ITV1's blog

Friday, 14 October 2011, 8:00PM – 8:30PM

Episode one: 

Caledonian Pine Forest, Scotland: 

Wild Britain with Ray Mears is back on ITV as Ray continues to explore the British Isles. This series features intimate footage of some of Britain’s most fascinating, charismatic and rare creatures in their natural, wild habitats, with expert guidance from Ray. 

In the first episode of the new series, Ray explores the stunning Caledonian Pine Forest in the Scottish Highlands 

“Whenever I come here, I don’t feel as though I’m surrounded by lots of individual species. I feel as though I’m part of one great organism – the Caledonian Forest itself. It’s just so magnificent,” explains Ray. 

These ancient forests once spread across thousands of kilometres of the Highlands, yet now only a few remnants remain. Today they’re home to rare species such as the capercaillie (a turkey-sized grouse), the osprey (fish eating birds of prey) and the red squirrel. 

Ray goes in search of the red squirrel, which he describes as one of Britain’s most ‘adorable’ mammals. But sadly their future lies in the balance. Ray meets Juliet Stephenson, an officer with the Forestry Commission, who explains that the more common grey squirrels are putting the red squirrels at risk. 

“The truth of the matter is they can’t be in the same place,” reveals Juliet. “If there were greys here, they would simply eat all the food. It’s a much bigger animal, they also breed more and they would just simply eat the red squirrel out of house and home really. But also they carry this disease (squirrel pox) which kills the reds very quickly.” 

As Ray continues his way through the forest he’s delighted to come across Loch Garten, the ancestral home to one of Scotland’s most spectacular predators, the osprey. 

“These incredible birds almost became extinct from our island until they re-established themselves in Scotland in the 50s,” explains Ray. “Since then the RSPB has taken over the management of part of the Caledonian forest to protect this precious nesting habitat.” 

Next Ray seeks out one of the forest’s smallest but vital forest creatures, the mighty wood ant. 

“These large mounds of pine needles are actually wood ant nests that have been carefully constructed to absorb maximum heat from the sun and allow water to flow off the nest,” explains Ray. “It’s a great example of a symbiotic relationship – a kind of ‘you scratch my back I’ll scratch yours’ arrangement. In return for the pine needles, the ants patrol the pines for unwanted pests such as caterpillars that otherwise would damage the tree,” reveals Ray. 

For Ray, the highlight of the trip is the opportunity to see the capercaillie and, in order to witness an elaborate courtship ritual, known as ‘the lek’, in which male capercailles strut their stuff to attract females, he camps out in a secret location. Our cameras are honoured to have rare access to this usually un-trodden area. Ray camps quietly for hours, but will he see the lek?

Thursday, 13 October 2011, 9:00PM – 10:00PM

Joanna Lumley sets out to explore one of the most diverse and surprising countries in Europe, where much of western civilisation began. On her odyssey, Joanna encounters both the ancient and modern aspects of Greece, touching on how the origins of drama, democracy, science, philosophy and medicine can be found here, and how they have left an enduring legacy on the fabric of our everyday life. 

Following in the footsteps of the ancient Greeks, she visits some of the most significant sites of their empire, exploring the history, gods, beliefs, myths and legends which hail from this profoundly significant chapter in European history. Delphi, Ancient Olympia, the Gates of Hades and Mount Olympus all feature within her travels. So too does the British influence on this land, from the occupation of Corfu to its connection with the most romantic of all poets, Lord Byron. 

Joanna provides a glimpse of the diversity of cultures within Greece and provides an insight into the range of lifestyles existing there today. She meets Nana Mouskouri, the most famous of all Greek singers, who performs for Joanna at Epidaurus, and the flower-throwing hedonistic nightclub goers of Athens, as well as venturing off the beaten tourist trail to find the remote villagers of the Mani Peninsular who eek out a living from the land, cooking wild asparagus picked fresh from the hillside. She spends time with the shepherds of Crete whose forefathers helped defeat the Nazis, meets a rare breed of islanders who are continuing to speak with one another using an old language based on whistling, and she explores the remote border lands of Greece, home to established Muslim communities who grow tobacco to make a living.

