Oh joy to the world! X Factor is back this week and kicks off on Saturday, so if you have plans for that night, cancel them, lock your door, take the phone off the hook and prepare to be a couch judge as this year’s acts are chosen from thousands and thousands of hopefuls… and thousands of acts who make your hair stand on end with their awfulness.

I can’t wait! But, before that, there’s plenty to keep us entertained on telly, so here are our Primetime picks for next week…

Monday

The Princess and the Gangster, 8:00pm, Channel 4

This fascinating documentary looks at aspects of Princess Margaret’s life that we didn’t get to see during her lifetime…

Mustique was Princess Margaret’s Caribbean retreat where she went to relax, unwind and be entertained – all away from the disapproving gaze of the British establishment. She was holidaying there in 1974 after her affair with Roddy Llewellyn – a man 17 years her junior – had stalled.

Also holidaying on the island was Dana Gillespie, an upper-class girl with a talent for singing and acting, who had invited an actor friend, John Bindon, to join her that year. From far more humble origins, John ‘Biffo’ Bindon had appeared in several landmark British movies of the late 60s and early 70s, including Poor Cow, Performance and Get Carter.

But as well as being an actor, Bindon was also a violent gangland criminal. He had grown up in the post-war slums of Fulham and throughout the 60s he had served prison sentences for assault and living off the earnings of a prostitute.

After their first lunch on Mustique, the villain from Fulham had made a deep impression on Princess Margaret, and the holiday meeting was only the beginning of his relationship with the Queen’s sister.

Bindon and Margaret’s continued association eventually drew attention from the press. British security services stepped in when Bindon started talking to journalists, and according to Bindon, he was told he would have to keep quiet about his involvement with the Princess. But when Bindon was involved in a highly publicised murder case, the stakes got higher.

Brothers in Arms: Basra, 9:00pm , Sky1

This 90-minute special follows the British military on the ground in Basra from March to the end of May this year, during a period that saw the number of UK troops in Iraq decrease from over 4,000 to a mere few.

During the film, we hear from British troops prior to, during, and post withdrawal and will expose what current and ex-serviceman feel about the role they played in the Iraq war, what they feel they achieved in the area, as well as detailing their own feelings and thoughts on what they experienced fighting thousands of miles from home.

The film is an emotional history of British troops’ experiences in Iraq and will reveal how service personnel feel about how they are perceived by the British public and media since the invasion six years ago.

With exclusive access to Army regiments – including 5 Rifles and B Company – and by using observational filming on the ground in Iraq, archive material and interviews with soldiers, this is an honest and candid account of one of the key events in one of the most controversial wars in modern-day history.

Tuesday

The Duchess on the Estate, 9:00pm, ITV1

In this first of two specials, Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York spends more than 10 days on a Manchester housing estate to learn more about the problems of ‘broken Britain’ in the new two part show The Duchess on the Estate.

Her trip follows on from the success of the ITV1 show The Duchess in Hull in which she took her anti-obesity message to a Hull family to help change their diet and exercise regimes and help transform their lives.

But as a result of her trip to Hull the Duchess realises that the problems facing Britons today go much further than just obesity and the film inspired the Duchess to take on this new project in Northern Moor, part of Wythenshawe, which is one of the largest council estates in Europe.

She discovers more about the issues facing local people during her trip – drugs, crime and a lack of community spirit.

The Story of Only Fools and Horses, 9:00pm, Gold

If you’ve ever wondered how Only Fools came to be, and what made it such a huge hit, this show has the answers.

In it, David Jason, Nicholas Lyndhurst and writer John Sullivan team up for a behind-the-scenes documentary exploring how the classic British sitcom first arrived on the small screen. In addition, celebrity fans discuss the show’s appeal, and some of the most memorable scenes are remembered.

Wednesday

Missing Children: Lorraine Kelly Investigates, 9:00pm, Sky1

In Britain over 100,000 children go missing every year. In this series, Lorraine Kelly looks at the stories behind some of these disappearances.

Lorraine meets the families and friends of those who have gone missing and uses dramatic reconstructions to retrace their last known steps. And she talks to the police, psychologists and charities who are trying to find out why and where these children have gone.

In this episode, we hear the tragic stories of the disappearances of toddlers Ben Needham and Katrice Lee.

