The Innocence Project
on BBC1

This may come as a shock to you, but sometimes the English justice system fails! Hope is not lost though, as in a new BBC drama currently filming at the University of Salford, champion of the underdog and brilliant teacher, Professor Jon Ford (Lloyd Owen) sets up The Innocence Project.
Inspired by real life ‘Innocence Projects’ (see Innocence Projects feature) the story follows his hand-picked group of law students as they help him take on cases pro bono that nobody else wants to know about, cases that people have forgotten, cases that others have given up on - ‘clients’ with no hope - who have possibly been wrongly convicted.
With infectious enthusiasm, Ford leads his team of fresh faced nineteen year old uni students; their job is part investigator, part lawyer - and all before they’re out of full time education. The young new talent includes Luke Treadaway, Ruth Bradley, Oliver James, Christine Bottomley and Stephen Graham.

Torchwood
on BBC Three

Doctor Who’s ‘sexy, funny’ spin-off will be set in Cardiff and follows the adventures of bi-sexual time-traveller Captain Jack Harkness, one of the Ninth Doctor’s companions, and his team of investigators solving human and alien crime.
Taking the anagram code name used to disguise early tapes of the returning Doctor Who, Torchwood is being touted as an adult paranoid thriller. Its star, John Barrowman, says it will be “a dark, wild and sexy roller-coaster ride”, and creator Russell T Davies says, “it’s the X Files meets This Life - a stand-alone series for adult audiences which will have its own unique identity” but the Beeb remain tight-lipped about its plot and content.
Sinister and psychological, the series will differ very clearly from its parent, promising to be more visceral, more violent, and more sexual though Davies says, “bear in mind that it’s very teenage to indulge yourself in blood and gore, and Torchwood is going to be smarter than that.”
Starring alongside John Barrowman will be Eve Myles, Burn Gorman and Naoko Mori as the core Torchwood team-members.

Bo’ in the USA
on Channel 4

Neck-brace yourself as the notorious celebrity stalker Avid Merrion (Leigh Francis) heads to Hollywood and sets up Tinseltown’s weirdest hotel with his new wife Sacha (who is also his sister) played by Barunka O’Shaughnessy. Plenty of rubber-headed characters come along for Bo’ Selecta’s stateside ride including Arnie, Sly, Bruce Willis, Pammie, Madge, Gordon Ramsay, Simon Cowell, and Pete Doherty.
The new series also welcomes the return of old favourites: Mel B, who’s struggling with the on-off rumours of a Spice Girl reunion, Craig David, who’s pursuing a teenage romance with Holly Valance, and Michael Jackson, who hosts his very own TV show featuring items such as Titty Tennis and Pimp My Bride, as well as finding time to make weekly prank phone calls to Martin Bashir.
Avid, with his deluded fantasies, continues to struggle with his celebrity addiction and shamelessly follows his American idols around town. Joining them on their US adventure is working class hero and prince of fools, Keith Lemon. The Bear also attempts to launch himself into America’s showbiz world aided by his brand new celebrity agent Verne Troyer (Mini Me).

The All Star Talent Show
on Five

Ever since newsreader Angela Rippon tripped the light fantastic with Morecambe and Wise, telly bods have been eager to uncover the hidden talents of TV’s big names, and the stars haven’t been too shy in revealing them either!
With the latest spate of celebrity reality tosh and star-based song shows, it’s clearly considered (by the executives at least) to be a tasty treat from the TV conveyor belt.
Andi Peters and Myleene Klass will present the brand new six-part variety series for Five uncovering the aforementioned hidden talents of some of the UK’s ‘most famous faces.’
Find out which celebrity is a top tap dancer; which well-known face can walk the high wire; and which telly fave is a classical singer.
The format at face value may seem like typical dross, but with Julian Clary leading the panel of judges as the ‘celebrities’ go head-to-head each week, his wit, innuendo and put-downs could well raise it’s value and appeal.

Totally Boyband
on MTV

Between them they’ve sold 87 million albums, banked 40 top ten singles and have scored 11 number ones. Now, in a bid to reclaim the success they once had, five ex-popstars from five hugely successful but now defunct pop bands have cast aside old rivalries to form a new band and attempt a spectacular comeback in MTV’s Totally Boyband.
Danny Wood (New Kids On The Block), Dane Bowers (Another Level), Jimmy Constable (911), Lee Latchford-Evans (Steps) and Bradley McIntosh (S Club 7) are the gathered chaff, left by the wayside as the wheat (their respective ex-comrades) made their separate and occasionally more successful career paths.
Under the expert guidance of manager Jonathan Shalit - the man who masterminded the careers of such luminaries as Charlotte Church and Jamelia - the five fame-cravers will set about reclaiming what they believe to be their rightful places at the top of the UK charts - at least for a short while!
The ‘super-group’ will be followed every step of the way by MTV cameras as they work, write and perform together leading up to the release of their debut single in October. A top watch, if the comedy value of Boys Will Be Girls is anything to go by.

David Icke:
Was He Right?
on Five

In the early 1990’s, the shell-suited ex-football player and BBC sports hack, David Icke appeared on chat shows across the country. He claimed that he was ‘a son of the Godhead’, and more recently has stated that major world figures (including George Bush, Bill Clinton, Queen Elizabeth II and Kris Kristofferson) are part of a reptilian humanoid race that rules the globe.
Back then he carried a message about future events and dark times that lay ahead. In particular he claimed that from the turn of the millennium until 2012, we would see chaos establish itself across the globe as war, economic collapse and terror took hold. Obviously, he was much derided at the time, but Icke now has a global following who believe that his prophecies have come true.

More telly treats...

Extras: Gervais and Merchant’s glorious return.
That Mitchell and Webb Look: Peep show stars get Beeb show sketch show.
I’m A Celebrity...: More celebs dive into the bush.
The Armstrong and Miller Show: Continued comedy sketches, but will they keep their kit on?
The Royle Family: Return for one-off special.
Princess Nikki: Proves she can annoy you more.
Russell Brand’s Got Issues: Nice, exciting, yes!
Offensive Comedy: Unpopular joke doc season.