Episode 1 

THE LAND OF THE ANCIENT GREEKS 

Joanna begins her Greek odyssey at the Parthenon in Athens, which was created by the ancient Greeks two and a half thousand years ago. This was the dawn of western civilisation, which saw the birth of democracy, language, science and medicine. 

From here Joanna travels around the southern region of Greece from Athens to the Peloponnese, visiting spectacular mythical and historic sites left by this great civilisation. These were places of theatre, death, sport and religion to the Ancients and they represent the very cornerstone of this empire. The Greeks flocked to these sites and Joanna follows in their footsteps. 

En route she meets modern Greeks who are still influenced by this ancient era. 

From the marble cutters on the Acropolis who continue to use the same tools as their ancestors, to the Englishman who now worships the god of Apollo at Greece’s most sacred place, Delphi. 

Joanna’s route takes her off the tourist trail to places where ancient myths and cultures live on. She meets villagers who communicate by whistling, a lady who lives a solitary life in an almost deserted village, surviving by eating wild plants and shrubs and a fisherman who takes her to the gates of Hades, the underworld, where the Ancients went when they died. Joanna finds inspiration in the isolated peninsula of the Mani, where its haunting tower house settlements and barren landscape seem unchanged for centuries. 

Joanna also takes part in a Bouzoukia, a hugely popular singing club where, in a modern twist on an old tradition, the audience spends a fortune on flowers that they throw in appreciation. 

And finally Joanna meets perhaps one of the most famous singers in the world, Nana Mouskouri, at Epidaurus, one of the best surviving amphitheatres, where, in order to demonstrate the perfect acoustics, Nana gives a rare performance to Joanna.

Wednesday, 12 October 2011, 8:00PM – 10:00PM

The Night of the Stag: 

When a missing tax inspector turns up dead in a vat of cider, Barnaby and Jones must hunt for a ‘giant’ killer within a Midsomer village steeped in bizarre local traditions, where residents have a fondness for illicit hooch, known as The Beast. 

*** 

A VAT inspector goes missing as he hunts for an illicit cider still responsible for brewing The Beast, a potent local hooch. At the Midsomer Abbas spring fayre which celebrates its friendship with Midsomer Herne, Barnaby and Jones sample the local cider, while temperance preacher Norman Grigor calls on residents to repent of their drunken ways. 

Suddenly, Barnaby is violently ill as the body of missing man Peter Slim is found floating in the cider vat. Pathologist Kate Wilding says the victim’s injuries look like he was shaken to death by a giant. 

Slim had arranged to meet an informant on the night he died, and beekeeper Byron Street tells Barnaby the woods were mayhem as farmers lit ‘smudge pots’ or oil burners to stop frost from damaging the apple blossom and ruining their cider crops. 

Orchard owner Silas Trout, a giant of a man, is discovered distilling The Beast but before the detectives can discover who else is involved, the temperance mob arrives. Silas is arrested, and Barnaby discovers Rev Grigor is an alcoholic, once addicted to The Beast. 

Slim’s car is found near a blood-covered staff and a satchel containing statements from a Swiss bank account. Nearby is a cider mill owned by Anthony Devereux complete with a tree shaker – a large hydraulic arm used to harvest apples. It’s the murder weapon. 

Dyed-in-the-wool countryman Samuel Quested, of The Stag pub, tells fellow publican Will Green of The Apple Tree in Midsomer Herne that he wants to restore an ancient rite – ‘the Stag’. Chloe Baker, who runs dog kennels with her daughter Esme, agrees. 

Jones links the Swiss bank account to Devereux and he admits import fraud but denies murder. His assistant Alice Quested, Samuel’s daughter, says she copied the bank documents for Slim. Meanwhile, Silas visits Rev Grigor and offers him a drink of The Beast. Grigor succumbs to temptation and goes on a drunken rampage. 

