STV Racing Live: The Grand National, STV, 4.35pm
PICKING a winner in the National can be almost as daunting as guiding a horse round more than four miles of Aintree’s gruelling course. Nevertheless, millions of us will have a flutter on this year’s race, all in the hope that our selection will emulate Lucinda Russell’s 14-1 shot One For Arthur, which was ridden to victory by Derek Fox last year. Ed Chamberlin and Francesca Cumani present the build-up to and live coverage of the big race – the 5.15pm Randox Health Grand National steeple chase – with former jockeys AP McCoy and Mick Fitzgerald providing expert analysis.
Britain’s Got Talent, STV, 8pm
DECLAN Donnelly hosts the opening auditions for the new series of the nationwide talent hunt. The usual wide variety of acts, from comedians to contortionists, magicians to martial artists and singers to spoon players, compete to impress returning judges Simon Cowell, Alesha Dixon, Amanda Holden and David Walliams.
Salamander: Blood Diamonds, BBC 4, 9pm
CHIEF Inspector Paul Gerardi (played by Fillip Peeters) is back in a new series of the cult crime drama. In the thriller’s first instalment, the detective investigated the theft of 66 safety deposit boxes belonging to high-profile Belgian figures. Blood Diamonds picks up five years after the death of Gerardi’s wife at the hands of secret society Salamander, as he opens an investigation into the murder of Kitangian political refugee Leon Tchite in Brussels. After discovering that his prime suspect is dead, Gerardi soon becomes entangled with dangerous criminals from a blood diamond trafficking network.
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