TV review

Published Monday 18 August 2008 at 11:15 by Harry Venning

Spooks: Code 9 is set in the year 2012, where the UK is still reeling from the devastation of the nuclear terrorist atrocity that wiped out everybody who isn’t young, good-looking, thin and sexy.

Decimated and demoralised, MI5 recruits a brand new counter-terrorism cell from amongst the hip and groovy survivors, being careful to choose agents who reflect the multicultural nature of the nation they are charged to defend. Instead of making the tea or going out for the sandwiches, the agents’ first task is to protect the prime minister from the bullet of a ruthless assassin. The hit-man turns out to be a 15-year-old hoodie, with scant regard for all truancy legislation, who the team trace through his penchant for speciality beef burgers.

Spooks: Code 9 may be daft and done on the cheap - the programme is liberal in its use of archive news footage for atmospheric effect - but it is carried off with sufficient energy and conviction to stampede all misgivings underfoot. The undeniably attractive cast do a lot of running around and shouting, with the occasional punch-up thrown in, all enhanced by the kind of rapid fire editing popularised by the Jason Bourne movies. Agent Bourne even gets an ironic name-check from a Spook working undercover in the less than glamorous surroundings of a fruit and veg market. Ironic and unpatriotic! What’s wrong with James Bond as a pop reference, dammit?

Self-contained dramas have become something of a rarity on TV, so well done C4 for devoting an entire series to them, even if Coming Up is obliged to straddle midnight in something of a graveyard slot.

The series’ emphasis upon new talent and innovative ideas invariably produces interesting results, and Lickle Bill Um was no exception. Kate Hardie’s bittersweet comedy of envy, allergies, crown green bowls and kidnapping may have laboured beneath an excess of self-conscious quirkiness, but sufficient laughs, surprises and enthusiasm survived to make for a highly enjoyable 35 minutes.

Amanda Abbington starred as an embittered, neurotic 30-year-old failure who celebrates each birthday berating her confident, contented and universally adored mother for not passing on her happiness. As Mum, Imelda Staunton stole every scene.

“Why can’t I make you go faster?” asks Alex James of the BBC Concert Orchestra. Newscaster Katie Derham had the same problem, eventually exhorting the musicians to “Come on! Come on!” as if they were a recalcitrant show horse. “I’m very nervous,” confessed Sue Perkins before taking on Strauss, “this might well be the Brown Danube by the time I’m finished.”

Maestro attempts to make conductors of a disparate collection of celebrities, with the most promising student rewarded with the chance to wave their baton at the last night of the Proms in the Park.

Early on in Maestro it became apparent that conducting is considerably more difficult than it looks. Soon after it also became clear that Maestro wasn’t going to be anywhere near as interesting as it initially promised. There are far too many students to process, and the programme inevitably became repetitive. But this first show had its moments, my favourite of which was when movement coach Clare Glaskin lost patience with one disruptive pupil.

“Shut up and listen, this is important, Bradley… Walsh, whatever his name is.”

Now that’s the way to rein in a showbiz ego.

DETAILS

Spooks: Code 9 - BBC3, Sunday, August 10, 9pm

Coming Up: Lickle Bill Um - C4, Monday, August 11, 11.40pm

Maestro - BBC2, Tuesday, August 12, 9pm