How Clean is Your Crime Scene, 10:00pm, Bravo

This gruesome but fascinating new documentary series follows the work of Crime Scene Cleaners.

Their job it is to clean up the messes that no-one else will touch and tonight, we see Neal taking on the grim task of cleaning up the remains of a dead biker stuck under a car and a gruesome suicide.

Thursday

Benefit Busters, 9:00pm, Channel 4

Tonight sees the first of three episodes in this new series in which we meet Hayley Taylor, whose job it is to persuade single mothers on benefits to go back to work.

The company she works for, A4E, which is helping to tackle the Government’s target of getting 70 per cent of lone parents into paid work by 2010, is the largest welfare reform company in the world. A4E is run by multimillionaire entrepreneur Emma Harrison, who believes her business is ‘improving people’s lives by getting them into work.’

Until recently, the 700,000 lone parents receiving benefit didn’t have to look for work until their youngest child was 16. Soon, they must either work, or be looking for work, once their youngest child is seven.

At Doncaster A4E, Hayley runs a course called Elevate that aims to give lone parents the skills and confidence to enter the workplace and convince them they’ll be better off doing so. Cameras follow her group of ten single mothers during their intensive six-week course to prepare them for work

The Shawshank Redemption, 9:00pm, Film4

This brilliant film adaptation of Stephen King’s book features Andy Dufresne who’s a young and successful banker, but his life changes drastically when he’s convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of his wife and her lover.

Set in the 1940’s, the film shows how Andy, with the help of his friend Red, the prison entrepreneur, turns out to be a most unconventional prisoner…

Here’s the film’s trailer

Friday

Matthew Perry, 10:00pm, Biography Channel

This documentary profile is of the actor who was shot to fame by his role in Friends as Chandler Bing.

Before finding fame, Perry was a top-ranking tennis player, but his career has seen him struggle with a drug addiction as well as small and big screen stardom.

Lager, Mum and Me, 10:00pm, Really

This often sad documentary tells the story of 12-year-old Nanzer who reveals what it’s like to have a mother who’s an alcoholic.

Nanzer uses a video diary to express what life’s like with her alcoholic mother Diane, who drinks up to 15 pints of lager a day and often goes AWOL on extended binges.

She also films her mum as she’s about to go into detox, but fears Diane won’t have what it takes to see the process through.

Saturday

The X Factor, 7:00pm, ITV1

Britain’s biggest and best loved talent show returns for a brand new series tonight.

As always, judges Simon Cowell, Cheryl Cole, Dannii Minogue and Louis Walsh must sift through thousands of applicants, who this year, must audition in front of a studio audience and the panel.

The audition heats start in London, before moving on to Manchester and Glasgow. Watch as Simon and Louis fall out over a pair of Irish twins, and, who is the hopeful who gives what Simon describes as “the best first audition I’ve ever heard”? All will be revealed!

When Animals Attack, 9:00pm, Reality TV

This film features footage of real-life encounters between humans and dangerous animals. In tonight’s show, a man is accused of using his Pit Bull Terrier to kill his wife.

Several more episodes follow this one and will feature all manner of truly terrifying animal encounters and fights to the death.

Sunday

Johnny Cash’s America, 8:00pm, Biography Channel

This is another great documentary from the Biography Channel, this time profiling the life of the legendary country music star Johnny Cash.

As we’ll hear, Johnny found inspiration in his darkest moments, and in a life full of them, it’s little wonder then that he was such a prolific songwriter.

This film also features exclusive footage and interviews with his family and friends.

Gunrush, 9:00pm, ITV1

Powerful one-off drama starring Timothy Spall as Doug Becket, a father driven to take the law into his own hands after he witnesses his daughter being shot dead by two hooded teenagers in a supermarket.

When the police come up against a wall of silence in their hunt for the killer, Doug sets out to track down the only clue to the murderer’s identity – the gun. He goes undercover on the local estates to talk to the residents, pleading with them for someone to come forward.

As the relationship with his wife Jill reaches breaking point, Doug uses deception to obtain a piece of evidence from the police and gets to meet Robbie, an outreach worker for the kids, and local smackhead Earl, who knows the estates inside out. But as Doug gets more deeply involved with the local gang culture and the members close ranks against him, it becomes apparent that he is hopelessly out of his depth and his own life is in danger…

So that’s it for this week’s Primetime Picks. Have a fantastic week and we’ll see you same time, same place, next week.