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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Entertainment
Phil Harrison, Ellen E Jones, Ali Catterall, Hannah Verdier and Stuart Heritage

TV tonight: how did Boris Johnson ever become prime minister?

Johnson hangs his head with union flags in the background
Was it all just a bad dream? … The Rise and Fall of Boris Johnson, on Channel 4. Photograph: WPA/Channel 4

The Rise and Fall of Boris Johnson

9pm, Channel 4

It’s less than two years since he lost the job, but the ascent of Boris Johnson to prime minister already feels like a strange and disturbing dream. This four-part series functions as an alternative history of post-millennial British politics as our discourse descended into personality-focused triviality – with calamitous results. In this opener, Johnson’s early conflicts with the concept of integrity in journalism are discussed, before he somehow becomes mayor of London. Phil Harrison

Why Planes Vanish: The Hunt for MH370

8pm, BBC One

A grimly fascinating if inconclusive film exploring “the greatest unsolved mystery in aviation”. What happened to the plane that disappeared between Kuala Lumpur and Beijing in 2014? Several theories are advanced but we’re left with the haunting thought of the plane, off radar but continuing for hours, potentially with a depressurised cabin full of unconscious passengers. PH

The Marlow Murder Club

8pm, Drama

Based on Robert Thorogood’s novels, this cosy crime series centres on retired archaeologist Judith Potts (Samantha Bond), vicar’s wife Becks (Cara Horgan) and dog-walker Suzie (Jo Martin) – a trio who evolve into a crime-fighting team when one of Judith’s neighbours is murdered. PH

Ambulance

9pm, BBC One

On one particularly cursed night in Lancashire, it seems all the people who shouldn’t call an ambulance do, and all the people who should, don’t. It’s then up to long-suffering call handlers to wade through the verbally abusive attention-seekers, so that senior paramedics such as Amy and Debbie can head straight to the most urgent cases. Ellen E Jones

Bring the Drama

9pm, BBC Two

Kate Winslet, Orlando Bloom, Danny Dyer … even young Bill Bailey cut his teeth with a single line in Casualty. So how will our eight aspiring actors fare in this fast-paced ensemble environment? Casualty star Charles Venn helps them deliver convincing reactions to life-and-death situations on the Cardiff set. Ali Catterall

Naked Attraction

10.35pm, Channel 4

The pants-free parade is still bringing a steady stream of characters with its 12th series. Dazzling Damo is a stripper living on his parents’ farm in Ireland. And model Illy is back for a second time, having failed to find love in a previous series. Hannah Verdier

Film choice

Lady Bird (2017, Greta Gerwig), 12.25am, BBC One
While the world tears itself apart over how much Greta Gerwig deserved an Oscar for Barbie, here’s a welcome chance to revisit her first solo directorial outing. Lady Bird stars Saoirse Ronan as a high-minded high school student on the brink of leaving her home town for university. A giddy, talky movie stuffed to the gills with ideas, Lady Bird also has one of the most hilariously stacked supporting casts in recent memory. Laurie Metcalf, Tracy Letts and Timothée Chalamet all play out of their skins. Stuart Heritage

Live sport

Test Cricket: India v England, 3.30am, TNT Sports 1 Day one of the fifth and final Test in the series. Continues at the same time for the rest of the week.

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