Food for thought

IN Jimmy Doherty and Kate Qulton’s epic trip, we take a look at 50 of the world’s diets and have them ranked from the very worst to the very best, with the help of leading dietary experts.

The pair look at the differences in our eating habits and the surprising similarities between countries thousands of miles apart. By looking at diets around the world, the idea is to try and understand what we in Britain should be eating and how we can improve our health and quality of life for our own families .

When it comes to the foods we eat, we've never had so much choice. But with all this variety at our fingertips, are we really aware of the health implications of what we are eating. It’s a journey that will lead to some shocking discoveries about the worst excesses our modern diet can lead to, but will also reveal some amazing discoveries about the diets that could prolong life.

Food Unwrapped’s Kate and farmer, TV presenter and Jamie Oliver’s mate Jimmy visit nine countries in total, in order to answer some pertinent questions – why does the Marshall Islands have one of the highest rates of diabetes in the world? Does a little village in the Italian countryside hold the secret to a longer life? We step inside the homes and kitchens of families all around the world to see how and what different communities really eat.

A panel of expert nutritionists will rank the different diets as this journey turns up some shocking discoveries about what the worst excesses our modern diet can lead to. There’s also a few eye-opening and amazing finds about some diets which may actually prolong life. It helps to illustrate what we in Britain perhaps should be eating, and what we can effectively avoid if we want to live long and healthy lives. That's particularly important to us now, when we have more choice than ever before when it comes to what we can put on our plates. However, the variety at our fingertips is not necessarily a good thing, as with this increase in choice comes a rise in obesity and other health problems.

The Culture Show: Girls Will Be Girls (BBC2, 10pm)

For some people, the word punkwill always conjure images of young men in ripped trousers and spiky haircuts with safety pins through their noses, but the movement was far from being a boys' club.

In the 1970s, many female musicians were also inspired by the punk spirit to take their place in the previously male-dominated music scene. Now Viv Albertine, guitarist with the hugely influential band the Slits, has published a memoir, the snappily titled Clothes, Clothes, Clothes, Music, Music, Music, Boys, Boys, Boys, about what it was like to be part of a revolution.

Miranda Sawyer meets up with her, along with some of the other key female figures of the punk era, including Chrissie Hynde, the Raincoats and anti-heroine and trendsetter Jordan (no, not the model now known as Katie Price) to find out how they inspired a generation of young women to pick up guitars, experiment with eyeliner, and generally believe they could be whatever they wanted to be. But do they think that their influence lives on, or has that punk spirit now being extinguished?

Edge Of Darkness (BBC4, 10pm)

THERE are some drama series that you never forget. This is one, complete with it’s Eric Clapton soundtrack, that has haunted me since its first showing in 1985. The late Bob Peck is quite incredible as the cop who discovers his anti-nuclear campaigner daughter (Joanne Whalley) has been murdered and uncovers a major power station conspiracy as a result. The movie remake starring Mel Gibson should be avoided in favour of this six-parter.