“The promise of a meeting with Dame Judi, a proud Yorkie herself, bubbled beneath this Christmas special like festive gravy on the hob”
The Yorkshire Vet: A Donkey for Christmas, Channel 5
“Are baby donkeys the new pygmy hippos? Instagram take note: they should be. Donkeys, as this Channel 5 special, The Yorkshire Vet: A Donkey for Christmas, made clear, are cute as hell, loyal to a single life partner and have massive furry ears that present all sorts of merchandising opportunities. This, presumably, is why the Yorkshire Vet series opted to give an entire episode over to a bunch of asses. I imagine the producers were delighted to discover that not only is Peter Wright, the series’ star vet, a patron of The Donkey Sanctuary but also that none other than Dame Judi Dench is the face of Flicka, another donkey-related charity. The promise of a meeting with Dame Judi, a proud Yorkie herself, bubbled beneath this Christmas special like festive gravy on the hob.”
Benji Wilson, Telegraph
“his all felt like particularly specialist viewing for primetime ITV, and when it came to his tips for backgammon, you might have been totally baffled if you weren’t familiar with the game. Well, no matter. It wasn’t that there was certain glee to be had watching the smartly analytical Lewis laughing as he was destroyed by a wily nonagenarian. It was how this demonstrated the best thing about board games: it’s not actually about the winning, it’s about the companionship.”
James Jackson, The Times
The Secret Lives of Animals, Apple TV+
“This is a nature documentary skewed towards a slightly younger audience, I suspect. It is glossy, clean and heartwarming. If animals are ever in danger of coming to harm, then it is only for a moment. The seal pup and the teenage elephant may appear to be in peril, but it never lasts long. The brutality of the animal world, with its predators and prey, is somewhere in the distance.”
Rebecca Nicholson, The Guardian
“It was weary, hackneyed, repetitive and badly edited. In one segment, Gino was parading around a tourist hotspot with a handkerchief on a pole, like a cruise ship guide. Whatever that gag was meant to be about, it must have been cut. A lame explanation was inserted in voiceover, something about Gino being afraid of getting lost.”
Christopher Stevens, Daily Mail
“Panto-style smut is harmless, but pantomimes also have other things going for them. In Emission Impossible, it’s the cornerstone of D’Acampo’s act.”
Anita Singh, Telegraph
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