Ambulance (BBC1, 9pm)

THIS three-parter offers an answer as to why our ambulance service is under such pressure with an unprecedented insight into Britain’s largest 999 team, in London. They need to be ready to help the 8.6 million people because when the most serious emergencies strike, they have only eight minutes to respond.

With calls doubling in number over the past ten years, the nerve centre of the service takes in excess of 5000 calls a day and has to work out who needs an ambulance quickest, or whether they need one at all.

From life in the high-pressured control room to crews out on the streets, each episode provides an honest 360 degree snapshot of the service, which was last year put into special measures. This takes the series beyond the flashing blue light stories, to reveal for the first time the dilemmas faced by those who allocate teach response – with only 400 ambulance crews on shift – as they have to bump patients down the queue to prioritise the sickest. Then there is the very real impact of time-wasters and frequent callers and the ever-present threat that a major incident with multiple casualties is just a single 999 call away.

An ordinary day for the London Ambulance Service means dozens of car crashes, overdoses, suicide attempts and – statistically – 28 cardiac arrests, where every second can make the difference between life and death.

By 11am, seven cardiac arrests have come in, and now there are two more people fighting for their lives. As one crew battles through London traffic, knowing seconds and minutes can affect the outcome of a dad of two’s heart attack, across the city another crew face a difficult decision – whether to stop resuscitation of their patient knowing the impact it will have on the family.

A highly-skilled advanced paramedic has barely finished with a double shooting before he’s called to a man who has fallen from a sky scraper. In the control room they’re running short of ambulances and they know the next call could be a major incident needing dozens of crews.

Parking Wars (ITV, 8pm)

PARKING is an emotive subject in Britain – even druids have strong feelings about it. The cameras are in Wiltshire, where preparations are being made for the summer solstice at Stonehenge – including the introduction of parking charges. This does not go down well with King Arthur, who gathers his Guinevere and fellow druids to stage a protest. Meanwhile, tough-talking civil enforcement officer Kam takes to the streets of Essex, where she has an encounter with a motorist who brands her the "scum of the Earth". We also follow the cases of three people who are appealing against tickets, and find out why 6,000 bikers are preparing to go into battle in Matlock.

Damned (Channel 4, 10pm)

GIVEN her acclaimed work in sitcoms such as Getting On and Going Forward, there was little wonder Jo Brand was given a green light to co-write and star in this new series. With the aid of fellow scribes Morwenna Banks and Will Smith (not that one), this new comedy centres on long-suffering Children's Services social workers at Elm Heath council. In the first episode, Nitin, an ex-copper, is tasked with spying on the rest of the team. The excellent supporting cast includes Ms Banks, Alan Davies, Kevin Eldon, Himesh Patel and Aisling Bea.

Later Live – with Jools Holland (BBC2, 10pm)

IT'S 32 years since Barry Gibb released his last solo album. Tonight, he'll be singing tracks from his forthcoming LP In the Now, which he co-wrote with sons Stephen and Ashley. There's also an appearance from US singer Norah Jones, whose sixth solo long-player Day Breaks finds her returning to the piano and her roots. Punk duo Slaves promote their second album Take Control; singer-songwriter Declan McKenna previews material from his debut LP, and Dublin-born songwriter Lisa Hannigan performs material from her new album, At Swim.

Viv Hardwick