A family tragedy

THE story of the Kennedy clan might have been made for television. Their lives embody the American dream – and nightmare.

This epic mini-series uses public events as a background to tell the intimate story of this iconic family. It’s about huge achievements and private failures, about loyalty and love, resentment and betrayal, about people imbued with great gifts and burdened by great flaws, about success of Biblical proportions and tragedy worthy of the Greeks. You couldn’t make it up if you tried.

The eight-part series has been created by Joel Surnow and Stephen Kronish, the Emmy award-winning team behind the groundbreaking series 24.

The series recreates the political crises that John F Kennedy dealt with in the early days of his presidency, including the Bay of Pigs invasion, the Cuban Missile Crisis and the Civil Rights Movement.

Every twist and turn of this dynamic family’s extraordinary story is told, up to and including the assassinations of JFK and Bobby Kennedy.

Fifty years since Jack Kennedy’s inauguration as President, the story of the most fabled political family in American history still exerts a powerful fascination.

The first episode begins on the eve of the 1960 Presidential election, when John F Kennedy is poised to become the youngest man ever elected to office.

While he and a heavily pregnant Jackie are forefront in the media spotlight, behind the scenes, Kennedy family patriarch Joseph P Kennedy Sr, one of America’s richest men, works furiously to ensure his son’s victory over Richard Nixon.

Greg Kinnear plays the President, with Katie (Mrs Tom Cruise) as Jackie Kennedy.

FANS of Strictly Come Dancing are still reeling from the revelation that Claudia Winkleman will not be hosting its spin-off show It Takes Two this year.

It’s hard to imagine the programme without her, but at least she’s back on the box this week with a new, six-part comedy chat show The King Of... in which she and her guests take a light-hearted look at some of our favourite things.

Cropping up throughout the run will be an eclectic mix of subjects, including musicals, newsreaders, supermodels, pets, artists and takeaways. What Claudia and her guests then have to decide is which of them are the best.

The first edition sees Sarah Millican and Chris Evans enter into a debate with the studio audience.

WHEN My Family began in 2000, nobody expected it to still be going strong 11 years down the line. There have been changes in the lives of Ben and the Harper clan, but the glue that’s held it all together – Zoe Wanamaker and Robert Lindsay – is still firmly in place for this 11th and final season.

As the series kicks off, Janey is pleased that Mark is finally taking his responsibilities seriously, while Ben can’t help but warm to Kenzo’s father and is delighted when he asks for his daughter’s hand in marriage.

But there’s a big problem. Janey is already smitten with Craig – who also happens to be planning a proposal.

THERE’S no shortage of comedy panel shows, but some are simply better than others. At the top of the tree sit the likes of QI, Mock the Week and old campaigner Have I Got News for You.

But comedy connoisseurs lap up 8 Out Of 10 Cats, which returns for its 11th run with a new team captain, Jon Richardson, who replaces Jason Manford. Sean Lock remains as the opposing team captain.

Presenter Jimmy Carr will host and oversee all the disputes and deliberations on topical events that set the great British public’s chins wagging.