They finally pulled a great task out of the bag! About time too. This is the second part of the final so we've only got two more days before someone is crowned King of Masterchef and big big flavours. It's all getting very exciting. But what did they have to do?

To read all our Masterchef news, reviews and interviews, go here.

Last night was the first part of the Masterchef final. Does that strike anyone else as weird? Is there any other show that has four parts to their final? They really do like milking this show, don't they? Luckily though, it's always pretty good. Although the challenges they think up are always a tad strange when they get to this point in the show. I think it's known as clutching at straws.

Has Masterchef still not finished yet? They're really milking this series, aren't they? I can't remember that last time I watched BBC Two and Gregg and John weren't yelling at one another or salivating over some pudding or other. But, fear not, it's nearly over. Last night saw the semi-finals and ooooh it was good. There was tears, over excited food noises and a few shocks too.

Last night saw the conclusion of Terry Pratchett's Living With Alzheimer's. While I remained somewhat unconvinced with the crusade Terry was on in the last episode, this final slot was much more interesting to watch. It became clear, to me at least, that it wasn't so much a crusade the best-selling author was on. He just wanted to understand what was happening to him and his brain.

TV Scoop's erm 'favourite', University Challenge contestant Trimble, was back on our box last night and boy she didn't let us down. There has been such a strong reaction to this woman, yet all she's doing is going on the show, answering questions and getting them (mostly) right! What is it about her that makes me want to throw things at my telly? How has this student caused such a reaction?

Related: Random hate: Someone called Trimble from Corpus Christi on University Challenge

Original grumpy old man Jack Dee is back for a third series of Lead Balloon starting November 13th, BBC Two. TV Scoop caught up with the man himself at a special screening of the new series last week to talk about stand up and his inspiration for onscreen character, comedian Rick Spleen.

The It Crowd (which we've had our doubts about here on Scoop, it has to be said) has been exported wholesale to the US and the comparisons have begun. The LA Times describes the show as 'reminiscent of The Big Bang Theory' which might be interesting to Graham Linehan - creator of The IT Crowd - which came out in 2006 a year before TBBT.

When my son discovered Sesame Tree online, I thought it was a dodgy spoof of classic Sesame Street (of the kind my son often stumbles upon on YouTube, gah).

Well, it kind of is, but it's also official, made as it is by BBC Northern Ireland and featuring clips of vintage Sesame Street.

Of the many "guru" shows that litter the gogglebox like courts summonses on Pete Doherty's doormat, BBC Two's Mary Queen of Shops is one of the better ones. Mary Portas herself is engaging and watchable in a very Gordon Ramsay way - you like her even though you think you shouldn't - and the subject matter is genuinely interesting. At least that is the way it is most weeks, this week was a bit of a let down.

Last night was rather bittersweet for me. While watching the final installment of Long Way Down, I found myself both incredibly pleased, dare I say joyous, when Charley and Ewan finally made it to Capetown and just a little bit sad that the journey was now over. (And my hopes of to seeing Ewan's bare ass on television again were now completely squashed.) This episode was by far the best yet. There was a romantical Man Love montage of some of Ewan and Charley's most tender moments, a surprise visit from Ewan's mom, and tearful goodbyes from between Ewan and his wife after Eve joined the boys for 7 days on the road. (And yes, Charley did get jealous. Very jealous.)

I have to say, I was incredibly impressed with Eve McGregor's confidence on her bike, and determination to not slow down Charley and Ewan. I half expected her just to be this wimpy little thing that was only a long for the ride so she could monitor what her husband was doing and to be a general pain in the ass. However, she couldn't have been anymore the opposite. Petite, wise and lovely, Eve was gracious and kind with all the people she met, and you could tell that the Road Team genuinely loved her, and were glad to have her on board.

Because I lived in America for about 20 years, I had never heard of Richard Hammond or Top Gear until I moved to London. I'd occasionally hear his name thrown around here and there and the sporadic mention of, "MATE! Did you see Top Gear last night!? It was proper wicked, huh? HUH?" But alas, I just figured it was some blokey show with lame jokes, ugly cars and surgically enhanced blonds using power tools for no apparent reason. My assumption as to what Top Gear was about even further *proved* when I found out its repeats would be shown over and over again on Dave, the channel that's supposed to be for guys.

However, when I saw Richard Hammond on Friday Night With Jonathan Ross a few months back, I have to admit, I found something rather charming about him. Whether it was the way he used molding wax to strategically texturize his hair, or the mischievous glint in his eye - I knew there was something special about that fellow they call Hamster. I was surprised to learn he partook in that Top Gear show, but I thought if someone like him could love it, then maybe, just maybe, I could, too.

If I was disappointed by Long Way Down last week, the fourth and most recent episode of the series totally made up for it. Yes, Long Way Down, we are totally BFF again. This episode not only featured some Man Drama, but a few crashes, a family of elephants, one dead goat, and the ghastly description of how one Kenyan tribe circumcises their boys. Really, what more could you possible ask for?

