OUR pick of today's TV offerings.

Great British Menu (BBC2, 7.30pm)

IN June and early July, it felt like the TV schedules were dominated by two things - the World Cup and programmes marking the 70th anniversary of the NHS.

Well, the tournament may be over, but the health service's birthday celebrations are continuing as Great British Menu returns to let the nation's top chefs pay their own tribute.

That's because the prize on offer is the opportunity to serve up one of their dishes at A Feast to Say Thank You, a banquet celebrating one of Britain's best-loved institutions.

As regular Great British Menu viewers will know, the series began in 2006, when the banquet was in honour of the Queen's 80th birthday. Since then, the competitors have gone on to create dishes fit for producers of British food, Olympians, D-Day veterans and the Women's Institute.

But it seems there's something about this year's theme that has proved particularly inspiring. Judge Oliver Peyton says: "The joy in everyone's hearts involved in this competition was amazing. All the chefs wanted to be at the final banquet because like everybody else we owe the people who work in the NHS a huge debt of gratitude."

His fellow expert Matthew Fort adds: "I can't think of a better group of people to celebrate series 13 with than the heroes of the NHS, and luckily for us judges the standard of the food is higher than ever."

The third member of the panel is Andi Osho. She joined last year as a replacement for Prue Leith, who had defected to The Great British Bake Off, and she's certainly excited about this year's NHS theme. She says: "I am so absolutely thrilled to be returning to GBM and when I heard that this year we would be celebrating the extraordinary people who work in our beloved NHS I jumped for joy!"

But just how will the chefs manage to make delicious and original dishes that stick to the NHS brief? Last year's banquet was to mark 140 years of Wimbledon, leading to lots of strawberries and cream, as well as a smattering of pineapple desserts in reference to the men's singles trophy and even a couple of dishes in honour of Rufus, the hawk who clears the courts of pigeons. Some sceptical viewers may be wondering if hospital food will prove quite so inspiring.

Luckily, as the competition gets under way with the North East regional heats, it seems chefs Danny Parker, Dan Fletcher and David Coulson have found a way to bring a taste of the NHS to their starters, with two of them looking to the restorative powers of the humble cup of tea, while the third celebrates the organ donation scheme with an offal-themed dish.

But who will make it through to Friday's regional final and be in with a chance of cooking at the banquet, which in a new twist will also see the diners crown a 'Champion of Champions' as they vote for their favourite course?

The Repair Shop (BBC2, 6.45pm)

IF you have a treasured family heirloom that you're worried won't remain in one piece for long enough to be passed down to the next generation, then this is the show for you, as Jay Blades and his team get to work restoring much-loved items. In the first episode of the new series, Steven Fletcher works his magic on a watch with an extraordinary story. Its owner, Ron, has come all the way from the Netherlands to seek Steve's expertise, but this isn't the timepiece's first remarkable journey. It originally belonged to Ron's grandmother, who hid it in her dress for four years while she was held in a prisoner of war camp during the Second World War. The team also gets to work on a 100-year-old Louis Vuitton trunk, while a blacksmith and a master cooper attempt to restore a butter churn to its former glory.

Jamie Cooks Italy (Channel 4, 8.30pm)

NEW series. Jamie Oliver and his friend, mentor and fellow chef Gennaro Contaldo explore traditional Italian home cooking, beginning by visiting the Aeolian Islands to track down undiscovered recipes untouched by time. Ninety-three-year-old caper farmer Franchina teaches Jamie how to cook stuffed squid, inspiring his grilled squid and zingy caper salsa. He also cooks Sunday lunch with the matriarch of one of the archipelago's biggest families, with the menu featuring chicken and aubergine pot roast with lemony couscous.

Who Do You Think You Are? (BBC1, 9pm)

CRIMINAL law barrister and TV judge Robert Rinder follows the story of his Holocaust survivor grandfather, hearing first-hand testimony of the horror of Nazi forced-labour camps as well as of the hope offered by a new life on the shores of Lake Windermere. Robert also Investigates the dark mystery surrounding his great-grandfather, which leads him to a small town in Latvia, where he uncovers a story of mental illness and trauma that will ultimately, he hopes, lay some family ghosts to rest.

Bollywood: The World's Biggest Film Industry (BBC2, 9pm)

PART one of two. Anita Rani explores the world of Indian cinema, revealing the extraordinary stories and secrets behind an industry that employs more than a quarter of a million people. She begins her journey in Mumbai - the home of Bollywood - where the stars tower over the city on enormous murals. Anita discovers just how important the movies are to everyday people at one of the city's oldest cinemas, where she quickly finds herself in the middle of a screaming mob as the cast of that night's film make a surprise appearance.

Mark Gatiss on John Minton: The Lost Man of British Art (BBC4, 9pm)

ACTOR and writer Mark Gatiss has been obsessed with John Minton since he first happened upon his work as a teenager. As the title suggests, he might not be a household name now, but for a time John was one of the most popular 20th-century British artists. However, his seemingly charmed life was cut short. In this film Mark tells the story of Minton's colourful, complex life, revealing how this prolific painter was one of the leading figures in post-war British art, known for his large-scale murals, landscapes and portraits.