Dr Eva's Great Escape
Sunday, RTÉ One, 9.30pm (repeated Wed, 10.35pm)
With Room to Improve: Dermot's Home, RTÉ has apparently stumbled on a new telly idea – the self-makeover show, in which the presenter gets a break from fixing the lives of the great unwashed and turns their talents to looking after No 1. Here telly medic Dr Eva Orsmond does a self-diagnosis and decides that what she needs is to move to Portugal and follow her dream of building a luxury hotel. Orsmond also needs to rebuild her relationship with her husband Wyatt, and what better way to repair a marriage than to sell up your luxury bolthole in Co Wicklow and decamp to a derelict building in a foreign country? Could this be just the tonic they need, or the straw that breaks the camel's back? The cameras follow the couple as they deal with budget overruns, snag lists and communication breakdowns; all the usual ingredients in a marriage then.
All Aboard! New Zealand by Rail, Sea and Land
Sunday, BBC4, 8pm
New Zealand is home to some of the world's most breathtaking scenery – geothermal springs, alpine lakes, limestone caves, spectacular fjords, and miles of coastline with gorgeous sandy beaches. Here, cameras take an epic overland journey, by train, boat and car through the country beautiful and dramatic landscapes. The trek beings in Auckland, but the city soon gives way to rolling pastures, volcanic extremes, tranquil waterways, the snowcapped grandeur of the Southern Alps and the beauty of Fiordland.
Ibiza Weekender
Sunday, ITV2, 9pm
It’s the start of another season on the party island. Head rep David is busy gathering his team to give the guests the weekend of their lives, and the experienced Callum and Tash are more than happy to welcome wholesome Welsh Riva and London joker Jaden to the fold. This leaves loved-up former Lothario Jordan happy to concentrate on the job, especially when David gives him some extra responsibility (and a sash) as the new guest satisfaction manager. With the arrival of the guests, its not long before the flirtation and fun starts.
One Day: How Ireland Unwinds
Monday, RTÉ One, 9.35pm
The last episode in the current run of the One Day documentary strand features people who work in Ireland’s vibrant entertainment and leisure sectors. Filmed over 24 hours, and featuring burlesque dancers, beauty therapists, stand-up comics, event caterers and food delivery cyclists, the programme gives a fascinating snapshot of Ireland at play.
Diamond Dealers and Cockney Geezers
Monday, Channel 4, 10pm
Documentary going behind the scenes at Trotters Jewellers in Bethnal Green in London’s East End. The ownership of this family-run business has recently passed to Judd (26), who manages with old schoolmates Alex and Kallum. The film shows the team designing a commemorative piece for a current world champion boxer, while a bricklayer splashes out on a £9,000 watch and a man buys a diamond necklace to say sorry. Plus, staff travel to New York to get ahead of the trends and meet jeweller to the stars Richie Rich.
Crazy Delicious
Tuesday, Channel 4, 8pm
If there’s one thing TV isn’t short of, it’s cookery competitions. So how does a new series stand out from the crowd? Well, in the case of Crazy Delicious, it’s by being a feast for the eyes. Renowned chefs and “Gods of Food” Heston Blumenthal, Niklas Ekstedt and Carla Hall will challenge some of the UK’s most talented chefs to come up with new takes on everyday dishes that are as original and visually impressive as they are tasty. Even the set has a touch of Willy Wonka, boasting an enchanted garden complete with edible blossom, chocolate soil and a drinkable babbling brook. In the opening edition, presenter Jayde Adams meets the first trio of contestants, who will be challenged to make a strawberry-based dish and a twist on the humble hotdog – before two of them make a birthday spread fit for the Gods.
Chris Packham: 7.7 Billion People and Counting
Tuesday, BBC2, 9pm
It is believed that by the year 2050, the world's population will be 10 billion – a number many say is not sustainable for our planet. In this documentary, naturalist and Springwatch presenter Chris Packham finds out what pressure the growing population is putting on our resources and the problems that could arise. It's a journey that takes him to a Brazilian megacity on the verge of running out of water. Back in Britain he speaks to experts including David Attenborough, a patron of the charity Population Matters. Packham, who does not have children, also asks some difficult and questions about stabilising the world birth rate.
Losing It: Our Mental Health Emergency
Tuesday, Channel 4, 10pm
New documentary series following NHS staff in Nottinghamshire dealing with emergency mental health cases, including a woman with no history of mental illness who has developed post-partum psychosis and attempted to kill herself, her husband, and their newborn baby by driving her car into a wall. The child and adolescent mental health team is confronted by an 11-year-old girl suffering from extreme panic attacks, suicidal thoughts and full body seizures, and have to immediately make the judgment of whether her stated intent to kill herself is genuine or a symptom of a more complicated diagnosis.
