For those earnest souls whose New Year's resolutions included reading more books and watching less television, this is probably not a good time to put your plan into action. Although the first weekend of 2010 is bereft of any new programming - fresh episodes of your favourite series are still a week or so away - the schedule is littered with worthy repeats viewers likely missed the first time around (possibly because they were reading books). This weekend's options include the end of an era for a beloved sci-fi character, the definitive primer on a classic comedy series and science experiments best tried on television, not at home. So set aside War and Peace for summer vacation.
Doctor Who: The End of Time
Saturday, Space, 8 p.m.
Fare thee well to David Tennant's stint as Doctor Who. The 10th actor to play the time-travelling alien bows out of the role following tonight's two-part movie, which aired recently to huge ratings in the U.K. Picking up the story from last month's The Waters of Mars , the last chapter finds Doctor Who embarking on what he already knows will be his final journey. The twist is that his primary nemesis - the evil entity called The Master - has been reborn at the same time the good Doctor's life force is starting to ebb. In further bad news, the alien race known as Ood are warning of an apocalypse that will befall the universe. All of this will probably make more sense to those who follow the series. As in previous outings, Tennant's presence makes the sci-fi storyline believable. We shall not see his like again.
Monty Python: Almost the Truth (Lawyer's Cut)
Saturday, Bravo!, 9 p.m.
A hundred years from now, when people inquire "What was Monty Python?" this series will provide the answer. Airing in three two-hour blocks tonight, the documentary program serves as an exhaustive history of the British comedy series that, incredibly, only aired 45 episodes in total. First broadcast in 1969, Monty Python's Flying Circus changed the face of television, or at least provided British youth with an option to Benny Hill . It boasts hundreds of classic Python clips and extended chats with surviving members John Cleese, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Michael Palin and Terry Gilliam, with occasional reflections from the late Graham Chapman in old TV interviews. The first two hours cover the group's respective early influences - no surprise they were all mad about The Goon Show - and reveals the tricky manner in which they secured their own show. When BBC brass realized what they had put on air, some bit right through their pipe stems.
Mythbusters
Sunday, Discovery, 10 p.m.
The Mythbuster duo of Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman undertake their own bizarre version of public service in this special edition of the series. Always up to a challenge, the hirsute science guys set out to confirm or debunk several outlandish theories established by viral videos on YouTube in recent years. As such, they test the rather absurd notion that a car tire will catch fire if spun hard enough and long enough. They test the theory that it is possible to create a fireball with 30,000 match heads (it's a pretty good start). Also covered is the very popular video featuring an enormous ball of Lego rolling down the streets of San Francisco. In one of the most ambitious re-enactments in the show's history, Adam and Jamie attempt to reconstruct the massive Lego ball - allegedly made of five-million pieces - and then roll it down a hill, smack into a parked car. All in the name of science, of course.
Check local listings.
John Doyle returns on Tuesday.