This week, the opening scene was of a unshaven Ewan McGregor looking drearily into his diary camera, dirt caked onto his cheeks like Mystic Tan on Lindsay Lohan, sucking on a mangled lollipop whilst complaining that he's sick of being known as "the guy who falls of his bike all the time". However, he says he's open to the criticism from the "off road guys" as he says it's cool if you want to go up and tell him that he falls off his bike a lot, as long as you're okay with him telling you to "fuck off".

So, last night was the third installment of Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman's special Long Way Down, and I have to admit, I was a little disappointed. I had been looking forward to this all week. I made sure to pee before hand, and I'll even admit to getting a cup of tea and a stack of Hob Nobs all set up on the coffee table before it started. The previews for this episode showed a lot of Ewan McGregor's bike falling over, so I thought that we'd see a lot of muddy, sandy, rainy, sweating bike action...but there wasn't really any of that.

While I'm not suggesting that I'm going to give up on Long Way Down (as I've already purchased the soundtrack, official T-shirt and book), this past episode wasn't exactly gripping. It's hard for me to criticize the show as on the whole. It's not a bad TV special. Morally, it feels wrong to be like, "Ugh, in this episode all they did was meet starving children in Ethiopia. Where's the DANGER!?" However, I think the your average viewer would be rather bored at this point, and want to quit watching.

While the rest of you were praying and cleansing yourself of your sins at church last night, I was sitting at home, excitedly watching Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman's second installment of Long Way Down. While Mof was pretty underwhelmed with it last week, I have to say that I was thoroughly and completely whelmed for the entire hour. (And perhaps slightly overwhelmed when Ewan decided to do part of his video diary from the shower. Naked.)

The beginning of this episode shows the boys kissing their wives and families goodbye, heading out of London and the UK, where they will then ride through France and Italy and then catch a ferry to Tunisia and "step foot on African soil". Immediately you can sense how much pressure the entire Road Team is under to makes sure they hit the right mileage each day. But, despite the stress, they thankfully still have time to do things like video tape Charley farting with a lighter held up to his ass, and Ewan McGregor showering. NAKED.

Tonight the glorious ‘Company Man’ episode hits terrestrial TV in the UK, but over in the States ‘Heroes’ is faring poorly in its second season. The NBC show came in third in its Monday night 9pm time slot, behind ABC’s double of ‘Dancing with the Stars’ and new sitcom ‘Samantha Who?’ and CBS’s ‘Two and a Half Men’ and ‘Rules of Engagement.’ The show has sunk to its lowest viewing figures among its core audience of adults aged 18-49 and has caused many critics in America to speculate on a ‘sophomore slump.’

While this TV Scooper can appreciate the criticisms (I too have felt underwhelmed and frustrated by certain creative directions in season two), creator Tim Kring remains confident that this slump is a product of people watching online, or recording to watch later, a theory substantiated by similar drop-offs for other top shows such as Grey’s Anatomy and Ugly Betty. "People tend to look at last season and see things in it that were not in it," Kring told the LA Times. "We haven't deviated that much."

I’m not one for children’s TV on a Saturday morning any more (sadly those days have past), but up before midday I was last weekend and found myself watching TMi on BBC2. To the uninitiated, TMi is the current magazine show for kids, hosted by Caroline Flack and Pop Idol 2 runners up Sam Nixon and Mark Rhodes, and it was ickle Sam that caught my eye. I remembered his cutesy, spiky-haired performances on the talent show back in 2003, but now a few years later Sam is no longer a teenager and with his wispy facial hair and more muscular frame, he seemed to resemble part-time footballer Liverpool FC's Harry Kewell.

Note the messy, slicked back hair, the twinkly eyes and the broad foreheads. Sam might be a few years younger than Aussie Harry, as evidenced by the chubby cheeks, but the two definitely share more than a passing similarity, don't you think?

For those of you who might be a little blasé about Heroes (crazy fools) tomorrow night’s episode ‘Company Man’ is the one that will surely bring you back from the dark side and see the light. I understand that for many of you nay sayers, there has not always been enough action, that you want to know more about the mysterious Mr. Bennet and that you consider some characters such as Matt Parkman peripheral to the central story line. Worry no more, as ‘Company Man’ brings Claire’s mysterious father centre stage in a plot that takes us both past and present to reveal a man of unexpected emotional depth.

To say any more would be cruel, as this installment really is one of the highlights of the Heroes series, and so make sure your phone is off the hook, that you have a scary enough jack o’ lantern in the window to deter sugar-crazed trick or treaters and treat yourself to a master class in television.

Although I am enjoying The Tudors on BBC2, the Showtime period drama hasn’t quite lived up to my (possibly too high) expectations and media hype. This oh-so-slight disappointment meant that when watching the onscreen posturing of the impossibly pouty Jonathan Rhys Meyers as Henry VIII on Friday night, I became distracted by his background crony William Compton played by Kris Holden-Reid. This chum of the kings seemed to bear an uncanny resemble to falsetto warbler and hubby to Gwyneth Paltrow, Coldplay singer Chris Martin.

With their two pictures lined up, I am more convinced of the similarities: the beards, slightly messy hair and wide foreheads. Granted Chris Martin’s blue eyes are more boggly and scary than anything Holden-Reid could muster, while the actor is decked out in finery even Martin’s music royalties would struggle to finance – but the resemblance is there. Uncanny.