The Muppet Show; The Investigation of Lucy Letby; Sin City: The Real Las Vegas

“Seth Rogen has brought back The Muppet Show (Disney+) to mark its 50th birthday, and what’s remarkable is that he hasn’t changed a thing. No new characters, no changed dynamic. Rowlf is playing the piano, Statler and Waldorf are grumbling away in their box, Miss Piggy is still referring to “moi” and Kermit is heroically holding things together. This fidelity to the original is practically unheard of in the world of TV, where shows are not revived but “rebooted”, and always for the worse. Elements of this (embargoed by Disney) are transporting – suddenly you’re feeling joy and a fuzzy nostalgia.”
Anita Singh, Telegraph

“If nothing else, it will entertain children for half an hour and give them the not inconsiderable gift of being introduced to Miss Piggy, and perhaps even more valuably alerting their parents to the fact that all five series of the original are available on the streaming platform. Let it soothe you while we all hunker down and pray for a return to simpler, happier times.”
Lucy Mangan, The Guardian

“God, I love the Muppets, and this 30-minute Disney+ “backdoor pilot”, designed to test interest for a possible return of the old-school theatre show with backstage high jinks, clearly has an eye on us oldies introducing our young charges to the magic. One recent revival had an all too digital look, but this goes back happily to what we knew best: arm-rod puppeteering and the classic opening number to send a tingle up your spine. And yes, they all still seem to be predominantly left-handed.”
Ben Dowell, The Times

“The film includes contributions from the anonymised mother of one of the babies, which are of course heartbreaking. But it is a weighty decision to include them. They are there to make good television for the producers, pull in viewers and tug on their emotions and even if this is not the intention, they run emotional interference between them and a rational appraisal of the facts. Which, even on this partial telling, surely need revisiting in a court of law. Reports are with the Criminal Cases Review Commission. Its decision is expected in autumn. Everyone’s suffering continues.”
Lucy Mangan, The Guardian

“This film had all the excellent footage (including police interviews) and the exclusive sit-downs you might want, but contained little that is not in the public domain. And while it will no doubt intensify the fascination with the case, perhaps right now the most important question is whether a Netflix documentary is truly the appropriate forum for discussing this? Or is it the Court of Appeal?”
Ben Dowell, The Times

“We also expect weirdos, of course. Dhondy found a few, but though she has a gift for winning people’s confidence, she probes too lightly, and sometimes apologises for asking personal questions. As a result, I often felt there were stories left untold.”
Christopher Stevens, Daily Mail