Telly Today: Christmas themed canapes, street art and a cockerstaffy-poo dog

Highlights for Tuesday, December 1st include horse teeth, Christmas themed canapes and saving tips with Philip Schofield.

Last appointment

It’s the seventeenth and final episode in the current series of The Yorkshire Vet this evening. The documentary that follows all the drama, laughter and tears at two busy veterinary practices.

Peter Wright, who was trained by the world’s most famous vet, James Herriot, now runs his old mentor’s practice in Thirsk, while his former partner, Julian Norton, continues to work in nearby Boroughbridge.

Peter’s under extra pressure when he heads out to see Charlie the horse. Charlie belongs to his niece Jess who has always loved horses and rides them competitively. Charlie needs his wolf teeth removing so they do not interfere with the bit. But working with large animals is never easy, and these are the biggest wolf teeth Peter’s ever seen.

When Julian sees Jackie Barlow, it is usually about one of the alpacas on the farm. But today the patient is her little dog Isla –who spends most of her time chasing the alpacas on the farm! Jackie’s anxious when she leaves Isla with Julian, whose biggest challenge might just be trying to tell Fiona what breed Isla is – she’s a cockerstaffy-poo!

A ewe in labour is rushed into the Huddersfield hospital, and David battles to save mum and baby. Matt comes down to the farm animal theatre to help, but as it is a large, single lamb – and the ewe has passed some of her placenta – they are fearing the worst.

Meanwhile, Peter welcomes the West Yorkshire vets to Herriot Country as they celebrate the 50th anniversary of his old boss’ first book.

The Yorkshire Vet, Channel 5 at 8pm

Festive food

Tonight, eight former champions compete to create Christmas themed canapes and starters. And in a new twist – they aren’t just cooking; they’re judging each other too! Four chefs cook, while the other four taste and score their dishes in a blind tasting, with Andi as a referee. The roles are then reversed as they take it in turns to both cook and score.

The tastes of Christmases past provide a lot of inspiration for the chefs, with prawn cocktails, parfait and vol-au-vents all receiving a Great British Menu makeover. Christmas crackers are an inspiration too; both in terms of presentation and in the punning titles of dishes including Shrimply Having a Wonderful Christmas Time and Not Mushroom Under this Tree.

In each episode, an extra special veteran chef completes the line-up. Tonight, it’s Michelin starred Lisa Goodwin Allen, who cooked the starter when Prince Charles was a banquet guest a decade ago and has since gone on to become a regular veteran judge on the competition. Now, to say thank you to key workers, she’s putting on her apron again in the GBM kitchen. Expect other big names from GBM’s illustrious history to join her in later episodes.

Great British Christmas Menu, BBC Two at 8pm

Delivered to your screen

More than 90% of British shoppers use Amazon. This episode tells the story of how the retail giant took on its rivals and won; and the way Amazon keeps winning, setting the rules everyone else must follow.

Sabrina Grant and Helen Skelton investigate how Amazon has used its might to out-muscle everyone from eBay to Etsy. Speaking to senior executives who spent their careers inside Amazon, they explore how the online giant uses extraordinary resources of data and money to take on, and take over, one sector of the retail economy after another, leaving traditional high street players in its wake.

Sabrina and Helen examine the way Amazon is taking on Google as the gateway to the internet, and explore Amazon’s latest expansion as it tries to replace supermarkets as the main force in British online grocery retailing.

The Truth About Amazon: How It Took Over the World asks the two most important questions for British shoppers in 2020: what does Amazon have in store for us next? And should we be worried?

The Truth About Amazon, Channel 4 at 9pm

Wise spending

In the second episode, of How to Spend it Well at Christmas Phillip Schofield and his team of experts give viewers the low down on some of this year’s best gifts and gadgets, from unique postal gifts to delicious food kits, so that they can spoil their loved ones this Christmas and make the most of their festive budget.

On a Christmas-loving street in Cardiff, three families try out a range of festive decorations from budget to high-end, to find out whether they need to splash the cash to make their houses sparkle.

Phillip asks some happy campers to put three different portable coffee makers through their paces while with the picture unclear on whether Britons will be able to visit loved ones this Christmas, many people are going to be looking for that extra special gift to send. Phillip meets the founder of Not On The High Street, Holly Tucker, to get her top tips on what to think about when choosing and sending postal gifts this year.

Journalist and restaurant critic Grace Dent steps into the kitchen to try out a selection of food-inspired kits that could make the perfect gift for the foodie in everyone’s life. And chef Matt Tebbutt rates time-saving kitchen gadgets.

How to Spend it Well at Christmas, ITV, STV and UTV at 8pm

Iconic arts

Martha Cooper is an unexpected icon of the street art movement – a tiny, grey-haired figure running alongside crews of masked graffiti artists.

In the 1970s, as the boroughs of New York City burned, she worked as a photographer for the New
York Post, seeking images of creativity and play where others saw crime and poverty. As a result, she captured some of the first images of New York graffiti, at a time when the city had declared war on this new culture.

20 years later Martha discovered she had become a legend of the graffiti world – a culture that has now exploded into a global movement. At 75 years of age, Martha finds herself navigating a culture vastly changed. The small community born from struggle and adversity has grown into a commercial
industry fuelled by the rise of social media. Now every new piece of street art is immediately uploaded, and crowds line up for selfies in front of popular works.

Martha struggles to find her place in this new world, driven by a passion for capturing the creativity that helps people rise above their environment.

Martha: A Picture Story, Sky Arts at 10.30pm