New squad, old tricks

MOST of us thought that the Unsolved Crime and Open Case Squad were finished without Annfield Plain’s finest Brian “Memory” Lane (Alun Armstrong), the team's gaffer Sandra Pullman (Amanda Redman) and the now ghostly Jack Halford (Sunderland-raised James Bolam).

In fact new arrivals in the form of Danny Miller (Nicholas Lyndhurst) and DCI Sasha Miller (Tamzin Outhwaite) were said to have ushered out the old cops forever. I suspect that the last remaining old dog, signature tune singing Dennis Waterman will have to be the opposite of his surname (Gerry) Standing before the Beeb banishes the slightly doddery detectives, who now include the watchable Denis Lawson as thin-skinned Scot Steve McAndrew.

Outhwaite certainly thinks her character will enjoy getting into a bit of a routine – particularly when it’s a rare ten-parter. The actress says: "Sasha's been leading high-level teams in a much more intense and dangerous environment, but what she's found in this team of people is a very comfortable unit, which personally she finds a lot more stable.

"She likes to have a laugh with them and wants them to have a good time, and she gives as good as she gets, she takes the mickey out of them. But I don't think she's scared to show her vulnerable side, just because she's the boss. I think that's quite a nice element that Sasha brings to the team, she's tough when she needs to be, but doesn't go around barking orders."

Unlike her predecessor, Sandra, it seems Sasha does have a life outside the job. The last series ended with her discovering that her policeman husband was having an affair, but apparently she won't be wallowing for long. The former EastEnders star says: "I like the fact she's had a lot of heartache and now she's getting her mojo back and is going to have some fun again."

Sadly, there may not be too many opportunities for her to move on in this series opener, as she forced to work with her cheating ex when he fills in for the team's usual boss, Strickland. That’s almost as awkward as Gerry going back to his Bermondsey roots to arrange his daughter's wedding. He's also planning to do some covert investigations into his future son-in-law's background, but stumbles on an even more interesting case involving the potential murder of an old friend's grandson.

Two Tribes (BBC2, 6pm)

OVER the past couple of years, Richard Osman has gone from being that intelligent co-presenter who helps out his chum Alexander Armstrong on TV’s ever-popular Pointless, to taking centre stage. Osman’s come up with a quickfire quiz in which seven contestants are split into two teams, based on their responses to questions about themselves. Throughout a series of general knowledge rounds, contestants are eliminated, leaving two players going up against each other for a cash prize. Osman may well turn out to be like Armstrong without Miller (and that led to Death In Paradise).

My Online Bride (Channel 4, 10pm)

INTERNET dating is big business these days and no longer a taboo topic. In fact, an estimated 15m Brits are said to be looking for love online, and this one-off documentary follows men of all ages as they head abroad in search of a wife. We meet 46-year-old Chris, who is divorced and looks after his two children, trying his luck on a Bangkok romance tour. Mike is 26 and has been searching for a wife in the Ukraine, and after weeks of chatting to Tatyana on Skype, he's arranged to stay with her. Meanwhile, we check in with 30-year-old Sam on his wedding day. He's marrying Apple, who's Thai, and she's moving to Wakefield to start a life with her new husband.