TV tonight: Lenny Henry tackles tough questions in eye-opening new series

The actor and comedian probes complex questions around integration with guests. Plus: Amol Rajan interviews tennis star Billie Jean King. Here’s what to watch this evening

Lenny Henry’s Caribbean Britain

9pm, BBC Two

Lenny Henry’s mum had simple advice for growing up in Dudley, in the West Midlands: “You have to integrate.” But throughout his career, he has found doing so increasingly complex. How far have artists of Caribbean heritage had to integrate as they’ve taken centre stage? Is it celebration or sacrifice? In this eye-opening two-parter, Henry surveys the explosion of British-Caribbean culture – from calypso music to politically incorrect comedies – with guests including David Harewood and Andi Oliver. Henry Wong

Billie Jean King: Amol Rajan Interviews

7pm, BBC Two

Wimbledon and Pride combine in this chat with the tennis great and activist. King looks back on her time, during the 1960s and 70s, as the world’s No 1 player who, challenged in 1973 to play against a man, Bobby Riggs, defeated him, but was publicly outed in the 80s – which meant losing sponsorship deals. Hannah Verdier

Glow Up: Britain’s Next Make-Up Star

8pm, BBC Three

The pressure is on this semi-final, as the four remaining makeup artists work backstage at London fashion week, readying models for the runway. There’s more room for rebellion in the Creative Brief challenge, when host Maya Jama encourages them to “break the rules”. But surely society’s beauty standards are standard for a reason? Ellen E Jones

George Clarke’s Flipping Fast

8pm, Channel 4

What has been five short weeks for us has been a year for the amateur property developers trying to turn £100,000 of seed money into mega profit. With next week’s final looming, brothers Ricky and Andrew are sticking to their “spend more, make more” mantra while rivals Janet and Olivia seem thriftier. Graeme Virtue

Presenter Sara Pascoe in The Great British Sewing Bee.
Green-fingered? Sara Pascoe in The Great British Sewing Bee. Photograph: BBC/Love Productions

The Great British Sewing Bee

9pm, BBC One

The charming sew-off reaches the semi-final stage with the four remaining stitchers faced with a trio of Japan-related tasks. Their upcycling and origami-adjacent skills will be tested, but first is a kimono dress challenge that reveals this minimalist design is fiendishly difficult to recreate. GV

The Savoy

9pm, ITV

The upmarket documentary following tamped-down staff at London’s most venerable hotel continues. Beneath the usual veneer of unflappable calm there is a frisson of tension as the Savoy – not long reopened – awaits the arrival of both an incognito hotel inspector and Masked Singer veteran Alan Johnson. GV

Film choice

Bryan Cranston in Jerry & Marge Go Large.
Life after cornflakes … Bryan Cranston in Jerry & Marge Go Large. Photograph: YouTube/Paramount

Jerry & Marge Go Large (David Frankel, 2022), Paramount+
Bryan Cranston and Annette Bening make for a lovely couple in David Frankel’s fact-based comedy-drama. He has recently retired after 42 years in admin at a cornflake factory and is dreading the prospect of his “golden years” when he discovers a loophole in a lottery game that means he can win big … very big. There’s no breaking bad here – unless you count an insufferable Harvard student who gets the same idea – just two people who want to give back to their community by getting them involved in the plan, while revelling in a belated new lease of life. Simon Wardell

Contributors

Henry Wong, Hannah Verdier, Ellen E Jones, Graeme Virtue and Simon Wardell

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