Recommended viewing

A reminder tonight that – for all its sins – the BBC still produces some top drawer television. I have in mind the episode of Panorama which screened at 2030, on the ongoing conflict in Afghanistan. For the most part balanced, informative and beautifully shot, it set out what our armed forces have accomplished so far, and the challenges they will face in the future. There were powerful ‘talking head’ contributions from Hamid Karzai and Brigadier Mark Carleton Smith. Whilst disturbing footage of the Taleban making – and detonating – roadside bombs was a stark reminder of the enemy that our troops, and the West, face.

If there was a sour note to the programme, it was a “things are worse than ever” conclusion that seemed to fly in the face of much that had preceded it.  But even that wasn’t enough to prevent the whole being a stand-out piece of broadcast journalism.