TV tonight: the new series of First Dates starts with a twist
Fresh from getting married himself, TV's most romantic man Fred Sirieix resumes playing Cupid as he once more opens the doors to the First Dates restaurant. In what is surely a first for the show, Sophie's husband sits at the bar as she goes on a date with a woman for the first time. Elsewhere in the room, Mike is a widowed dad looking for someone who understands his grief. And Derek and June are old romantics looking for a classic love story. Hollie Richardson
6.05pm, Channel 4
Even post-Brexit, Spain remains a favourite destination for Brits. This time, Sharon and Steve Garner are hunting for a property for Tracy and Graham in Almería. But the couple aren't on the same page. Can they both be satisfied within a relatively modest budget? For Graham, it will depend on the quality of nearby golf courses. Phil Harrison
7.30pm, BBC Two
More mellow plant inspiration from the Beechgrove team, who are full of useful tips for wherever you garden (if you're not already tickling your tomatoes, you really should be …) As July begins, Calum harvests his potatoes and shallots, while Brian offers a guide to grass. Hannah J Davies
8pm, BBC Two
Hedgehogs, chillies and homegrown dahlias all have their moment in the glorious sunshine this week, as Gardeners' World visits the RHS Hampton Court garden festival. We learn about how even small, urban gardens can support one of the UK's most endangered mammals and what kind of heat would motivate an Aberdeen couple to move south. Ellen E Jones
9pm, BBC One
It's the night of the first of Oasis's reunion gigs and – along with most of us – ticketless Lee has Fomo (that's Fear of Missing Oasis). Instead of happily getting a takeaway and watching an old concert on YouTube, he blames Lucy for missing out and bitterly recalls the day spent in the cursed online ticket queue. HR
10.40pm, BBC One
From sitcom writer Justin Spitzer (Scrubs, The Office, Superstore), this hospital mockumentary continues to deliver light laughs. The double bill starts with two prison inmates rushed in with injuries they gave to each other. Then, Joyce decides she wants to know more work gossip and find out who's dating who. HR
White House Down, Friday, 9pm, E4
If you couldn't get enough of Heads of State on Amazon Prime, here's a film that must have at least partly inspired it. Although it suffered at the time from comparisons to Olympus Has Fallen – Gerard Butler's dour action film about a terrorist attack on the presidential residence – White House Down is a far lighter affair. Sure, the same things happen, but this has Channing Tatum instead of Butler, and he's intent on delivering all his lines with the biggest wink imaginable. This is an impossibly silly film and, if you're drunk enough, it forms a perfect double bill with Heads of State. Stuart Heritage
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The Independent
13 minutes ago
- The Independent
‘They are turning him into a hero': Kneecap solidarity gig held in Dublin
Hundreds of people have attended a music session in Dublin city in solidarity with Kneecap rapper Liam Og O hAnnaidh after he appeared in court on Wednesday. Kneecap flags and logos hung from the windows in Connolly Books, which dubs itself Ireland's oldest radical bookshop, in solidarity with O hAnnaidh, Kneecap, and the people of Palestine. Pro-Palestine supporters criticised the decision by British authorities to bring a charge against the performer instead of focusing on the Israeli government's actions against the Palestinian people. O hAnnaidh, 27, who performs under the stage name Mo Chara, is accused of displaying a flag in support of Hezbollah at a gig in November last year. Hundreds of Kneecap supporters greeted O hAnnaidh as he arrived at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London on Wednesday morning, alongside fellow Kneecap rappers Naoise O Caireallain and JJ O Dochartaigh. During the hearing, his defence team argued the case should be thrown out, citing a technical error in the way the charge against him was brought. The case has been adjourned until September 26, when the judge will rule on whether he has the jurisdiction to try the case. At the protest session at Connolly Books on Wednesday afternoon, several artists played Irish traditional music in solidarity with the rappers and Palestine. Musician Ru O'Shea, who performed at the demonstration, said charging O hAnnaidh had turned him into 'a hero'. 'I think it's been a huge misstep by the powers that be to go after him in the first place,' he told the PA news agency. 'I reckon that they don't have a thing on him, and I think they are turning him into a hero, and I think we need a hero. 'What's happening in Palestine right now, it's gotten to such an extreme that it's waking a lot of people up, including the British who might not have ever seen it otherwise and stayed in that bubble forever.' O'Shea's friend John Feehan said: 'I think people are maybe starting to look up a little bit in Britain, and I think things like what's happening with Kneecap is a catalyst for people to be like 'Oh, wait a minute, what's actually happening here?'. So I hope there's momentum, but I really don't know.' Dubliner Aoife Powell, 19, said she came out to protest because she is 'angry' at the decision to charge an artist rather than focus on what is happening to the people of Gaza. 'I'm here because it just worries me that the fact that governments are focused on artists expressing themselves rather than the actual problem, which is obviously the genocide in Gaza,' she told PA. 'It's a little bit disheartening to see there's so much pressure being put on these artists to stop saying what they truly think and to stop standing on the right side of history. 'I feel like it's a distraction from what's actually happening. 'When a government tries to silence people, they should learn that they can never silence people. I feel like the public would get more angry at that.' Sean O'Grady is from Coleraine in Northern Ireland but has lived in Dublin for almost 70 years. 'I'm delighted with them (Kneecap), that they've done what they're doing, and they're getting plenty of publicity. 'The British government are crazy, I mean, what are they at? 'They're supplying a lot of the bombs, and a lot of the arms and ammunition to Israel to do what they're doing. So they should be ashamed of themselves instead of bringing in these people (to court) for stupid reasons. 'It's getting good publicity over there for the cause of the Palestinians.' Dubliner Dermot Nolan said he attended his first Palestine protest in 1967, and while he remembers horrific events such as the Vietnam War, the scale of death and injuries in Gaza is the worst he has ever lived through. 'I'm here because it's important to for two reasons – first of all, to show our intolerance of the genocide and slaughter that's being carried out by the US, Nato and Israel. 'The second reason is the question of civil rights. We're protesting about the indictment of a member of the Irish group Kneecap. 'It is a sign of creeping authoritarianism which is happening in all the western countries and most clearly in Britain.'
