Secreat Genius; The Night Manager; Death in Paradise

“Nerds, geeks… there are many names for clever people who got bullied or overlooked at school, though I quite liked the Carlisle civil servant Nathan’s description of himself as “one of the later picks” when it came to PE lessons. Still, their time has come. Just look at Alan Carr, king Traitor and now presenter of Secret Genius, this latest brainteaser from Channel 4. The geeks — or at least the specs-wearing folk with “teeth that are maybe not the best” (his words, by the way) — are now inheriting the earth. It is a nice idea — taking a random group of people, recommended by friends and families, with overlooked mental acuity and putting them through their paces with a series of fiendish challenges devised by British Mensa.”
Ben Dowell, The Times

“What a lack of class privilege didn’t take care of, bullies did. Some contestants allude to their experiences, all nod in recognition. God, kids are vile. Then there’s the male/female split. Sports management consultant Jo, who nearly loses a round against the clock because she cannot believe she got an answer correct and takes herself back for a second go, contrasts her attitude to her capabilities with that of her ambitious, extrovert brother and puts at least part of it down to the natural/nurtured differences between their sexes. She thinks she might need to stop shying away from her abilities. At home, the nation roars its approval. All of human life is here. And Alan Carr. And Susie Dent. Secret Genius is all good fun and games so long as you ignore all the things it’s measuring that Mensa could never imagine.”
Lucy Mangan, The Guardian

“A great deal of ingenuity has gone into inventing IQ mindbenders that would be lots of fun, if only we got a fair chance to join in. If you wanted to try the games yourself, the trick was to hit the pause button when the boards flashed up on screen. That’s a serious design flaw — fumbling with the remote control, you’re just as likely to change channel by accident.”
Christopher Stevens, Daily Mail

“The second series of The Night Manager may have only woken up halfway through its six-episode run, but the Le Carré-inspired spy drama has been making up for lost time ever since. The catalyst for this adrenaline rush was, of course, the much-needed return of Hugh Laurie’s Richard Roper. Laurie’s sardonic arms dealer provided the bite and humour so sorely missing from the first three episodes.”
Gerard Gilbert, The i

“We all went into the finale of The Night Manager feeling tense. Would Jonathan Pine succeed in thwarting Richard Roper’s evil plans once again? Would Teddy Dos Santos go through with betraying his father? But, more importantly, would the writers deliver an ending that justified us sitting through six episodes of this very patchy sequel? The answer to the last question, I’m afraid, was “no”.”
Anita Singh, Telegraph

“What a pleasure it is to be seduced – and The Night Manager is just about the most seductive show on television. The palatial houses and swish hotels; the expensive suits and crisp shirts (does anyone wear a button-up better than Tom Hiddleston?); all the beautiful people with their beautiful faces, elegantly stabbing one another in the back. The first season aired 10 years ago – an entirely different world – so when it was announced that a second season was coming, my first thought was: oh no, lightning doesn’t strike twice. Delightfully, I was wrong.”
Sian Cain, The Guardian

“You’ve got to love Richard Roper, the evil, murderous, skin-shedding snake. In the end he was two steps ahead of everyone, including Jonathan Pine, including me, and he single-handedly made The Night Manager finale a seat-gripper. What a character.”
Carol Midgley, The Times

“Detectives come and go in Death in Paradise (BBC One), but Don Warrington is the backbone of the show. At the end of series 14, the producers toyed with our emotions by temporarily writing him out. How dare they! Fortunately, his exile didn’t last long. After a stint in Britain visiting his daughter – and helping to solve a crime in the less-than-tropical climes of Swindon, as seen in the Christmas special – Commissioner Selwyn Patterson has made a welcome return to Saint Marie. All is right with the world. And we may be 15 series in, but the sunny crime drama shows few signs of flagging.”
Anita Singh, Telegraph

“In the fast paced world of the television whodunit, there are many hares but only one tortoise – and that is, of course, the reliably plodding Death in Paradise. While other crime shows sprint out of the traps, this charmingly relaxed tale of death and mayhem on a fictional Caribbean island saunters at its own pace. Can anything knock it off its easygoing stride?”
Ed Power, The i