TV & Radio

Five of the best TV shows to watch this weekend

Sylvia Plath through a glass darkly and zombie action in AMC’s Walking Dead spin-off

Sylvia Plath with Frieda and Nicholas Hughes in 1962.

Kevin Courtney's face
Kevin Courtney
Fri Aug 10 2018 - 05:00

Sylvia Plath: Life Inside the Bell Jar
Saturday, BBC2, 9pm
This documentary explores Sylvia Plath's semi-autobiographical novel by looking at the wider landscape of 1950s gender politics and Plath's own struggles to survive society's constraints. Featuring an interview with the author's daughter, Frieda Hughes, who discusses her mother in-depth on camera for the first time, as well as impressionistic reconstructions of excerpts from the book featuring readings by Maggie Gyllenhaal, unpublished letters, photographs and archive materials, and contributions from people who knew the writer.

A Year in the New Forest
Saturday, Channel 4, 7pm
England's newest national park is a remarkable place. Covering 285sq miles (738sq km), it is made up of vast tracts of unspoilt ancient woodland, heathland and river valleys, where deer, ponies and cattle roam free, and rivers and shady groves provide a tranquil haven for walking, cycling and horse riding. However, life in the New Forest changes dramatically during the year, particularly so in spring. As the trees burst into leaf, the season heralds the promise of new life. But this can be a time of jeopardy and worry for people and animals alike. For the semi-wild ponies and cattle, giving birth to foals and calves during this fickle and changeable season isn't easy. Plus, late frosts could spell disaster for the goshawk's precious eggs.

Fear the Walking Dead
Sunday, E4, 9pm
You've followed the cast of The Walking Dead through hell and high water as they struggle to survive the zombie apocalypse. The show is going into its ninth series, but just in case you can't get enough of those flesh-eating zombies, here's a "companion" series, following a dysfunctional family as they deal with life, love, relationships and the impending zombie apocalypse. Mom is a high school guidance counsellor; dad is a teacher. Both have kids from previous relationships, and they're none too happy at having to get along in this "blended" family. Too bad – they're gonna have to deal with something a bit more urgent than an annoying half-sibling or getting grounded for smoking weed: the arrival of marauding undead hellbent on tearing their flesh from their bones. That'll put manners on them.

Cliff Curtis in Fear the Walking Dead

Lost Boys?: What's Going Wrong for Asian Men
Sunday, BBC2, 10pm
Reporter Mehreen Baig reports on the challenges facing Asian men growing up in modern Britain. She begins in Bradford, a city where man of Pakistani heritage are experiencing high levels of youth unemployment, failing education and drug crime. In Leicester, she explores the Gujarati community and discovers a history of entrepreneurship that has contributed to greater integration. Finally, she travels to Kashmir and meets a grandfather who was one of the first wave of immigrants to Britain in the 1960s.

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Mama's Angel
Sunday, Channel 4, 10.20pm
The latest series from the Walter Presents stable is this Israeli thriller, which explores the underbelly of life in an affluent Tel Aviv suburb suddenly turned upside down by the brutal murder of a young boy. It's the eve of Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, and prison therapist Yael Tamir is assigned a new patient: a man who murdered his two young children. But everything is about to change with the disappearance of Yael's seven-year-old son in mysterious circumstances. Meanwhile, an employee at a plant nursery prepares to bid farewell to her son, who is leaving for art school in Europe. Following tonight's season premiere, the full 10-part series is available online.

Additional reporting: PA

Sylvia Plath