KEY POINTS:
7PM, TV ONE
KIWIS AT WAR
This is the story of Kiwi pilot Geoff Rothwell, who airlifted spies so they could parachute into enemy territory - not a job for the faint-hearted.
7.30PM, TV ONE
FULL ON FOOD
Some people think beer goes with everything, but as Richard Corrigan finds
tonight, if you choose the right drop of amber liquid then it can set a meal off even better than a glass of wine.
7.30PM, TV2
FEAR FACTOR
It's the Fear Factor that will appeal mainly to the lads. Yep, it's the annual models' episode where contestants have to grab mouthfuls of worms, maggots and beetles that are stuck to ropes.
8.45PM, TV ONE
MIDSOMER MURDERS
Playing one hugely popular television detective is obviously not enough for John Nettles, who made his name with the long-running Bergerac series in the 1980s.
That show, set on the island of Jersey, ran for 87 episodes. But the way Nettles is going as DCI Tom Barnaby in Midsomer Murders, that tally could be surpassed. Once filming has finished of the 10th series, the show will have run for 59 feature-length episodes seen in about 200 countries.
Apart from Nettles' superb portrayal of Barnaby, the show has hit on a successful formula of saying something about the human condition by staging seedy goings-on in an idyllic countryside setting.
The only thing that could prove a problem for the show's longevity is the rapidly dwindling population of the fictional county of Midsomer, such is the high body count associated with the cases that confront Barnaby and his offsider DS Dan Scott (John Hopkins).
Tonight's episode, Bantling Boy, is part of series eight and Nettles promises, the body count will be as high as ever.
Barnaby and Scott enter the sometimes-seamy world of horseracing when the trainer of racehorse Bantling Boy is battered to death. Bruce Hartley was an alcoholic who had vowed to expose the reason his father bequeathed the horse to four Midsomer villagers. The other members of the syndicate come under suspicion - then Bantling Boy falls ill. The detectives must unravel secrets hidden at the aristocratic Bantling Hall to find the killer.
MOVIES
[rated out of 5]
8.30PM, TV2
MURIEL'S WEDDING
Herald rating: * * * *
Toni Collette, Rachel Griffiths and Sophie Lee star in this classic Aussie romantic comedy about Muriel (Collette), who is bored with her life at home in a small town. She steals some cash and heads off on a tropical holiday hoping to reinvent herself. (1994)
8.30PM, TV3
THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW
Herald rating: * * * *
Professor Jack Hall (Dennis Quaid) has been studying the past effects of global warming and warns authorities of a new Ice Age, which rolls around within a couple of days. The Northern Hemisphere becomes an Arctic wasteland and Hall's son (Jake Gyllenhaal) is stuck in New York, without snowshoes. (2004)
10.45PM, TV ONE
THE MAGDALENE SISTERS
Herald rating: * * * *
Set on the outskirts of Dublin, Ireland in 1964, and based on the true story of thousands of women who were outcast by their families and left to the mercy of the Catholic Church. While many women around the world were experiencing liberation and new-found freedom, four young women struggle to survive in the Magdalene laundries. (2002)
10.45PM, TV2
THE MATRIX
Herald rating: * * * *
The classic Wachowski brothers sci-fi thriller about Neo (Keanu Reeves), a computer hacker who learns the truth about his reality and joins the battle between man and machines. (1999)
SPORT
10PM, SKY SPORT 1 LIVE, 11PM, MAORI TV; 12.30PM (SUNDAY) PRIME
RUGBY LEAGUE: TRI-NATIONS FINAL
NEW ZEALAND V AUSTRALIA
The Kiwis have overcome the Grannygate fiasco and proved they are worthy finalists. They have the game to beat the Aussies if they can maintain discipline.
5.50AM, SKY SPORT 1 LIVE; 3.30PM, PRIME
RUGBY: NEW ZEALAND V WALES
After an ugly win over the French, the All Blacks will look for a more cohesive showing to sign off the season with a flourish.