affectations – like doing the Ali G finger snap and proclaiming, "Combo. Combo!" when he was explaining how well chocolate, frozen grapes and Grappa go together, or his use of phrases like, "Let's plate this little baby up" – there was a lot to love here.

Jamie has a way of talking through recipes as if imparting some secret plan to you, his mate, with all those sentences that begin with a conspiratorial "what we're gonna do is…" "The thing I love about this is that it's dead simple, and when you do it, it looks dead impressive," he says about his turkey and sweet leek pie. That's Jamie all over.

Picture: Channel 4

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Christmas at River Cottage, Wednesday 8pm, Channel 4

Posted by Jane Murphy

"This year the turkey's off the hook," grinned Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall - before unwittingly doing his bit for nut roast sales by setting off to shoot a beautiful deer for Christmas dinner instead.

As you'd expect, he gave us the usual spiel as he strode around a Dorset estate with his gun. The annual deer cull keeps a sustainable number of animals in top condition. Brilliant! They're killed "humanely" - with a single shot from a high-power rifle. Marvellous! And it's not stalking or hunting of wild animals: it's "deer management". Righto, Hugh!

OK, I confess: I'm a vegetarian. (You'd guessed already, hadn't you?) But despite my aversion to graphic butchery scenes, I've always found something to interest me in Hugh's previous programmes: the recent slot on guerrilla gardening, for example, was truly inspiring.

But frankly, if you were invited to Christmas dinner at Hugh's place but don't like venison, you'd be stuffed (and not in a good way). Because Hugh was understandably so keen to ensure he used up every part of the animal, each course of his festive feast involved deer - yep, even the dessert (Christmas pudding roly-poly made with venison suet, in case you were wondering).

Admittedly, the Brussels sprouts didn't have any deer in them. Instead they were pressed on to mini black puddings and deep-fried in clementine batter. Oh, and the mash looked quite nice - once you'd removed the antlers, that is.

Picture: Channel 4

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The Royal Variety Performance, Wednesday 7.30pm, BBC1

Posted by Will Parkhouse

 

Watching the Royal Variety Performance is a bit unsettling at times and not just because there's such an abundance of men dressed as women this year. More disquieting are those sporadic moments when you find yourself aware that Prince Charles is sitting just over there. With every risqué moment, you wonder whether he approves.

But hey, if it's tough for a mere mortal to enjoy every single minute of this two-and-a-half hour extravaganza – now in its 80th year, by the way – presumably even the Prince winces at times and wishes, like I did, he had a "skip this act" button. The respective yelling and noodling of West End star Kerry Ellis and Queen guitarist Brian May, in particular, made me want to overthrow the monarchy in an attempt to put an end to the almost physical pain I was feeling.

Jamie puts a sock in it

Posted by Stewart Turner

Remember all that hoo-hah about Jamie Oliver’s potty-mouthed TV tirades the other month? Well, good news, folks - the Daily Mirror has today claimed a moral victory after Jamie’s production company bowed to the pressure of the paper's “Stop the swearing on telly” campaign and issued a statement promising it will “respond to public concern”.

Zoe Collins, the woman with the dubious honour of heading up Jamie’s Fresh One Production company, told the tabloid: “I am concerned if the swearing in the programmes is affecting people’s enjoyment of them. “Going forward we will be much more mindful of that. I know that Jamie does not use that language to shock and get more viewers. The reality is that he does use fruity language to express strong emotions,” she added.

Strictly Come Dancing, Saturday, BBC1

Posted by Liberty Jones

The semi-final of Strictly Come Dancing was thrown into chaos after a massive voting blunder. Viewers were left in confusion as presenter Tess Daly announced that all three contestants would be in next week's final, but offered no explanation as to why the expected dance-off was axed at the eleventh hour.

Show bosses took the shock decision after frothy-mouthed viewers inundated the BBC's switchboard, complaining of a "fix" by judges. The panel had awarded identical top marks to Lisa Snowdon and Rachel Stevens, while Tom Chambers finished bottom. It meant both female contestants three points overall towards the dance-off, while Tom only received one. So even if Tom had won a maximum three points from the voting public, he could only have scored four points in all and would still have ended up in the dance-off.

