Beach combing

DID you know there was a patron saint of things that have gone missing? Well according to James May there is, and he’s keen to put that right, so he heads for Sandbanks, in Poole, home to clean beaches and houses that can fetch up to £10m in James May’s Man Lab.

He is no stranger to this little piece of paradise as he used to holiday there with his family.

In 1973, his dear old father, James May Sr, lost his wedding ring.

His quick-thinking wife returned with a deep fat fryer basket so they could sieve the sand to search for the ring. Alas, they failed.

So, with the aid of some appropriate music (I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For, naturally) and geomorphologist Vincent May (no relation), The Top Gear presenter hopes to find his father’s ring.

Also this week James (Jr) decides to develop a gadget that can filter junk mail.

It involves a model train, several feet of track and his rather clever colleagues, who do much of the real work.

And recapturing the spirit of pirate radio, he takes to a barge to create his own version of Radio Caroline to entertain the folks of Milton Keynes with the aid of 3G tech, six sim cards and plenty of other high-tech gubbins.

BRITAIN has, literally, got a big fat problem. Year upon year, we are getting fatter, with many of us unable to put our finger on quite why we are piling on the pounds.

In Secret Eaters, Anna Richardson ploughs on in her mission to point out what really is staring us in the face – we might think that the salad sandwich we had for lunch was healthy enough, but the lashings of mayo and packet of crisps on the side, not so much.

This week, David and Denise from Eccles, Greater Manchester, are under the spotlight. They cannot understand where they are going wrong – they don’t eat enough to warrant their size.

However, the calories are clearly on the hefty side in the rich sauces and plentiful portions they allow themselves.

When the shocking truth of what they are actually putting into their bodies is laid out in black and white, will they be able to stick to a healthy eating plan and get rid of the extra pounds? Well, if not, those hidden cameras will soon be on to them.

YOU are never very far away from an episode of The Big Bang Theory. E4 shows it at least twice a day, and C4 frequently follows suit.

However, new episodes have been harder to come by, especially because the sitcom has been taking one of those pesky midseason breaks so common to US TV.

Now season six is back and it’s Christmas in Pasadena. Leonard is attempting to get Sheldon in a festive mood via the medium of a yuletide game.

Unfortunately, that just reminds his friend of childhood trauma. Meanwhile, Raj is out with the girls, and he must be drinking because he reveals he fancies Penny and Bernadette.

TRAUMA Doctors follows an elite team of doctors at one of the UK’s leading trauma centres.

In the opening episode, a motorcyclist is brought in with a mangled foot following an accident. However, before the team get to work on fixing it, they need to check the rest of his body and the wreckage of the crash for clues to ensure they do not miss any other, less obvious injuries.

The team also have to stabilise a 19- year-old who has been hit by a van, but their investigation reveals a potential spine injury that could have grave consequences, and a 45-year-old cyclist with a head injury.