“This was decent, populist, believe-it-or-not science, Braniacs for the almost grown-up.” Read on for the verdict on last night’s TV.

RICHARD HAMMOND

RICHARD HAMMOND’S INVISIBLE WORLDS, BBC1

“This was decent, populist, believe-it-or-not science, Braniacs for the almost grown-up.”
Andrew Billen, The Times

“Pretty stuff that you can only see properly if you slow it right down is not enough. A serious documentary needs more focus.”
Sam Wollaston, The Guardian

“It was just a shame about the frontman really, an innocuous presence most of the time but intensely irritating when he’s telling you, roughly every three minutes, that the thing you’re about to see will turn your expectations of reality about face.”
Matt Baylis, Daily Express

“Faced with a programme that contained beautiful and fascinating sights and yet still somehow succeeded in making you check your watch every five minutes, I found this concept more than usually pertinent.”
Tom Sutcliffe, The Independent

THE BATTLE FOR NORTH AMERICA, BBC2

“It may have been lying around for a bit too, given that the battle’s 250th anniversary was last year, but was excellent.”
Andrew Billen, The Times

“Snow’s account was a bit thin on the budget side…however he made up for it with a great deal of hand gesturing and passionate wincing.”
Matt Baylis, Daily Express

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