It may be that tonight's TV schedules will look nothing like those printed here. The death of the world's most talked about woman could stop the likes of Cracker in his tracks. But, if it doesn't, the week's viewing will get off to a good start with fine programmes on both sides.
The long-awaited episode of Cracker (World, 9.30 pm) that was filmed in Hong Kong last year finally makes its way to local television screens tonight. Fitz (Robbie Coltrane) has come to Hong Kong to give a lecture when he is asked by local police to help in the investigation of the bizarre murder of a wealthy businessman.
Help was one thing the Cracker crew could have done with from the local police when they were filming here in June, 1996. After they left Hong Kong, it was revealed Coltrane had received several death threats from local triads for refusing to pay protection money while filming in such areas as Wan Chai, Happy Valley and the Peak.
In the end, one of the crew members was kidnapped for a couple of hours before Granada paid the ransom. About $12 million was spent on the production of the show, making it the highest-priced episode to date.
The programme aired in Britain in October to 17 million viewers on ITV, and features beautiful aerial photography of Victoria Harbour and the Tsing Yi Island, and takes a few jabs at former Governor Chris Patten over the passport issue.
Pret-A-Porter (Pearl, 9.30 pm) or Ready to Wear, as it was called in the US, is director Robert Altman's skewed view of the pretentious world of high fashion.
Twice a year, the fashion world's elite, and the paparazzi and hangers-on that follow them, gather in Paris to view the latest offerings of the world's most famous designers.
