Easter in TV Babylon

Following on from last time, here's the TV feast that is Easter weekend:

Easter Saturday
Easter from Kings (BBC2). This may tick some people's boxes, but in terms of TV the packaging is very National Trust - historic setting, historic music, historic bible version etc. Kings is top quality art, architecture, music and literature that the Christian faith inspires within a particular cultural setting, and for some it will inspire. For others, it will look like an attempt to keep that disturbing stuff about resurrection and God's Kingdom firmly locked in the past/high culture where it can't harm us. If that's you, try the Preston Passion (see Good Friday).

and that's it, unless you count 'Two Mules for Sister Sarah', a western with Clint Eastwood and a nun. Otherwise its sport, shows with Simon Cowell and shows with the ghost of Simon Cowell, family films, and mammon (national lottery, million pound drop, Flog It! etc.). Though a couple of hours channel hopping on Saturday night is probably enough to convince most people of our need for a saviour.

Easter Sunday
10am Easter Eucharist, BBC1, followed by the Pope's Easter message
5.25pm Songs of Praise
10pm 'Crucifixion' a C4 documentary about a man trying to construct a crucifix from donated body parts. Hey, it's channel 4.

and that's pretty much it, though there's plenty of stuff about death and betrayal if you're still stuck a bit earlier in Holy Week (Silent Witness, Titanic, Homeland). Interesting to see the 12-rated The Mummy on at 3.45pm. It's been moving 30 minutes forward in the schedules every year since its release. Don't let your kids near the zapper on Sunday afternoon if you want them to sleep.

Best bet - dig out the DVD of the BBC's Passion from a couple of years ago and watch them again. Or just follow the narrative in real time by reading the Bible.

Or if you can't read more than one sentence at a time, the Facebook Passion.