Faced with so many angry viewers, the BBC decided that the fairest option was to carry Saturday night's votes over to next week, when all three couples would compete for the title. What a cock-up, eh? Anyway, back to the dancing…

The couples were performing the tricky Argentine tango, as well as their favourite dance from the series so far. Lisa bagged 35 points for her tango – an amazing achievement when you consider it was the first time her partner Brendan Cole had attempted the dance. Her quickstep was even more impressive and earned her a perfect 40. "You moved around the dancefloor with the radiance and light of a shooting star," Bruno declared.

Rachel and partner Vincent Simone were also on fine form. The couple's Argentine tango was, said judge Len, "a technical tour de force", while their American Smooth had "the quality of a beautiful dream", according to Bruno.

Tom was undoubtedly the weakest performer of the night. His jive was criticised for its looseness, while his Argentine tango apparently lacked intricacy. Tom's partner Camilla Dallerup was crestfallen when the scores for their second dance came in, muttering to Tess: "It's not looking great, is it?" Needless to say, the pair were over the moon when it was announced that all three couples would be going into the final.

We're delighted that Tom will be dancing next week, but at the same time this voting fiasco – which could so easily have been avoided if only someone on the production team had paid attention during GCSE maths – has left a very bitter taste in our mouths. What's your view?

Picture: BBC

X Factor, Saturday, ITV1

Posted by Liberty Jones

Alex Burke lost it last night – lost her voice that is, as she performed the winner's new single 'Hallelujah' after a nail-biting three-hour final. The 20-year-old Londoner was so emotional after storming to victory she couldn't sing during the song's early verses. She quickly managed to compose herself, however, and as she exercised her impressive vocal chords – tears still streaming down her face – she was mobbed on stage by former contestants who hugged her as she sang. Awww!

As she savoured her victory, Alex told the audience: "Thank you for making my deams come true. I'm the happiest girl alive." She also paid tribute to mentor Cheryl Cole, saying: "Thank you so much, I owe everything to you." And Cheryl returned the compliment in spades, telling Alex: "Just thank you for being you, babe. I absolutely adore you."

It was the climax of a nail-biting three-hour final, which saw Alex fighting it out against Eoghan Quigg and boyband JLS. Eoghan struggled to hold back the tears when he was voted off first, despite performing a really rather enjoyable version of 'Picture of You' with the mighty Boyzone. Simon Cowell praised the Irish teenager, saying: "You're a great kid. You can leave here with your head held high." Oh, and fact fans may be interested to know that, although Alex bagged the final, Eoghan actually won the most of the live shows (six in total), with Alex taking two and Diana Vickers and JLS taking one each.

After a barnstorming performance with Westlife earlier in the show, JLS put up a brave fight with their own moving version of Leonard Cohen's classic 'Hallelujah' – but it wasn't enough to beat Alex, who had already impressed with renditions of 'Silent Night', Joe Cocker's 'You Are So Beautiful to Me' and a spine-tingling duet with Beyoncé, no less.

The win seals a remarkable rise for Alex who, just three months ago was earning £200 a night as a wedding singer. Now, she's a millionaire after securing the show's £1 million contract and is 2/1 favourite to scoop the Christmas No.1. We'll leave the final words to Simon Cowell: "God bless you Alex. You deserved it".

Picture: ITV

SEE ALSO:
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Who should win the X Factor?

So, we’re nearly there. More than 180,000 people auditioned for the current series of The X Factor. Now, after 10 weeks of appalling, hilarious or simply breathtaking performances, numerous dramas, tears and tantrums – and Britney lip-synching – we’re down to just three finalists.

JLS, Eoghan Quigg and Alexandra Burke will battle it out tonight – and one of them will be crowned the winner of this year’s X Factor. The winning act will record Leonard Cohen’s ‘Hallelujah’.

But to win your votes, tonight all three acts will have to sing their favourite songs which they have already performed in competition, plus duets with celebrity guests. After the shock withdrawal of Rihanna yesterday, JLS will now be performing with Westlife, while Alexandra is to team up with super-sub Beyoncé and Eoghan with Boyzone.

Regardless of what the papers and the bookies say, nothing is set in stone and you, the viewer, will have the final say. So who do you want to win this year’s X Factor?

Before you cast your votes tonight, tell us who deserves to be the winner – post your comments below.

SEE ALSO:
X Factor 2008 – the best bits >>
The X Factor fashion hits and misses >> 
Last week’s show >>