TV Picks: 50 Years of Bond Cars | Horror Europa with Mark Gatiss | Homeland

Published on 27/10/2012 16:00

THIS WEEK, Aidan Smith will be watching...

50 Years of Bond Cars

This shouldn’t fail, even

with Richard Hammond presenting. A Top Gear special glorying in the special relationship between 007 and his motors, which didn’t begin with the Aston Martin DB5. Dr No had such a modest budget – £350,000 – that the fiendish doc could only afford one hand, Ursula Andress could only afford a bikini, and the “car chase” was a mild encounter between Bond’s Sunbeam Alpine and the baddies’ hearse. The Sunbeam had to be rented

for a “considerable sum” (12s a day) and by the time of Goldfinger, the car industry was still unconvinced that 007-with-wheels could be a winner, with the people at Aston Martin only willing to sell producer Harry Saltzman a DB5, and for the full price: £4,500. Once they saw the film, with their car fully customised, the motor-men got it.

Horror Europa

“What is commercial? Commercial is violence, sex, blood, horror.” The Europeans didn’t mess about with scary movies (they didn’t mess about with kids’ programmes either, as anyone who wet their knickers to The Singing Ringing Tree will testify). Gatiss takes us on a tour of the continental horror-flick landscape, digging up its most uncompromising characters.

Homeland

When great shows lose

their greatness it’s usually called “jumping the shark”. After last week, though,

some of you might be wondering if the dreadful moment should be re-named “getting silly in the woods”. Well, fear not, Homelanders, this is the episode where Carrie and Brody are reunited on screen. Everything’s

right with the world again

(I think).