“Think Supernanny crossed with Harriet Harman.” Read on for the verdict on last night’s TV.

The Fairy Jobmother

THE FAIRY JOBMOTHER, C4

“As with all additions to the growing genre of poverty porn, the concept is black and evil at its heart…and ignores any and all uncomfortable wider truths about unemployment and the so-called benefit culture.”
Lucy Mangan, The Guardian

“Hayley is tender-hearted, encouraging and briskly effective… It effectively smuggles a lot of education and information inside the boilerplate, can-do narrative arc.”
Tom Sutcliffe, The Independent  

“Think Supernanny crossed with Harriet Harman…Rather than proving what the demoralised masses can achieve with a little encouragement, the series demonstrates how important it is to get your face on telly.”
Matt Baylis, Daily Express

BETWEEN LIFE AND DEATH, BBC1

“Nick Holt’s film gently parsed the increasingly nuanced division between being and not being.”
Lucy Mangan, The Guardian

“Riveting documentary…hauntingly truthful.”
Andrew Billen, The Times

THE UGLY FACE OF BEAUTY, C4

“There was a curious sense that cosmetic surgery isn’t inherently ugly but only depends on the results you end up with… An advert for the premium brand, not a serious questioning of the product itself.”
Tom Sutcliffe, The Independent  

THAT MITCHELL AND WEBB LOOK, BBC2

“All the show really lacked was…a sense of joy.”
Andrew Billen, The Times

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