Doctor Who (BBC 1/HD | 8:15pm to 9:05pm | Saturday 31st October 2015)
The Zygons, a race of shapeshifting aliens, have been living in secret on Earth, unknown and unseen – until now. When Osgood is kidnapped by a rogue gang of Zygons, the Doctor, Clara and Unit must scatter across the world in a bid to set her free. But will they reach her in time, and can they stop an uprising before it is too late?
Great Canal Journeys (Channel 4/HD | 8:00pm to 9:00pm | Sunday 1st November 2015)
This time Timothy West and Prunella Scales travel from Birmingham to Braunston in Northamptonshire, for a festival of vintage canal boats. The challenging journey involves dozens of locks and a ghostly tunnel. But there’s help from the family, both from actor son Sam and by Juliet, Tim’s daughter from his first marriage. At Knowle Locks they meet a qualified boatman who was born on a canal boat 78 years ago. At Braunston, Tim and Pru unveil a plaque for the late Sonya Rolt, who dedicated much of her life to saving Britain’s canals, and who died in 2014.
The Hunt (BBC 1/HD | 9:00pm to 10:00pm | Sunday 1st November 2015)
Nature documentary series narrated by Sir David Attenborough, taking an intimate and detailed look at the strategies employed by hunters to catch their prey, and the hunted to escape. Contests between predators and prey are among the most dramatic events in nature. This episode reveals the extraordinary range of techniques predators use to catch their prey – from a leopard using all its powers of stealth to stalk impala in broad daylight to wild dogs, whose tactic is to wear down their prey over long distances; from Nile crocodiles, perhaps the planet’s most patient predators, to killer whales who use teamwork and intelligence to take on humpback whales. But even with these finely tuned strategies, the outcome is far from certain. Most predators fail most of the time.
Scotland’s Superhospital (BBC 1 Scotland/HD & BBC iPlayer only | 9:00pm to 10:00pm | Monday 2nd November 2015)
Series following the staff and patients at four of Glasgow’s oldest hospitals as they move into one new state-of-the-art superhospital, the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital. This edition joins the staff of the first two hospitals to close – the Southern General and Victoria Infirmary – six weeks before the big move. In the Southern, sister Susan Montgomery prepares her nursing staff for a huge change – the move from open-plan wards to single-room accommodation in the new hospital. In A&E at the Victoria, senior staff nurse Mel White reflects on leaving the place she has worked in for 43 years to make the move to the huge new emergency department. Moving hundreds of patients across the city will be the largest operation of its kind ever undertaken in Britain. Their arrival in the new building will be the beginning of a new chapter in healthcare in the city.
Lies, Laws and the Bin Lorry Tragedy (BBC 1 Scotland/HD & BBC iPlayer only | 7:00pm to 7:30pm | Tuesday 3rd November 2015)
Jackie Bird speaks to some of the families of the victims of the Glasgow bin lorry tragedy about the devastating impact of the crash which killed six people and left more than a dozen injured. The families explain how they feel the investigation into the crash has failed them, and lay damning accusations at those in charge of the Scottish justice system. They also ask how a driver who lied about his past was able to slip unnoticed through multiple layers of bureaucracy, allowing him to be in the driving seat of a 26-tonne bin lorry.
Grand Designs (Channel 4/HD | 9:00pm to 10:00pm | Wednesday 4th November 2015)
Every year the Royal Institute of British Architects holds a competition to find the best new home in Britain and this time, Grand Designs is along for the ride. Presented by Kevin McCloud, this four-part series explores some of Britain’s most contemporary and cutting edge homes, all of them in the running for the prestigious Riba House of the Year Award 2015. In this first episode, Kevin McCloud visits five homes built for country living. Enormously varied in size and style, they are: a house disguised as a giant shard of flint; a beautifully crafted timber farmhouse in Somerset; a low budget home made of shipping containers in Northern Ireland; an elegant eco house in Cambridgeshire, designed for a passionate birdwatcher; and a stunning modern glass villa with a spectacular jagged roof designed to look like mountain peaks. Find out which of the five make it through to the final shortlist – and discover what it takes to be crowned Riba: House of the Year 2015.
Chris Tarrant: Extreme Railway Journeys (Channel 5 | 9:00pm to 10:00pm | Thursday 5th November 2015)
Documentary series in which Chris Tarrant explores the world’s most extreme railway lines. Chris discovers how a 2,500-mile transcontinental railway was built against huge odds in just a few decades, and turned a vast wilderness of isolated communities into the country we now know as Canada.
TFI Friday (Channel 4/HD | 8:00pm to 9:00pm | Friday 6th November 2015)
Chris Evans’ seminal cult entertainment show is back with a new series. Broadcasting from a new home in central London there’s brand new features, raucous stunts, and this week’s guests include Sir Elton John, Julianne Moore, Stanley Tucci, The Maccabees and The Vamps.
All TV guide information taken from DigiGuide — www.getdigiguide.tv/?p=1&r=15119.