Bridget and Eamon
Monday, RTÉ Two, 9.30pm
It was a golden age in Ireland, when Gay Byrne and Marty Whelan ruled the airwaves, big hair and shoulder pads were de rigueur, and you could buy the new Bruce Willis video for just £79.99. Now, it's time to return to the 1980s and rejoin our favourite midlands couple and their six to eight children. Jennifer Zamparelli and Bernard O'Shea are back as the miserably married pair, desperately trying to keep up with the latest fads and fast-changing technology (CDs, sunbeds, cars with electric windows). The first series, a spin-off from the popular sketch on Republic of Telly, won an Ifta, and the second series promises another catalogue of disasters as Bridget and Eamon open a hair salon at their house, go up to Dublin to eat at a fancy restaurant, solve a murder and get a visit from the Mafia.
Catastrophe
Monday, RTÉ Two, 9pm
Sharon Horgan scripted the Sky Atlantic comedy drama Divorce, starring Sarah Jessica Parker, but here's another chance to catch the actor and writer in her superb comedy series Catastrophe. Horgan co-wrote and co-stars with US writer and comedian Rob Delaney in this tale of a disaster-ridden relationship between an Irish schoolteacher living in London and an American advertising executive she meets in a bar in London.
10 Things to Know About…
Monday, RTÉ One, 8.30pm
Aoibhinn Ní Shúilleabháin, Kathriona Devereux and Jonathan McCrea put on their lab coats once again to explore the science behind our everyday lives, and showcase some of the more interesting work being done in Irish science. Over six episodes, the boffin squad will be looking at everything from the rise of virtual reality to the never-ending quest for the secret of eternal youth, with help from some of the top names in Irish science and technology.
Ladies of Science
Monday, RTÉ One, 11.35pm
More scientific exploration is on the menu for the week that's in it with new docu-drama Ladies of Science. Now, I know what you're thinking: what's with this "ladies" malarkey? Why isn't it called Women of Science? Well, one of the two women profiled here was an actual lady, and both women did pioneering work in science at a time when it was not considered a ladylike subject for study. Lady Mary Rosse and Mary Ward shared a passion for technology, astronomy, microscopy and photography in the mid-19th century, when women were not even allowed to attend university, and the programme celebrates their groundbreaking achievements. Ward's great-granddaughter Lalla Ward narrates this fascinating story, and there are contributions from the Earl of Rosse and his wife Allison, along with some leading figures from science, technology, literature and history.
The Undiscovered Peter Cook
Wednesday, BBC Four, 10pm
Peter Cook was considered the greatest comedy genius of his age, but when he died in 1995, his widow Lin refused to allow the media into his house in Hampstead, and many of Cook's private recordings, diaries, letters, photos and other belongings have remained locked away for the past 20 years. This year, Lin opened the door of the house to Victor Lewis-Smith, and gave him access to her late husband's stash of manuscripts, mementos and memorabilia to make this documentary.Among the hitherto hidden treasures are classic sketches from Cook's satirical show Not Only But Also, long-lost footage of Cook performing with his comedy partner Dudley Moore, along with Peter Sellers and David Attenborough, and an unreleased 1963 album, The Dead Sea Tapes, which the duo shelved due to worries about blasphemy laws.