Barnaby discovers Slim and Esme were secretly married – only Alice and local vicar Rev Walker knew. Then Barnaby finds some frost-damaged blossom at Quested’s orchard. In prison, Quested offers Devereux an alibi in return for partnership of his cider mill. 

It’s the night of the Stag – when men go in search of women from another village in order to ‘refresh the gene pool’. The detectives discover Rev Walker dead in his vestry and their car tyres punctured, meaning they’ll have to chase the stag party by foot. 

Quested, agricultural workers Smudgepot and Wilberforce and the rest of the hunting party head through the countryside in search of women but when Quested arrives at Chloe’s cottage it’s not her that he’s after. Can the detectives cross the hill in time to stop him carrying out his final act of violence? 

Tuesday, 11 October 2011, 9:00PM – 10:00PM

Six celebrities remain on the expedition but there are only five waking up at base camp. Somebody has been taken to the expedition medic to be checked out. The celebrities gather and meet Paddy and Charlotte to hear the news. Unfortunately, the medic has ruled that due to the nature of their injury they have to leave the expedition. 

Paddy reveals the rules state that after the halfway point of the expedition if any celebrity is ruled out due to injury they are replaced by the last person to leave. So to everyone’s shock, football legend John Barnes rejoins the celebrities. It’s an awkward moment as those that voted for John will have to work with him again. 

With John back in the fold, it’s time for the next team selection. Brooke will lead the red team, Angellica will lead the blues. Brooke picks Rav and John and Angellica picks Amy and Richard. With the team’s chosen it’s time to reveal this week’s team challenge. 

Paddy tells the celebrities to look across a valley to a sheer rock face 100 metres high. Dangling from the rock face are four portaledge tents. These tents, used by professional mountaineers, are used to scale sheer rock faces and hang from a single rope. The celebrities will spend the worst night sleep of their lives in these terrifying tents. But first they must trek to the base of the cliff and then relay race up to the tents. They will climb the rock face using the jumar technique. They will have to lift their own body weight up a single rope, but which team will be first to their tents and be awarded luxary food supplies for that evening? 

In the night temperatures drop and the wind picks up. Everyone is freezing cold but John Barnes can’t take it. He insists on being taken down from the tent and the safety team looks after him in a tent at the base. 

The next morning Brooke and Rav are wondering what’s happened to John as they wake in the scariest B&B on the planet. Both teams climb to the top of the cliff where the red team is reunited. John has been checked out and warmed up. He is ok and determined to help Brooke win the night in the warmth. 

For the second part of the team challenge the celebrities must cross a ravine by a zip wire picking up flags along the way, but which team will have to spend another night under canvas? 

The next day the celebrities are reunited on the banks of a frozen river for the next immunity challenge. Paddy and Charlotte reveal that today they are going reindeer racing. 

There’s a boys heat which eliminates John and a girls heat that eliminates Amy, but who will make it through to the final and win immunity? 

The celebrities enter the voting tent one at a time and write down the name of the person they think should leave in their expedition journals. Paddy and Charlotte meet the celebrities in base camp to reveal who will be sent home that evening.

Monday, 10 October 2011, 9:00PM – 10:00PM

Episode Five 

PC Joe Penhale (John Marquez) has an unexpected visitor- his ex wife Maggie (Julie Graham). She appears to have completely forgotten that they split up a couple of years ago. 

When he tries to tell her they are no longer married she accuses him of over-reacting, and wants to know why he packed his bags and left her. 

Joe struggles with a mixture of distress and elation at seeing Maggie again. He has thought about her every day since they parted. 

He realises she is clearly not well, especially when she tells him she thinks it is April 2008, and that she woke up to find him gone, when she has actually been living with another man since their split. He tries discreetly to ask Dr Ellingham about her symptoms without telling him that he is talking about his ex wife. 

Joe is terrified of losing Maggie again, and wants to make the most of every moment of being back together. He arranges a romantic evening for them at the local restaurant, Large’s, only to find Dr Ellingham and Louisa there. When Louisa invites Joe and Maggie to join them, the doctor quickly spots that Maggie has a problem, and is showing symptoms of transient global amnesia. He tells Joe and Maggie he will arrange urgent brain scans for her to determine the diagnosis. For Joe his hopes of their marriage working again are dashed. 

