Mark Weinman News Today

At its best, the play brings out the real pain of a man continually struggling and fighting for his family, but realising that at some point he will have to hang up his cape and not be there for them.

Rating: Great minds being what they are, Lights Up: Sitting (BBC4) is the second programme this year to explore the personalities behind portraits. Last month, comedian Jenny Eclair presented Drawers Off on Channel 4, where amateur artists took it in turns to disrobe and sit for a life class competition. As they sketched, painted or posed, the contestants chatted away. Much more than skin was revealed. Actress Katherine Parkinson, of Humans and The IT Crowd, tackled the same theme in her first...

  People worry about the wrong things when theyre being painted. They think theyll get bored, or restless. But what should really concern them is what theyll say when they start to relax. Ive painted a few portraits in my time, and I know from experience that sitters will share astonishing things with you. As though you were a priest, or a shrink. Therein lies the brilliance of Katherine Parkinsons play Sitting, which premiered at the Edinburgh Festival in 2018 and can be seen on BBC4 on Wedne...