TV Critics: Rich Dog Poor Dog; Britain on the Fiddle; Prime Suspect 1973; Extremely British Muslims; Walks With My Dog

“No shaggy dog stories here. This was a surprisingly intimate, fly-on-the-wall affair which saw tears shed on both sides as the women let us into their lives and shared their stories. Making gently life-affirming TV, it seems, is a walk in the park.”
Michael Hogan, The Telegraph

“The show is really about their owners, of course, and London’s great wealth divide; the dogs are just a way of getting to them. Not hugely significant apart from another way to illustrate the scale of economic inequality in the capital.”
Sam Wollaston, The Guardian

“This was not poverty porn passing judgment on people caught in despair and hardship. One of the subjects last night was a property developer funding his empire with handouts to one of his aliases. This was not fiddling. This was professional league fraud.”
Andrew Billen, The Times

“Britain On The Fiddle was so lightweight as to be disposable. Not for one minute did this pointless programme question the contradictions behind any of it.”
Christopher Stevens, Daily Mail

“This mediocre series is a misjudged bid to cash in on the deep well of affection for the majestic original, but neither the writing nor performances are up to muster.”
Michael Hogan, The Telegraph

“Prime Suspect 1973 continues to offer a heady mix of Seventies pop, squadroom sexism and rayon flares, alongside a delectably tangled first case for WPC Jane Tennison. It’s highly watchable, although little details snag, like our toenails used to on those Day-Glo nylon bedspreads.”
Matt Baylis, Daily Express

“Paddy Wivell is an excellent and inquisitive interviewer, but sometimes his images said even more. These young men were so extremely British that they played football and they boxed, but it was with other Asians, in front of other Asians.”
Andrew Billen, The Times

“This show may be lightweight and undemanding, but it certainly inspires you to reach for the extendable lead and head into the spring sunshine.”
Christopher Stevens, Daily Mail