It looks as if romance may be in the air for Louisa’s mother Eleanor. She meets an old school friend, Paul (John Duttine), a local fisherman who takes her out on a date. 

But the relationship is strictly business, as Louisa discovers when Paul collapses on his boat and falls overboard. Paul has stopped breathing and the doctor has to give mouth to mouth to resuscitate him. Eleanor shows such a lack of compassion for the poor man’s condition she is forced to explain to her daughter that she’d struck a deal with a Spanish company to supply seafood, and Paul has been working all hours to meet the demand. 

Morwenna arrives at work with blood dripping from her foot after standing on a nail. The doctor grimaces at the sight of the blood and fights the nausea rising in his throat as he treats the wound. He is about to give Morwenna a tetanus injection when she disappears from the surgery. She confesses she’s scared of needles. 

Martin and Louisa’s baby still doesn’t have a name, and PC Penhale warns them that time is running out. If they don’t register a name for the baby soon the State will step in and name the baby. After protracted discussions the couple finally reaches an agreement; their baby son is named James Henry.

Sunday, 9 October 2011, 8:00PM – 9:00PM

The X Factor excitement is turned up a notch this weekend as the final 16 contestants take to the stage for the start of the live shows. 

They’ve been through auditions, Bootcamp and the Judges’ Houses stages of the show and beat off competition from thousands of others. 

Now, the final 16 are preparing to perform live in front of The X Factor judges and an audience of millions to win The X Factor 2011 and scoop a £1m recording deal. 

Saturday, 8 October 2011, 7:30PM – 10:00PM

The X Factor excitement is turned up a notch this weekend as the final 16 contestants take to the stage for the start of the live shows. 

They’ve been through auditions, Bootcamp and the Judges’ Houses stages of the show and beat off competition from thousands of others. 

Now, the final 16 are preparing to perform live in front of The X Factor judges and an audience of millions to win The X Factor 2011 and scoop a £1m recording deal.

Friday, 7 October 2011, 9:00PM – 10:00PM

Friend of the Devil (2/2): 

When the body Kevin Templeton is discovered in an alleyway, Banks and his team find themselves investigating the murder of one of their own. Annie is convinced of a link between the murder of Lucy Payne and Templeton, but with no evidence to support her claims, she is dismissed as trying to push her own career ambitions. When Timothy Randall is found to be innocent of Hayley Daniels’ murder, Banks finds his investigation must go back to the drawing board. Not until Annie receives new information from another force altogether can she begin to uncover the real connection between the three murders. But when Annie turns to someone she trusts for answers about conflicting evidence, she finds the true identity of Templeton’s killer to be far closer to home. Meanwhile, Banks has proved how Hayley Daniels’ real murderer committed his crime without being caught on CCTV and intercepts Annie and the serial killer, but not before Annie has revealed a shocking secret about her own past.

Friday, 7 October 2011, 8:00PM – 8:30PM

The Cottage Garden: 

This week, its out with formality as Love Your Garden embraces the classic charm of the cottage garden. 

Alan discovers the epitome of cottage style in Staffordshire. 

Valentine Warner shows viewers which weeds to eat in a pretty cottage garden and Charlotte Uhlenbroek finds hibernating havens for wildlife. 

Plus Love Your Garden reveals what you need to buy this weekend if you want to start your very own cottage garden. 

Thursday, 6 October 2011, 9:00PM – 10:00PM

The final leg of Billy Connolly’s journey along the road that defined America, Route 66, sees him discover the oddest and cutest sights along the Mother Road and encounter the true spirit of the continent. 

Starting the last instalment outside Flagstaff, Billy follows the footsteps of millions of migrating dreamers into the remote mountain passes of Arizona, through the Californian deserts and urban sprawls of LA to his final destination, Santa Monica. He says: “Have I got a treat for you.” 

His first stop of the evening is a spectacularly large hole, 750 feet deep and 4000 feet across. Caused by a meteorite, it’s the second largest hole along Route 66 and his fascination with it is something that Billy thinks separates men from women. 

