Love all

THE strawberries have ripened, the cream has been whipped, there are injury doubts surrounding our best hopes and there’s doubtless a black cloud overhead. Yes, it must be Wimbledon time again.

But the days of screaming “come on Tim” at the TV and watching our plucky eternal semi-finalist fall short of the finish once more are now behind us as Tim Henman is now part of the BBC commentary team And, for the first time, the weather won’t matter. Come rain or shine, the tennis will begin in SW19 today, as extensive live coverage of the tournament gets under way (BBC1, 1.45pm) from a Centre Court boasting a new – retractable – roof.

Sue Barker presents live coverage from Wimbledon on the opening day of the 2009 Championships, throughout the day on BBC1 and BBC2.

She’s joined by such global sporting icons as Boris Becker, John McEnroe and Tim Henman.

One big difference is the air of genuine belief among sports fans that, this year, Andy Murray could lift the title. He’s in a rich vein of form, but can he really do it?

Tim Henman certainly thinks so.

“Andy’s better than I ever was and he’s going to keep getting better,” he said.

“He’s really closed the gap. There is no reason this couldn’t be his year.”

Henman knows how it feels to be seen as a nearly-man, having been thwarted time and again in his battle to reach the finals.

“I happened to play in the same era as Pete Sampras,” says Henman, laughing.

“He and a couple of other guys were better than me.

“But personal achievement is about maximising your potential and I know I couldn’t have done any more.”

THE greatest cop show in recent history – that’s The Wire, in case you didn’t know – returns with a muchanticipated third series.

It may have taken an age for the BBC to buy and run this critically-acclaimed drama but, at last, now that they have our week nights feel complete. Series one was a compelling story of drug running and distribution in Baltimore, while the second run gave us an in-depth study of (low)life on the city’s docks.

As season three kicks off, the Barksdale crew is forced to relocate, as a programme of urban renewal sees Franklin Terrace razed. Burrell comes under pressure from the mayor to reduce Baltimore’s increasing crime statistics in time for his re-election campaign and Daniels’ promotion to major is put in doubt.

FEW cases have shocked the nation as much as Rachel Nickell’s murder.

In 1992, she was killed in broad daylight in front of her two-year-old son, the only witness to what would become one of the country’s most notorious murders.

It took a revolution in DNA technology for the police to eventually bring her real killer, Robert Napper, to justice.

This documentary features interviews with the police officers who reveal their recollections of the lengthy process to catch Rachel’s killer. Presenter Mark Austin speaks to the criminal profiler involved in the controversy about the Nickell team’s focus on the wrong man.

It also includes an interview with Colin Stagg, the innocent man officers investigating the case were convinced was the culprit – even after a judge threw out their case against him, which was built on an elaborate “honey trap” sting police operation.