The final series of the acclaimed Australian romantic comedy Colin from Accounts begins tonight on BBC Two at 10pm, three years after Gordon's ill-fated proposal. The new season opens with a melancholy tone: both Gordon and Ashley are in unsatisfactory relationships, and the brewery is struggling. Fortunately, the dog Colin appears to be in good health.
A chance encounter brings the pair together again, and the feelings between them remain strong, but there is emotional baggage to resolve first. The show, while not without its plotting contrivances, continues to feel wonderfully messy and real in its emotional authenticity.
Comedy and Drama Balance Perfectly
The series maintains an immaculate balance between comedy and drama, according to critic Phil Harrison. The chemistry between Patrick Brammall and Harriet Dyer, who play Gordon and Ashley, remains as perfect as one would expect from a real-life couple. Harrison describes it as "still the sweetest thing on TV."
The episode is part of a broader evening of television that includes several other notable programmes.
Documentary Explores 9/11 Saudi Connection
At 8pm on BBC One, the documentary 9/11: The Saudi Connection investigates the implications of thousands of newly released documents that, some argue, suggest the involvement of the Saudi Arabian government in the 2001 attacks on the US. The revelations centre on Omar al-Bayoumi, who has been accused of being a middle man between the Saudis and the first two hijackers. Both al-Bayoumi and the Saudi government deny these claims.
Other Evening Highlights
On Channel 4 at 8pm, Fred's Ultimate Hotels sees Fred from the First Dates restaurant continue his tour of luxury hotels, this time at a South African safari lodge. He offers to help the team prepare a "bush braai" outdoor barbecue and encounters an elephant along the way.
At 8pm on U&Alibi, My Life Is Murder features a toy inventor who is crushed by a gargoyle thrown from a balcony during his nightly "ablution stop" in a garden. Alexa, played by Rhys Darby, must work out who did it, remarking: "I hope he managed to zip up first."
University Challenge at 8.30pm on BBC Two sees Amol Rajan host a match between Birmingham and a quartet from Leicester described as "adorably chaotic." Highlights include a spectacular mishearing of a famous novel's title and a classics question that is much easier than it would have been a few years ago.
Finally, at 9pm on Channel 4, 999: What Happened Next begins a new series exploring the aftermath of 999 calls. The first case involves a train passenger who noticed something deeply troubling on a fellow traveller's phone and informed the police. The investigation unfolds into a network of child exploitation, bigger than anyone could have expected.
The film choice tonight is Douglas Sirk's 1959 melodrama Imitation of Life at 4.25pm on Film4, starring Lana Turner as actor Lora and Juanita Moore as her Black maid Annie, with Susan Kohner as Annie's daughter Sarah Jane, who can pass for white.