As night falls on the outskirts of Flagstaff, Billy journeys high up on a hill to the famous Lowell Observatory where Pluto was discovered. He contemplates: “I’ve come to the conclusion that we’re part of a big cup of tea in space, that’s the way I look at the world.” 

Next, taking a train detour, Billy travels to one of the Seven Wonders of the World, The Grand Canyon. An old-fashioned monster of a train is now powered by vegetable oil and takes him to the mile-deep canyon which he has never visited before. He says: “I’ve never seen anything like that in my life. I’ve seen it, been there, done it – I’m going to get the T-shirt.” 

Continuing along Route 66, Billy rides his Boom-trike alongside lengthy trains. He says the experience is unexpected and creates a sense of “completely childlike joy”. 

In Williams, Billy wanders over to “the wrong side of the track” towards an old brothel and then observes American Memorial Day celebrations which see a man dancing in the parade with what Billy describes as a “shovel full of sh*t”. 

Billy’s next destination, Seligman, invites bikers to town for a three wheel party. Catfish Larry lives off social security disability allowance but owns a boat, a dirt bike, a street bike and a trike, all of which he is attempting to sell. Billy explains: “Times are hard in the heartland of America.” 

An appointment with a barber keeps Billy in the town, where 84 year-old Angel teaches him about September 22nd 1978, when, at about three in the afternoon, the interstate highway opened and their town was left sign-less. After ten years of anger, Angel campaigned for legislation deeming Route 66 ‘Historic’ and won, earning Angel the title, ‘The Godfather of Route 66’. Billy says: “It’s been a joy to meet the real America.” 

Peach Springs is Billy’s next stop, where he spends the night in the world’s deepest motel room. Down 220 feet, in the same cave that John F Kennedy declared a bomb shelter during the Cuban Missile Crisis, Billy finds a relatively homely suite. Staying there, he says: “I must be off my bloody head.” 

Continuing along his ambitious journey, Billy visits Jonathan Craft’s Keepers of the Wild Sanctuary on the outskirts of Valentine. Jonathan explains that over 1500 big cats are in private hands in the US alone. Those that are discarded, go to his sanctuary. As a former big cat showman in Las Vegas, Jonathan knows the dangers of keeping them as pets. He tells Billy: “I used to go in and brush his mane, I don’t do that anymore – he’d be brushing mine.” 

Billy hits the true west as he travels through the last of eight states along his journey, California. Climbing the mountain passes, he talks about the millions of people who have travelled the same road, fleeing Oklahoma’s great planes to ‘kiss the sky’, high up on Route 66. 

As his last night on the road draws near, Billy is mesmerised. He says: “I’ve got desert to the left of me, desert to the right, desert in front and desert behind. This is the California of rock and roll minstrels and wayfaring wastrels that any self-respecting Glasgow hippies in the sixties would have longed to see.” 

Next Billy reaches his penultimate destination, Los Angeles, the most populated state in America. With 88 cities standing right next to each other, LA County offers fairytales in the most unexpected places. Billy goes to the less glamorous Pomona to meet a family obsessed with restoring and assembling 70 year-old hot rods and low-rider cars which are more popular than ever. He gets to witness one car dubbed ‘The Pimp’, which he declares “the best car I’ve ever seen in my life”. 

Chopper pilot and traffic reporter, Chuck Street, takes Billy for a ride over the city where commuters are stuck in three days of stationary traffic every year. Chuck describes it as looking like a lava of cars on the Santa Monica Freeway and calls it “the largest ever, open air asylum”. 

Billy has ridden way over 3000 miles along Route 66 and its tributaries, but his journey is finally complete as he reaches Santa Monica, where the road ends at the Pacific Ocean. Billy says: “The America of my childhood fantasies is gone, if it ever existed, but there’re still enough cowboys, roadside giants and big, sloppy hamburgers to make your heart sing. Route 66 is like life, complicated, but well worth the effort. I’m glad it’s finished and I’m sad it’s finished.”