Who would have thought that an absorbing drama could be made of someone playing chess! Up to now the best chess film I’d seen was Queen of Katwe but drama series The Queen’s Gambit (Netflix) is making quite a stir and everyone I know that has seen it is impressed. Anya-Taylor Joy plays the enigmatic…

I’m wary of gurus, even if they are promoting stuff I agree with. They may not seek that status but I’d say it is often thrust upon them by over enthusiastic and under critical followers. The crown is not always resisted. After watching The Rise of Jordan Peterson (Sky Arts, Tuesday) I’m still not sure…

I keep a sharp eye on what’s coming up on a wide range of TV and radio channels, and plan ahead accordingly. But sometimes it’s nice to get an unexpected surprise. Late last Sunday night I was having a look at what Shalom World TV, an online Catholic channel, had to offer and was lucky…

It’s all a bit of a blur, a fog of red and blue as numbers like 253 and 214 flit through my mind and phrases like ‘without proof’ invade my consciousness. No, it’s not a dream or a hangover, just too many late nights watching US politics. When Donald Trump was elected president of the…

The controversy over restrictions on religious services gained extra traction last week with an online petition, Bishops meeting Government and Christian pastors calling for change. It was a pity this didn’t happen at level 3 – it mightn’t have been an open door, but there would have been more hope. On Lunchtime Live (Newstalk, Wednesday),…

Hardly a week goes by without some sort of a religious controversy blowing up. And the pattern is often the same – exaggerated headlines, soundbites and one-liners, with pre-reflective rushes to the ramparts. And so it was last week when Pope Francis was reported to have said, in a new documentary, that he supported civil…

There’s something iconic about the Confession box that draws attention, an intensity about the confessing and forgiveness of sins that makes one wonder why more people don’t have recourse to it. The Confessors (RTÉ last week, BBC One on Monday, BBC Two on Tuesday) was an absorbing and insightful programme, uneven at times but with…

Last week I ended my column on the Trump-Biden Presidential debate. I wasn’t happy. I expected more from the Vice Presidential Debate, (RTÉ News Now, Sky News, CNN) on Wednesday night of last week and it was certainly an improvement, more civilised. The candidates, Mike Pence and Kamala Harris were more courteous, even gracious at…

There have been quite a few changes on radio for the autumn season, with presenters moving around in a kind of media musical chairs, but some things stay the same. And so I was glad to see the recent return of The Leap of Faith (RTÉ Radio One) to its Friday night slot, with Michael…

Last week I wrote about a programme (Unquiet Graves) that highlighted sectarian murders in the North, perpetrated by loyalist gangs in the 1970s. I wasn’t expecting something similar so soon. Scannal (RTÉ One, Tuesday of last week) told the story of the conflict at Holy Cross School in the Ardoyne, Belfast. Even the most hardened…