Month: May 2019

1) “Red Nose Day,” 8-10 p.m., NBC. Screenwriter Richard Curtis started this in England, as an annual fundraiser for kids’ causes, then nudged it to the U.S. For this one, he’s written a mini-sequel to his “Four Weddings and a Funeral” movie, with Hugh Grant and Andie MacDowell (shown here) and more. There’s music by Kelly Clarkson and Blake Shelton; comedy with Kate McKinnon, Rob Gronkowski and more; plus a serious film with Milo Ventimiglia (“This Is Us”) seeing overseas projects. Read more…

1) “All in the Family” and “The Jeffersons,” 8-9:30 p.m., ABC. TV’s first golden age of comedy was propelled by these Norman Lear shows, in 1971 and ’75. Lear, 96, co-produces and co-hosts these live shows, using old scripts. Woody Harrelson and Marisa Tomei play Archie and Edith Bunker, with Ellie Kemper and Ike Barinholtz as their daughter and son-in-law. (The original series, shown here, reruns from 7-10 p.m. ET on digital channel GetTV.) Then Jamie Foxx and Wanda Sykes are George and Louise Jefferson. Read more…

1) “The Voice” finale, 9-11 p.m., NBC. Blake Shelton’s dominance finally seemed to be slipping. In the first 13 editions, he had six champions and seven runners-up; but then Kelly Clarkson had the winner in her first season … and again in her second. Now, however, Shelton is back on top, with three people in the final four. The lone exception is Maelyn Jarmon, on John Legend’s team; she’s shown here with Shelton’s guys — from left: Andrew Sevener, Gythy Rigdon and Dexter Roberts. Read more…

1) “The Big Bang Theory” finale rerun, 8 and 8:30 p.m., CBS. TV’s best current comedy departed with one of the best finales ever. It did it all – big laughs, key plot developments and surprising bursts of sentiment … none of it false or forced. Everything was built on a deep understanding of the characters – via the writers and the actors. These characters have learned to love each other, flaws and all; viewers feel the same way, so we’re glad to have this rerun belatedly added. Read more…