What"s on the box this week?

'The Lives Of Mike" (RTE 1, Tuesday 28th October) - Mike Murphy returns to our screens with this frank and intimate two-part documentary series - an in-depth portrait of this multi-faceted man who captured the hearts of Irish audiences during his broadcasting career, and continues to be remembered with universal fondness. Never content with a prescribed role, the secure job, or life as a celebrity broadcaster, he always pushed the boundaries. Confounding his critics, Murphy moved with apparent ease from comedy sketches and iconic candid camera inserts for 'The Live Mike" to establishing himself as one of RTE"s most popular arts broadcasters while also setting up one of Ireland"s first independent television production companies. Having achieved such success, Mike Murphy left all of it behind to enter the risky world of property development. The first programme in this two-part documentary delves into his childhood, which was filled with many bleak times. His parents" unhappy marriage created a strained and ominously silent atmosphere, punctuated by bitter rows, in which Murphy himself frequently intervened. The result was a terrible relationship with his father, filled with resentment and, in later years, regret. His inauspicious school years led to his early foray into the workplace, but also provided the initial platform for Murphy"s talents on the stage. Contributors to the first programme in this two-part documentary include Eamon Morrissey, David Kelly, Terry Wogan and Brendan Balfe. 'In Love With Barbara" (BBC 4, Sunday) - Anne Reid and Sinead Matthews play novelist Dame Barbara Cartland, author of 720 books that sold over 100 million copies, in a playful and revealing film about the life and loves of the Queen of Romance. Set mainly in the 1970s, at the height of her commercial success, the film uses flashbacks to provide an insight into her youth in the '20s and '30s, when she was forging her extraordinary career and dealing with the social stigma of a highly public divorce. Delving behind the celebrity image, the film explores her unlikely friendship with Lord Mountbatten, who was a continued friend and support, over the months leading up to his tragic death in 1979, which she described 'as the greatest sadness of my life'. The story also reveals Cartland"s failed first marriage and her relationship with her beloved brother, Ronald, who had a huge influence on her life. 'Rory Gallagher" (RTE 1, Monday 27th October) - To celebrate what would have been his 60th birthday this year, this is an hour of restored programming from the RTE archives of Rory Gallagher live in the 1970s. In 'The Music Makers", which was originally broadcast in 1973, Bill Keating followed Rory through one day of his short Irish tour. Shot in various locations around Cork, the world-renowned musician tells how he became interested in playing the guitar. He mentions his early influences and how he bought his first Fender on hire purchase and how it took him 15 years to pay it off! He also talks about Taste and his big break when he played at London"s Marquee Club - a performance which catapulted him into the major league of world-famous guitar players. At the centre of the programme is a recording of the concert Rory played in the Savoy Cinema in Limerick. The gig drew heavy rock and blues fans from all over Ireland and indeed from much further afield. Although Taste had split up by the time Gallagher toured Ireland in '73, he was still playing in a trio. Four years later, in 1977, he again featured in an RTE series 'Me and My Music". Although he was spending most of his time gigging in the United States at this stage, he came to the RTE studios to record this acoustic set. He had just released his 'Calling Card" album a couple of months beforehand and indeed the quieter, more reflective side of Gallagher"s playing is evident in this programme. Movie Of The Week: 'The Bourne Supremacy" (RTE 1, Monday) - A CIA agent is killed during an operation in which $3 million of the agency"s money is stolen. A partial fingerprint of Jason Bourne is found at the scene. Attacked by the company he once defended, Bourne comes out of retirement to exact a savage revenge. Full-on action all the way.