I missed this episode of Tonight on Friday, so I caught up with it yesterday on ITV Player, and if you’re the sort of person who just loves a handy cost-cutting tip or three, then you’ll love this show.

It was presented by Martin Lewis, the often hyper financial whizzkid who appears on GMTV to share money saving ideas with the nation, and for this show, he met one especially super-thrifty granny who lives and breathes the wartime adage, ‘make-do-and-mend’.

“Green Granny Barbara” showed us how to reuse that odd shoe that’s been in the hallway for ten years, or utilise the cat’s poo from the litter tray – well, not really, but you get the gist – and what a lovely lady she is. Read more & comment »

Don’t miss the tragic but heroically brave Jade Goody’s latest documentary, Jade’s Progress, which is on tonight on Living at 9pm.

Jade had previously commented that… “There are a number of things in my life that have tried to pull me down and I’ve bounced back up through.”

“This I’ve got no control of but I will take it with both hands and take control of it and smash it down and walk all over it. So yes, I will survive cancer. I have to.”

Now, sadly, it seems that indomitable fighting spirit was not enough to halt the ravages of this disease and Jade is now facing up to her own death.

When Living began filming with Jade Goody in the summer of 2008 for the fly-on-the-wall documentary ‘Living With Jade Goody’, what started as a light-hearted insight into the life of the ex-Big Brother contestant has taken a devastatingly sinister turn as it now documents her final months as cancer has overwhelmed her… Read more & comment »

On the night of Jonathan Ross’s return to his chat show following the Andrew Sachs controversy, Tonight explored whether or not broadcasters have gone too far in stretching the boundaries of taste and decency.

Jonathan Maitland presented the show which basically consisted of having a panel of TV watchers from across the spectrum of age groups, social class etc., to whom he showed a variety of clips and asked them to ‘buzz in’ when they found something offensive. Read more & comment »

Tonight revealed last year that thousands of homes were in the wrong council tax band following inaccurate valuations carried out in 1991.

After reports that the Labour government knew about this more than two years ago, Martin Lewis looks at the ramifications.

Friday 7 March 2008 8:00pm – 8:30pm on ITV1.

Anne Collins drinks a few glasses of wine most evenings during the week and a bottle at the weekends, but she’d never classify herself as a binge drinker or someone who has a drinking problem.

Like many busy mums, she thinks of her daily tipple as a nice way to relax.

Anne, whose three children now range in age from 10 to 15, explains: “It became a habit when the children were young. I can remember when they were all very young, and Aaron had just started school and Brooke was two and Euan was in his rocker, and I can remember being in the bedroom with my foot on the rocker, sort of listening to Aaron read and doing something with Brooke and you know you’re just like, ‘Oh, I need a glass of wine!’”

But could Anne unknowingly be drinking dangerous amounts for her health and underestimating the impact that her drinking has on her family? Read more & comment »

Liz Dawn is to appear in a Tonight programme on ITV1 titled, Liz Dawn: Fighting For Breath.

In the show, Liz will warn people of the dangers of smoking and reveal details of the awful lung disease which forced her to quit Coronation Street this year.

Liz Dawn has recorded an interview with Sir Trevoir McDonald which will air on the 4th of February, and in it she says:

“When I see people outside in the street it’s almost like they’ve got a disease, isn’t it? I wish I could help the young ’uns.” Read more & comment »

Matthew Green thought he was being a responsible citizen when he agreed to pay a little bit extra for payment protection insurance for a consolidation loan.

If he became ill or lost his job, the insurance would after all cover his loan repayments.

But years later a trip to an independent financial adviser revealed that he had paid an extra £12,000 for an insurance policy that was worthless. As a person who took pills for high cholesterol, Matthew would never be able to eligible to collect on the policy if he became ill. As these conditions were not explained to him at the time, his original loan provider has since given him a full refund. Read more & comment »

Jordon Lyon made headlines when he died trying to save his eight-year-old step-sister after she fell into a lake. Many newspapers lambasted the two police community support officers who subsequently arrived on the scene but did not immediately wade in after him. But was their response justified given they could not see the boy under the water and were not properly trained in water rescue.

In this programme, Tonight debates the issue and looks at the contradictory nature of being frontline fire or police officers. On one hand, these men and women are told by their bosses to be aware of their own health and safety and not take any unnecessary risks. Yet on the other hand, they receive commendations from their superiors when they put safety second. Read more & comment »

“I find it appalling…they never told me when I was paying into (the system) that they weren’t going to treat smokers or if I got obese they weren’t going to treat me and now they’ve gone and basically changed the guidelines.”

David Spencer, a 63-year-old Lincolnshire man, is in desperate need of a new hip. But his NHS trust says that he does not qualify for the operation because he smokes.

A 30-a-day habit started at the age of 10 may have nothing to do with the state of his joints, but the North Lincolnshire NHS Trust has told David that smokers must be excluded from some operations because of financial constraints. Read more & comment »