Le Chéile
Monday, RTÉ One, 8pm
In May 2020 David McGreevy had a mad idea: start a GAA club in the unionist stronghold of east Belfast. He and his friend Richard Maguire sent out messages on social media inviting kids from all backgrounds to join the nascent club. With Gaelic games long associated with Irish nationalism in the North, it seemed unlikely that East Belfast GAA would get off the ground, but McGreevy and Maguire were stunned—and heartened—by the positive cross-community response to their shout-out. They had set up the club with a vision of breaking down barriers and stereotypes; this two-part documentary charts the club’s growth over the past two years as it becomes a force to be reckoned with. We’ll meet people from both traditions who have come together to enjoy the rewards of playing sport, including a former British army lieutenant named Andrew McCammon, who has discovered his passion for hurling, the Waterford hurler Irial Ó Ceallaigh, who is now the club’s development officer, and Linda Ervine, the club’s president, a staunch Protestant who also promotes the Irish language.
Sherwood
Monday, BBC One, 9pm
No, not an updating of the Robin Hood legend, but this true-crime drama does feature the forest in Nottinghamshire—although there is a marked absence of merry men hiding in the trees. David Morrissey stars as Det Chief Supt Ian St Clair, who is investigating a spate of killings in the area, and soon discovers that the clues to the killer lie in the distant past—all the way back to the British miners’ strike of 1984. It seems the deep divisions created during that period of social unrest have never fully healed, and now they threaten to spark up again as suspicion and fear grip the community. Lesley Manville and Robert Glenister star in this tense drama created by Quiz writer James Graham.
Charlie Bird: Loud and Clear
Monday, RTÉ One, 9.35pm
We’ve been following Charlie Bird’s journey as he and his family come to terms with the reality of motor neurone disease, so this documentary will feel familiar but be no less riveting for that. The film takes us from the days immediately following his diagnosis, in October 2021, right up to his recent ascent of Croagh Patrick, in the company of family, friends, colleagues and supporters. The film will also look back on his stellar career as he reported on such major events as the Stardust fire, the election of Ireland’s first woman president, Mary Robinson, and the marriage-equality referendum. It will be hard to watch as the film documents Bird’s deterioration, particularly the loss of his distinctive voice, which has been central to his career as a broadcast journalist. We’ll also see how his past work helps him to communicate now, via a cutting-edge piece of technology that draws on his vast audio archives to create an avatar so he can continue to “speak” in his own voice. We’ll be watching this documentary and sending Charlie Bird a message that we’re with him all the way.
Prime Time Climate Special
Tuesday, RTÉ One, 9.35pm
Probably the biggest contributor to greenhouse gases has been the hot air emanating from politicians as they make empty promise after empty promise to tackle climate change. As Ireland is on course to miss its target for a 51 per cent reduction in carbon emissions by 2030, this Prime Time special looks at the climate issues facing Ireland and what we need to do to reach the magic net-zero number. Presenters Miriam O’Callaghan and Sarah McInerney will also look at the phenomenon of “greenwashing” and discuss how sustainable living can be achieved in a practical way.
The Lazarus Project
Thursday, Sky Max, 9pm; also available on Now
We all wish we could go back in time and fix things—that faux pas that made us a laughing-stock at a party, or that stupid tweet that got us cancelled—but in reality we just have to try to live with our mistakes. But what if you really could travel back in time and put things right? Could you resist the temptation, even if it meant putting the world in peril? This action thriller stars Paapa Essiedu as George, who wakes up one day with a nasty case of deja vu, as he finds himself reliving a day from months ago. To his relief, he’s not going mad; he’s just being recruited by a shadowy organisation called the Lazarus Project, which has the ability to turn back time and prevent human-extinction events. But when his bosses won’t let him go back in time to save his beloved from a freak accident, he’s ready to become a rogue time-traveller.
The Real Derry: Jamie-Lee O’Donnell
Thursday, Channel 4, 10pm
Derry Girls brought the titular city into the living rooms of the world, but what is Derry like in real life, and how has it changed since the 1990s, the era in which Derry Girls is set? One of the show’s stars, Jamie-Lee O’Donnell, looks back on her Catholic upbringing in the city and meets some of her old schoolmates, as they reflect both on Derry’s regeneration over the past 20 years and on why many of them feel they need to leave to find a good future. O’Donnell will also look at the lasting impact of the Troubles 50 years after Bloody Sunday.
