THERE was one question I wish I’d asked Rupert Penry-Jones at the launch of new ITV1 drama Whitechapel.
I know he will have heard it many times before.
But I have this image of his actress wife Dervla Kirwan serving up a TV dinner at home.
Does the voice of those commercials inform him, “This is not just microwaved Chicken Arrabbiata…this is Marks & Spencer…”
Happily, the questions were – hopefully – a bit more sensible than that.
As you can read in today’s MEN TV feature here.
Extra content which didn’t make the final cut of the story included confirmation that Rupert has no regrets about moving on from Spooks.

NO wonder Frank is smiling.
So much to say about the new series of Shameless, which contains shocks, surprises, departures and arrivals.
Not all of which can be revealed just yet.
You can read yesterday’s first MEN feature on Shameless series six here.
Plus check out a pic gallery here.
The feature includes quotes from Rebecca Ryan (Debbie) and Gerard Kearns (Ian) – two of 15 interviews I was lucky enough to carry out on set in Manchester.
The first episode on Channel 4 at 10pm next Tuesday sees Debbie turning 16 with a big party in The Jockey.
“She gets all dressed up and excited,” Rebecca told me.

IT’S her finest screen performance so far.
ITV1 drama Unforgiven tells the story of Ruth Slater, branded a “psycho killer” after the murder of two policemen.
But thanks to the acting skill of Suranne Jones, we actually care about what happens to her.
I interviewed Suranne and Peter Davison, who plays Ruth’s lawyer John, in early December after watching preview DVDs of the first two episodes.
But it wasn’t until last week that I was able to see the concluding third episode, which will be screened on ITV1 at 9pm next Monday.
Although I’d guessed the twist in the tale, it didn’t spoil the final hour of this superbly crafted drama, written by Sally Wainwright.
And I’m not ashamed to admit that I had a tear in my eye at the end.

“WHAT is happening to me..?”
Anne Turner (Julie Walters) lies on the floor of her hallway, having fallen backwards down the stairs.
What follows is the story of one remarkable woman’s extraordinary journey.
Manchester-trained actress Julie plays Anne in BBC1 drama A Short Stay In Switzerland.
Filmed over just 22 days and broadcast next Sunday at 9pm, it’s inspired by the true story of Dr Turner.
She developed the degenerative brain disease progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), having seen her husband suffer and die from a similar condtion.
PSP involves the progressive death of neurons in the brain. It affects balance, mobility, vision, speech and the ability to swallow, leaving many sufferers eventually unable to walk, feed themselves or communicate effectively with the world around them.
You can read an interview with Julie in today’s MEN TV feature here.
And last Friday’s initial MEN news story is here.

THE pie, peas and mash were piping hot at The Barrow Boy And Banker.
Five pushed out the gravy boat for the launch of Minder.
They hired a pub at one end of London Bridge for the afternoon.
Opened a free bar.
And served up a choice of pies or oysters for the assembled media.
Along with the stars of the “re-invention” of the original series.
It being lunchtime and all that, I stuck to just the one glass of still water.
With Five chief executive Dawn Airey complaining that far too many hacks were holding glasses of orange juice for her liking.

IT’S never as glossy as it looks on the telly.

Go to The Lakeside Club in Surrey, they said.

Report on the 2009 World Darts Final between Tony O’Shea and Ted Hankey.

And avoid drinking one-hundred-and-eighteee pints of Frimley Green’s finest lager.

As I was both driving and writing to a late evening deadline, my alcohol intake remained at zero.

The reporting bit was going to be a bit more problematical.

How do you sum up the phenomenon that is the BDO World Darts Final?

Like me, you may have seen it on TV and thought it was a rather lively event.

THE doors were already open when we arrived just after 6:30pm.
Looking at the queue snaking around the theatre, a moment of panic set in.
Would we be turned away, dashing my hopes?
Friday Night Is Music Night is the world’s longest running live music programme on radio.
Like me, it’s been going for half a century, but appears to have held on to more of its hair.
It was one of my mum and dad’s favourite radio shows.
So I remember listening to it as a little lad in the days before Radio Two was invented.
Back then the network was known as The Light Programme, alongside the Home and Third Programme.
On a radio dial which also included such exotic destinations as Hilversum, Moscow and Athlone.

THE con is back on tonight as Hustle returns for a fifth series.
Robert Glenister stars again as Ash Morgan – and I interviewed him yesterday for today’s MEN TV feature.
You can see what he had to say – and view a pic gallery – here.
But I know fans of Robert, as well as Hustle and Spooks, will want to read more.
So here’s some of the content of our chat that could not be squeezed into the hard copy feature:
Episode one of Hustle sees Robert’s character Ash posing as Simon Porter-Jones, a City misogynist with a 19-year-old mistress.
He has coffee and brandy for breakfast as he bids to reel in his mark.
Robert told me: “I just thought that rather than make him an obvious semi-caricature of the obnoxious City bloke, it would be better to try and make him unpleasant as opposed to funny and a bit cartoonish.

A freezing cold morning by the Thames in London.
It’s as if the streets have been themed for the press launch of Dancing On Ice 2009.
Yesterday’s event was held at ITV’s South Bank complex.
We began by watching the 13 skating celebrities appear live on This Morning in a nearby studio.
Then they came to talk to us.
Before the interviews, we were treated to a short showreel of footage which will open this Sunday’s first show, followed by the new opening titles.

“NOBODY knows,” exclaimed Shameless star Tina Malone.
She was telling fellow housemates how shocked family and friends would be to see her in the Celebrity Big Brother House.
At least they had the decency to keep a straight face.
Tina must have missed the leak to the newspapers a full five days before the series started, accurately naming the incoming housemates.
As Verne Troyer remarked inside the house as another new arrival came through the door on Friday night:
“Everybody that I’ve seen in the papers.”
So most of the celebs were well aware of who they were going to share this experience with.
Even if some still couldn’t figure out what that Tommy bloke was called. “I want to say Michael,” ventured Verne.
Or resist the rush to grab a bed in the lugsheree bedroom.