Join us as we look at what’s new on BBC iPlayer this week – Celebrity Race Across the World, Freddie Flintoff’s Field of Dreams on Tour and more.
Celebrity Race Across the World
Celebrity Race Across The World. Jeremy & Kelly, Studio Lambert Ltd
Four new famous faces embark on an epic 12,500 km race of a lifetime across South America, from Belém in Northern Brazil to Frutillar in the Andes in Southern Chile. The celebrities this time include broadcaster Jeff Brazier and his son, Freddy; actor Kola Bokinni and his cousin, Mary Ellen; broadcaster Kelly Brook and her husband, Jeremy; and Radio 2 host Scott Mills and his husband, Sam.
What’s new on BBC iPlayer this week – August 11, 2024
Freddie Flintoff’s Field of Dreams on Tour
Freddie Flintoff’s Field of Dreams On Tour. Bottom row: Ben, Kyle, Eli, Sean, Freddie, Finn, Hemi, Dylan. Top row: Adnan, Harrison, Josh, South Shore Productions, Anirudh Agarwal
After transforming a cricket club and the lives of teenagers in his hometown of Preston, Freddie and the boys are back in this four-part series for BBC One and iPlayer. In 2022, Freddie had an ambitious plan to take the team he created to compete in India, one of the most revered cricketing nations in the world. Two years in the making, this is the story of the most unlikely cricket tour that almost didn’t happen.
Speaking about the new series, Freddie said, “Cricket is like a religion in India. It’s just everywhere you go. And Kolkata is different to other places I’ve been to. To me, Kolkata is authentic India, and the more time I spent there, the more I grew an affinity and a connection to the place because we all learnt so much, and it’s had such an impact on all of our lives. I’ve been to some amazing places like Victoria Falls – and I see it, and I think, “That’s all right. That’ll do.” But Kolkata, the more time I spent there, the more I enjoyed it, and it really grew on me and got under my skin.”
“I think the incredible thing about this new series on tour is what comes from the boys. Every minute, there was a lesson that they were learning or they were teaching us. I think that’s a credit to the lads. Hopefully, the audience will look at themselves and ask, “Am I a good person?” “Did I do everything I can?” “Have I got dreams and ambitions?”
Series one is available to stream now on iPlayer
Pretty Little Liars: Summer School
Our Pretty Little Liars are back for a second season (the sequel to Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin) and now face a fate worse than death – Summer School. A new villain, who may or may not have a connection to A, has come to town and is going to put them all to the test.
What’s new on BBC iPlayer this week – August 11, 2024
Kidnapped: The Chloe Ayling Story
Accused of faking her own kidnapping and plunged into the centre of a media storm, this factual drama asks why Chloe Ayling was blamed for her kidnappers’ crimes. How does it feel to be an ordinary person, caught up in events so extraordinary that you aren’t believed?
Daddy Issues
Daddy Issues, Gemma (Aimee Lou Wood) and Malcolm (DAVID MORRISSEY), Fudge Park Productions, James Stack
From dating disasters and failed romances to toxic friendships and messy family dynamics, plus a dangerously sociopathic antenatal teacher, Daddy Issues is a big-hearted story about a father and daughter and the reality of facing up to parenthood—at any stage of life.
Talking about Daddy Issues, Aimee Lou Wood said, “Daddy Issues is a very, very funny comedy that also has lots of heart about a father and a daughter getting to know each other as adults and as people. They basically wind up as flatmates, and what ensues is lots of fun, love, and comedy. My character, Gemma, is a very honest, independent, true-to-herself woman who finds it hard to let people in fully and accept help. Over the course of the series, she learns how to be vulnerable and open up to people and not always be so hyper-independent.”
David Morrissey added, “My character Malcolm is someone who has been infantilised all his life, and he’s a man who doesn’t know the basics of how to look after himself in the world. At best, he’s naive. At worst, he’s ignorant. But he’s in crisis when we meet him, and he’s unable to look after himself. He loves his daughter, and she loves him, but whether they are good for each other is debatable. They are both in desperate need, and they find themselves at a point in life where they need to lean on each other, but they aren’t sure whether the other is capable of holding that weight. There are some heightened emotions between the two of them, particularly as she’s at a point in her life where she is in desperate need.”
What’s new on BBC iPlayer this week – August 11, 2024
Movies streaming now on iPlayer
County Lines
The best drama comes from a deep understanding of the issues portrayed, and this is something debut director Henry Blake fully understands as he brings his years of youth work experience to the screen. Blake’s remarkable, powerful and profoundly unsettling exploration of young people drawn into drug trafficking is both vivid, urgent and timely. Tyler (Conrad Khan) has never quite fit in, with his school life a barrage of taunts and bullying. Meanwhile, at home, his mum, Toni (Ashley Madekwe), is forced to work nights as a cleaner just to put food on the table, leaving Tyler to care for his younger sister.
Between school and home, Tyler’s life is caught in a trap of caring responsibilities, poverty and a growing need for independence and security. The enigmatic Simon (Harris Dickinson) understands Tyler’s longing for the latter. Simon appears to be a new friend, a surrogate older brother who understands Tyler’s anger and provides protection from harm. And it’s not long before Simon offers Tyler a way to make ‘easy’ money. Tyler quickly accepts before learning that no money comes easily, and dirty money comes with many deadly strings attached.
Kindling
Most of us spend our teenage years living life to the max, never considering our own or anyone else’s mortality, until the death of a grandparent, parent, or friend suddenly invades our lives, turning our world upside down. Sid (George Summer) has been living with cancer for three years and hasn’t long left. Sid has been battling testicular cancer since his late teens, and despite treatment, it has spread, leading to a terminal diagnosis as his twenties come into view. He is one of the 1% diagnosed yearly with testicular cancer who will die, a figure that remains way too high. His mum (Tara Fitzgerald) gave up her singing career when Sid got sick to care for her son, and his dad (Geoff Bell) wants to spend every minute possible with his son as the hourglass runs dry.
Directed by Connor O’Hara and inspired by his experience of losing someone at a young age, Kindling is as gentle as a summer breeze and as beautiful as a star-studded sky. Every performance has a natural, unforced quality as it layers its celebration of life and friendship with deep emotional themes of mortality and grief.
Luzzu
Words Agi Sajti
Maltese-American filmmaker Alex Camilleri’s Luzzu is a gem of neorealist drama and one of the few Maltese-language films to have been shot and produced on the island country. Camilleri envelops us in the real issues facing the Maltese population through the eyes of a local fisherman, telling an emotional and heartbreaking story of desperation and survival within a dying industry. Luzzu – refers to Malta’s traditional, brightly coloured fishing boats. Local fisherman Jesmark (Jesmark Scicluna) makes a living catching and selling fish to the town’s restaurants. However, survival is a constant struggle in a job that has been in his family for centuries, with tight fishing regulations, corruption, and a thriving black market posing barriers to security.
Luzzu’s ability to examine and explore topics ranging from ecological decline to economic hardship and industrial change through the eyes of a single fisherman is outstanding. This duality in the storytelling ensures Luzzu carries a deep emotional hook as we explore these broader social and political issues through Jesmark – a man who effectively becomes a representative of humanity’s struggles as our world changes. Here, the unique cinematography by Léo Lefèvre further reinforces the neorealist style as he paints a picture of a Maltese industrial landscape rather than romanticising the beloved tourist hotspot.
Luzzu may be a slow-paced drama, but it is an utterly captivating film that ripples with urgency. The result is a stand-out piece of Maltese cinema that sweeps viewers away with a series of deep and powerful undercurrents.
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