Tabú: Gaillimh gan Dídean
Wednesday, TG4, 9.30pm
Ireland is in the middle of a housing crisis as homelessness figures hover around the 10,000. With the population of the country growing by roughly a third in the last 30 years, the Republic simply does not have enough dwellings in which to put everyone. While Dublin bears the brunt of this problem, rural homelessness is increasing at a disproportionate rate. Gaillimh gan Dídean examines and observes this crisis in the city and county of tribes to explore a crisis we all see, every day, whether we choose to avert our eyes or not.
Easy Ways to Live Well
Wednesday, BBC1, 8pm
It's going to be a busy year for Steph McGovern. She gave birth to her first child, a girl, in November, and will soon host a new live chat show for Channel 4. Now she is copresenting this new three-part series with Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, in which they pick up tips on improving their health which, coincidentally, should enable them to cope with their hectic lifestyles better. They're joined in each episode by GP Zoe Williams, who helps them sift through the latest scientific research to find ways to tackle biggest health concerns, from stress to nonstop snacking, and gut issues to cutting down on screen time.
Spy in the Wild
Wednesday, BBC1, 9pm
A second series of the nature documentary in which cameras are disguised as various animals or objects, allowing them to get up close and personal with different species. Among the highlights of the opening episode is footage captured by Spy Gorilla, which manages to win over a giant Silverback, allowing it to join a gorilla family that sings its joy at mealtimes and feels the unwanted impact of its vegetarian diet. Plus, in Brazil, Spy Jaguar Cub witnesses a surprisingly romantic moment, while in Zambia, Spy Hippo almost gets caught up in a dramatic fight and Spy Macaw takes us deep into the Amazon rainforest.
Travels in Euroland with Ed Balls
Thursday, BBC2, 9pm
Sheesh. Brexit hasn't even happened yet, and already the BBC's commissioning editors are going, "Let's send a chap over to Euroland to see what Johnny Foreigner's been getting up to lately. I'd imagine the place is going to the dogs without us." The man chosen for this intrepid voyage is former politician Ed Balls, and his mission is to find out how the politics of far-right populism have swept through Europe. Could this populist wave possibly wash up on the shores of Blighty? Perish the thought. Balls begins the three-part exploration in the Netherlands, where he joins a local Dutch fisherman on his fishing boat (presumably they won't be catching British fish). He also encounters a strange ceremony known as Black Pete, a Santa-type figure daubed in blackface. Couldn't happen here.
Ear to the Ground
Thursday, RTÉ One, 7pm
Ella McSweeney visits hemp farmer Ed Hanbidge in Wicklow as he harvests his crop for CBD oil. Darragh McCullough is on the Conway farm in east Galway as they prepare to lamb their prize-winning pedigree ewes. And Helen Carroll meets a farmer in Kildare who is working towards a more environmentally friendly farming operation.
Seal le Dáithí
Thursday, TG4, 7.30pm
Ciarán Mac Fhearghusa is Dáithí Ó Sé's guest this week. Having drawn inspiration from a trip to India, Mac Fhearghusa returned home as a Master of Yoga and founded Óga Yoga, where he teaches yoga through Irish. He was also instrumental in the founding of Na Gaeil Óga GAA club in Dublin.
Beidh Aonach Amárach
Thursday, TG4, 8pm
The agricultural show series is back with the best of Ireland’s country shows. It begins in Co Tyrone in glorious sunshine at the Omagh Show, which shows judge Peter O’Malley that Connemara doesn’t have a monopoly on fine Connemara ponies. Ciarán O’Rourke gets mouths watering with the smell of bacon while Cáit Ní Cheallaigh enters her first baking competition with future dreams of entering The Great British Bake Off. With music from the Omagh Community Choir and Cliona Hagan.
Jamie and Jimmy's Friday Night Feast
Friday, Channel 4, 8pm
Singer Mel B joins Jamie Oliver and Jimmy Doherty for some Caribbean cooking. Together they recreate curry chicken, rice and peas, and Mel discovers just how much love went into her Grandma Iris' recipe back on the island of Nevis. Away from the pier, the boys become cowboys for the day, putting in a shift farming British buffalo to make mozzarella. Oliver puts a spin on the traditional Friday night takeaway with a mushroom shawarma that packs a tasty punch, while Doherty cooks bay-salt prawns and sweet chilli sauce for an impressive party piece.
Contributing: PA
