Hebburn (BBC2, 10pm)

Tails You Win: The Science of Chance (BBC4, 9pm)

My Tattoo Addiction (C4, 10pm)

THERE'S been a big hole in the schedules since Gavin and Stacey ended, but new sitcom Hebburn could be just the show to take its place.

Exploiting the same culture clash formula as James Corden and Ruth Jones’ series, this new six-part sitcom takes place in a small town on Tyneside.

Stand-up comic Jason Cook hopes his series will touch a chord with those outside his eponymous home town. “I’ve tried to show the Hebburn I know – sometimes harsh, always heart-warming and always home,” he explains.

The saga focuses on the Pearson family, whose son, Jack (Chris Ramsey), has swapped Tyneside for the bright lights of Manchester. He’s also secretly married Sarah (Kimberley Nixon) in Las Vegas.

She’s a middle-class Jewish girl and now thinks it’s time he returned home to introduce her to his family. However, getting on in a household where bacon sandwiches is the norm proves to be a culture clash for all.

Cook’s stand-up career has always focused largely on his family, particularly his father, Tony. Head of the family here is Joe (Jim Moir, aka Vic Reeves). He’s joined by Notting Hill’s Gina McKee as his wife, Pauline, who thinks putting holes in bread buns (to turn them into bagels) is the best way to accommodate their guest.

Thrown into the mix are Dot (Pat Dunn), a granny who’s obsessed with her own mortality, and Jack’s sister Vicki (Lisa McGrillis), whose diplomatic skills leave a lot to be desired.

If Hebburn is a hit, the 38-year-old former engineering student has other life experience to draw upon for future projects, not least a stint in the merchant navy.

Seven years ago he dipped his toe in the comedy water as part of a sketch group called Soups. Joining forces with fellow Geordie Lee Fenwick, their rib-ticklingoutfit Die Clatterschenkfieternmaus paved the way for solo work. His comedy act went down a storm in Edinburgh, and he also won the best international show category at the New Zealand International Comedy Festival.

NONE of us can predict the future, but many of us can take an educated guess about certain things. For example, there’s a good chance whoever wins The X Factor will land a Christmas number one single, and new Bond film Skyfall will make a few hundred million pounds at the box office.

But what about more mundane matters, such as is it a good idea to take an umbrella when you go out? Well, the answer to that question and many more will hopefully be revealed in science-related strand Tails You Win: The Science of Chance.

The wonderfully monikered Professor David Spiegelhalter attempts to get to grips with chance and how it works. Aside from tackling the umbrella question, he addresses ways of maximising the chances of living to 100; discovers hidden patterns and shapes in a book written exclusively with numbers; and explains why going sky-diving only slightly increases his risk of dying this year.

THE prospect of branding yourself for life is one not to be taken lightly, and it’s fraught with potential pitfalls. Who can forget the misspelled “Oylmpics” tattoo that one unfortunate torchbearer ended up with this summer?

But for many people, the pay-off is huge, too. A well-designed and executed tattoo can instil its owner with a new confidence, and a look at the body art adorning many of today’s celebs is proof positive that “getting ink” has become more fashionable than ever.

This documentary My Tattoo Addiction reveals what people’s tats say about them, whether they are the result of an alcoholfuelled dare, an expression of one's individuality or a way of telling the world who their favourite pop star or sportsperson is.