TV Critics: Atomic; Partners in Crime; Sinatra; From Venice to Istanbul

“Over 70 minutes there were many sights to wonder at and ponder upon. But the longer you watched, the more incoherent the whole thing seemed. In the wrost traditions of modern art, it all looked striking and raised a hundred questions without answering a single one.”
Matt Baylis, Daily Express

“Sadly, Atomic: Living in Dread and Promise was not as insightful as it thought it was. Think Adam Curtis but with added pretension. This was not an informative piece of film-making: it was an art installation masquerading as television.”
Rupert Hawksley, The Telegraph

“Neither CND nor Greenpeace would have had any quarrel with this film yet it felt more like nostalgia than propaganda, the stuff of nightmares, but last night’s, not this evening’s.”
Andrew Billen, The Times

“The finale of this first mystery was noticeably darker. It opened in the teeming rain and never really brightened up. How I longed for a return to the japes of previous weeks.”
Rupert Hawksley, The Telegraph

“The true joy of these tales is in the atmosphere. It’s a totally un-modern one in which spy plots alternate with summer fetes, villains weild cricket bats and the technological gimmicks are provided by an off-duty physics teacher. For those left cold by the shenanigans of Bond, Tommmy and Tuppence are the ticket.”
Matt Baylis, Daily Express

“Sinatra: All or Nothing at All is an impressive piece of work. You may not think you want to know that much about Sinatra. Trust me: you do.”
Tim Dowling, The Guardian

“There was a pleasing modesty to Rick Stein’s claim that he was merely ‘a cook’ and his panicky, anxious air over the frying pan endeared. The format seemed a bit weird, however, with Stein at one moment sipping prosecco in Venice with Francesco da Mosta or eating tiramisu on the Lido with the travel writer Robin Saikia and then, suddenly, in exile on the Greek island of Symi cooking for himself.”
Andrew Billen, The Times