BreakingNews.ie
14 minutes ago
- BreakingNews.ie
‘They are turning him into a hero': Kneecap solidarity gig held in Dublin
Hundreds of people have attended a music session in Dublin city in solidarity with Kneecap rapper Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh after he appeared in court on Wednesday. Kneecap flags and logos hung from the windows in Connolly Books, which dubs itself Ireland's oldest radical bookshop, in solidarity with Ó hAnnaidh, Kneecap, and the people of Palestine. Advertisement Pro-Palestine supporters criticised the decision by British authorities to bring a charge against the performer instead of focusing on the Israeli government's actions against the Palestinian people. Ó hAnnaidh (27), who performs under the stage name Mo Chara, is accused of displaying a flag in support of Hezbollah at a gig in November last year. Hundreds of Kneecap supporters greeted Ó hAnnaidh as he arrived at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London on Wednesday morning, alongside fellow Kneecap rappers Naoise Ó Caireallain and JJ Ó Dochartaigh. During the hearing, his defence team argued the case should be thrown out, citing a technical error in the way the charge against him was brought. Advertisement The case has been adjourned until September 26th, when the judge will rule on whether he has the jurisdiction to try the case. At the protest session at Connolly Books on Wednesday afternoon, several artists played Irish traditional music in solidarity with the rappers and Palestine. Musician Ru O'Shea, who performed at the demonstration, said charging O hAnnaidh had turned him into 'a hero'. 'I think it's been a huge misstep by the powers that be to go after him in the first place,' he told the PA news agency. Advertisement 'I reckon that they don't have a thing on him, and I think they are turning him into a hero, and I think we need a hero. Ispini na hEireann play at Connolly Books in Dublin's Temple Bar area (Niall Carson/PA) 'What's happening in Palestine right now, it's gotten to such an extreme that it's waking a lot of people up, including the British who might not have ever seen it otherwise and stayed in that bubble forever.' O'Shea's friend John Feehan said: 'I think people are maybe starting to look up a little bit in Britain, and I think things like what's happening with Kneecap is a catalyst for people to be like 'Oh, wait a minute, what's actually happening here?'. So I hope there's momentum, but I really don't know.' Dubliner Aoife Powell (19) said she came out to protest because she is 'angry' at the decision to charge an artist rather than focus on what is happening to the people of Gaza. Advertisement 'I'm here because it just worries me that the fact that governments are focused on artists expressing themselves rather than the actual problem, which is obviously the genocide in Gaza,' she told PA. 'It's a little bit disheartening to see there's so much pressure being put on these artists to stop saying what they truly think and to stop standing on the right side of history. 'I feel like it's a distraction from what's actually happening. 'When a government tries to silence people, they should learn that they can never silence people. I feel like the public would get more angry at that.' Advertisement Sean O'Grady is from Coleraine in Co Derry but has lived in Dublin for almost 70 years. Kneecap's Liam Og O hAnnaidh, speaks to supporters as he leaves Westminster Magistrates' Court in London (Lucy North/PA) 'I'm delighted with them [Kneecap], that they've done what they're doing, and they're getting plenty of publicity. 'The British government are crazy, I mean, what are they at? 'They're supplying a lot of the bombs, and a lot of the arms and ammunition to Israel to do what they're doing. So they should be ashamed of themselves instead of bringing in these people [to court] for stupid reasons. 'It's getting good publicity over there for the cause of the Palestinians.' Dubliner Dermot Nolan said he attended his first Palestine protest in 1967, and while he remembers horrific events such as the Vietnam War, the scale of death and injuries in Gaza is the worst he has ever lived through. 'I'm here because it's important to for two reasons – first of all, to show our intolerance of the genocide and slaughter that's being carried out by the US, Nato and Israel. 'The second reason is the question of civil rights. We're protesting about the indictment of a member of the Irish group Kneecap. 'It is a sign of creeping authoritarianism which is happening in all the western countries and most clearly in Britain.'
Times
14 minutes ago
- Times
Who should Helen marry? Decide for yourself in this 1930s interactive novel
Do you remember the Choose Your Own Adventure books? Those quirky little tales published between the late 1970s and the late 1990s that encouraged children to make key decisions at narrative crossroads, forging unique paths through outer space, or the thick of the jungle? They are having a renaissance and there's a whole host of adult versions of this multiple-choice fiction, from You Are Elizabeth Bennet: Create Your Own Jane Austen Adventure to Can You Run the Economy: It's Your Turn to Be Chancellor. Or, if you're a crime fan there's Can You Solve the Murder? by Antony Johnston. For those feeling nostalgic, or those who want something less daunting than pretending to be the chancellor of the exchequer, the gorgeously retro Consider the Consequences is a true gem. Published in 1930, it was, the publisher claims, the first interactive novel and asks the reader to navigate as best they can through personal 'dilemmas and crises aplenty'. Since so many of the difficulties we face (career changes, family feuds, debilitating heartbreak) are essentially the same now as they were then, it has hardly aged.
