Bullying is a complex issue. Physical, mental, older vs younger, group vs individual – is one form worse than another? As a child, I was bullied (mostly physical), but I also bullied (mostly mental). As a parent, I cannot condone it, but how much should adults intervene? Ask yourself: do you inwardly cheer when the bully gets beaten up (like in the film Hævnen)? Doesn’t that make you as bad as the bully?
If you do, you’re probably a man, particularly if the IMDB ratings for the compelling US doc Bully are anything to go by. Females gave it 9.2, nodding every second in agreement with how unequivocally appalling the practice is, documented here on the school bus. Males, though, gave it 6.1. Mostly appalled, the expressions “He’s asking for it wearing that” and “When I did it, we were only having a laugh” played havoc with their conscience. And then, when the teacher denied there was a problem on the bus, they all wanted to hit her.
The Krays were schoolground bullies, so it’s po
intless arguing it’s not a career path, and as long as they keep on getting referenced – in this case as the inspiration for the second series of the likeable British drama series Whitechapel (DR1, Mon 22:30) – you know there are two schools of thought out there.
The Krays would have thrived if the state had banned alcohol – like that’s ever going to happen in the UK! But it did in the US and Prohibition (DR2, Mon-Fri 17:55), a five-part doc series, is a great companion piece for Boardwalk Empire.
Elsewhere, the American Comedy Awards will have its moments; Saturday Night Live (TV2 Zulu, Wed 22:30) and Hotel Babylon (BBC Ent, Sat 21:00) are back for new seasons; there’s another chance to see Ipswich real-life prostitute drama Five Daughters (SV1, Wed 23:05) and acclaimed doc series World War 2 (DRK, Fri 20:00); Stars Of The Silver Screen (DRK, Sat 20:00) focuses on Liz Taylor, Infamous Assassinations (DRK, Mon 22:30) on Robert Kennedy; wannabe Robert Langtons will love Secrets of the Vatican Museum (DRK, Wed 21:45); and The trouble with experts (DR2, Mon 23:00) looks at the culture of giving advice and whether the ‘experts’ are good decision makers.
