Today's TV: Festival action and a big night in with Comic Relief

ED CHAMBERLIN and Francesca Cumani present coverage of the fourth and final day of Cheltenham 2021. Today’s feature race is the Cheltenham Gold Cup (3.05pm), which sees Al Boum Photo going for a remarkable third straight win in the race. Supporting races on the card include the Triumph Hurdle (1.20pm) and the Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle (2.30pm). There is analysis from former jockeys Sir AP McCoy, Ruby Walsh and Mick Fitzgerald, reporting from Alice Plunkett and Luke Harvey, betting news with Matt Chapman, and commentary from Richard Hoiles.

Comic Relief 2021

Comic Relief 2021 (BBC1, 7pm)

Like most things, Red Nose Day has been affected by Covid, and as we are still in the middle of a lockdown, the majority of Comic Relief’s fundraising activities will have to be done at home this year. With that in mind, the aim of this year’s show is to ‘get us laughing at home’. Hosted by Sir Lenny, as well as Davina McCall, Paddy McGuinness, Alesha Dixon and David Tennant, among the highlights are David and Michael Sheen teaming up once more for a special instalment of Staged. Plus, Anna Friel and Keira Knightley co-star in the greatest disaster movie never made, and Paddy and his fellow Top Gear hosts face interrogation by some savage critics. There are also appearances by Dawn French, the Rev Kate Bottley, Alex Scott, Jermaine Jenas, Jack Whitehall, Benedict Cumberbatch, Dame Judi Dench, Karim Zeroual, Joe Lycett, Mo Gilligan, Roman Kemp and Shappi Khorsandi.

Kate Humble

Kate Humble’s Coastal Britain (C5, 8pm)

Kate walks a 13-mile stretch of Yorkshire coastline. Starting at the highest point along this coast, she heads down into the fishing village of Staithes, which was once home to one of North Yorkshire’s largest fishing fleets and to explorer Captain Cook, who lived in a fisherman’s cottage on the harbour front. Kate does a little birdwatching on the front before heading along the coast to Port Mulgrave, once at the heart of the local iron ore mining industry. In Runswick Bay, she takes to the sea with the volunteers in the newest rescue boat, before arriving at Whitby, which inspired Bram Stoker’s Dracula after he stayed there in 1890.

Monty Don

Gardeners’ World (BBC2, regions vary)

The Beeb’s flagship horticultural show has been airing since 1968 and continues to go from strength to strength. Although the presenters have changed over the years, audiences continue to flock to the programme to get the latest tips and tricks on looking after their green spaces. It returns with a new run tonight as Monty Don shares some of the changes he has made at Longmeadow over the winter. As well as carrying out some essential pruning, he’ll be lifting and dividing perennials, sowing chillies and making a start on growing this year’s vegetables. Over in Swansea, Joe Swift learns about Sue Kent’s plan to grow vegetables on her allotment, while up in Leeds, a shady back yard is transformed with the help of containers and some ingenuity. Carol Klein shares the plants that put on a show in winter at Bressingham Gardens in Norfolk.

Fiona Shaw

Russia vs the World (C5, 9pm)

Killing Eve star Fiona Shaw narrates this programme exploring Russia’s medieval origins through to its bloody expansion to become the biggest country in the world. It’s an extraordinary tale that set the scene for one of the world’s most enigmatic figures, Vladimir Putin, and his vision of modern Russia. From a tyrannical grip on ordinary citizens to rampant corruption at the highest level, this film reveals the secrets holding the world’s largest country together. However, it begins with a look at the role of the first tsars, including Ivan the Terrible and Peter the Great, before moving onto Catherine the Great, Lenin and Stalin.

Jools Holland

Later – with Jools Holland for Comic Relief (BBC2, 10pm)

As this week’s edition falls on Comic Relief night, Sir Lenny Henry will be joining Jools to share a few of his favourite musical moments from the fundraising show. There will also be two artists making their debut on Later… First up is ENNY, a rapper and singer from south east London who released her first music just under a year ago, immediately catching the attention of Jorja Smith, who made ENNY the first signing to her label FAMM. Plus, there’s Leeds-London collective Nubiyan Twist, who provide a performance of their latest single If I Know, featuring Ghanaian multi-instrumentalist K.O.G.