On TV

A DRAMA about domestic violence sits uneasily on the daytime TV agenda among the more light-hearted items about property makeovers and holiday homes abroad.

Sandwiched between Aussie soap Neighbours and CBBC, Beaten was always going to stick out like a sore thumb. Unlike an injury to a digit, Alison Hume's one-off play was welcome - even if we have been seeing an awful lot of its star, Robson Green, in recent weeks.

Already, with the revival of one-off dramas in recent Afternoon Play seasons, the BBC has given viewers something slightly more substantial for the daylight hours.

Beaten was a brave commission and one that showed a powerful subject can be dealt with responsibly despite the restrictions of operating before the watershed. There's only so much sex and violence you can depict at two in the afternoon.

It was all the better for being restrained in how much was actually shown. We heard the shouting, the smashed glass and saw the result. The fallout was at the heart of this piece - the disintegration of a marriage and effect on a child.

Green starred as Michael, an ex-boxer and docker whose wife Stephanie (Saira Todd) was the main breadwinner in the family, which also included nine-year-old son Jamie (Corey J Smith).

She faced making an important presentation at work nursing a black eye, the result of a fight with Michael the night before. His response was to take Jamie and hide out at his mother's house.

What appeared on the surface as a straightforward case of wife-beating, an isolated one but an horrific attack all the same, turned out to be something much more complicated.

Through a series of flashbacks, we witnessed events leading up to the violent row, with a few scenes going even further back to Michael's childhood when he was scarred by seeing something he shouldn't.

The script explored his feelings of inadequacy at his wife earning all the money and making all the decisions, as well as Stephanie's edginess resulting from trying to do a high profile job with an unsympathetic boss and have a family life. And, of course, there was their son's confusion and uncertainty about what was happening between his parents.

There was no attempt to find easy answers to the very difficult questions posed by the situation and the ending was a powerful one.

With good performances from Green (whose production company Coastal made the drama for the BBC), Todd and Smith, Beaten was a welcome adult addition to the daytime schedules.

Daniel Bedingfield, Metro Radio Arena, Newcastle

IT'S been quite a journey for Daniel Bedingfield since he made his debut single, Gotta Get Thru This in his bedroom studio, but what a distance he has come. His style, charisma and energy haven't changed, but his mentors in the industry have certainly done their bit in developing and refining his work.

The Metro Radio Arena was unfortunately only half full, but since they brought the stage closer, it made for an intimate and personal gig.

Clearly affected by his car crash last year, Bedingfield, a devout Christian, opened with album track I Am Alive and its lyrics summed up the next hour-and-a-half as he belted out songs including Nothing Hurts Like Love, Wrap My Words Around You, Don't Give It All and a short song about God. "Sing it like a prayer," he said about the latter. The crowd was not too sure, but it didn't take him long to up the tempo again.

Beat-boxing and the like, he pulled all the stops out to thrill the 5,000-or-so who had come out to see him - James Dean and I Can't Read You were the most memorable tracks.

It was a shame he didn't sing any of the acoustic versions of his songs which grace his first album, but Bedingfield was a performer of the highest standard - one who loves his music, his fans and the opportunity to prance around on stage.

Jonathan Carswell

London Symphony Orchestra, The Sage Gateshead

THE Sage Gateshead's celebration of the centenary of the birth of composer Michael Tippett was the largest in UK; and a resounding success at that. The penultimate concert in a series exploring his work proved a high water mark, with the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Sir Colin Davis.

The evening started with a breezy rendition of Tippett's Birthday Suite for Prince Charles. The piece, heralding new beginnings and a summery optimism was followed by The Rose Lake. Tippett was inspired to compose the enchanting work by the effect of the sun on a lake in Africa's Senegal, where at midday the sun transforms its whitish green waters to translucent pink. The work opened with exuberant display of gymnastics by the percussionists, who had to dash from drum to drum to keep up with the score. The composition comprises a patchwork of rhythms and harmonies, which Davis adroitly drew together into a seamless mosaic with dazzling effect. The fact it was Davis and the self-same orchestra that premiered the piece in 1975 gave it an added resonance.

The evening was driven home with a powerful performance of Beethoven's Symphony No 5. The hush built up at the end of the third movement evoked an excruciating sense of expectancy, which was fully consummated as Davis swept into the last movement without a break. Swinging one arm around in circles, as though turning a giant wheel, he cranked the energy to a fever pitch with the final hammer blows reaching an earth-shattering climax. It was greeted with thunderous applause and hearty roars of approval.

Gavin Engelbrecht