The must-watch small screen offerings to check out this December

If the thought of another Christmas movie fills you with dread here are some viewing options with no seasonal links that you may enjoy.

Nyad

The Netflix original movie Nyad stars Annette Bening as Diana Nyad, the long-distance swimmer who successfully swam from Havana, Cuba, to Key West, Florida, in 2013 at the age of 64. Inspirational, but real with acknowledgement of the sacrifices of the people around her, this film was a delight and I think will be a firm favourite with our Starts at Sixty readers. Overcoming ageist stereotypes, weather, lack of funds, jellyfish and 100 miles of open ocean Nyad is a celebration of determination and friendship. Jodie Foster is superb playing alongside Annette Bening. Watch this one.

Beckham

The recent Netflix documentary on footballer David Beckham and his wife Victoria, aka Posh Spice, was a complete surprise, in the best possible way. I thoroughly enjoyed the series I binged watched over two days. The blurb reads, “with never -before- seen footage this docuseries follows David Beckham’s meteoric rise from humble beginnings to global football stardom”. Ordinarily, I wouldn’t dream of watching a series about an English footballer and his pop star wife but some friends alerted me to it over breakfast one morning and I was hooked from the first of the four episodes.

I was surprised to learn of the ups and downs of Beckham’s football career and of the impact of the English fans’ response to a World Cup loss. The surprising love story was also news to me. David Beckham is a super talent and a knockabout guy from humble beginnings and I am still surprised at how endearing I found him to be. His wife has followed him across the world while he indulged in his passion and purpose of football. Watch for the cheeky line about what car Victoria’s Dad drove her to school in.

Painkiller

Painkiller is a fictionalised series that sheds light on the devastating impact of the opioid epidemic caused by the overprescription of addictive medications including Oxycontin. The series draws inspiration from real events and figures, including the influential article The Family That Built an Empire of Pain and other books on the opioid crisis.

Each episode has a family member of someone who lost their life to this epidemic, which really hits home, introducing their loved one and the episode as a startling reminder of the painful reality behind this story which explores the coming together of marketing, money, greed, and pharmaceuticals. A real eye-opener and a warning tale. I watched it on Netflix.

Hot Potato: The Story of The Wiggles

The true story of the Wiggles who sang and danced their way into the hearts of millions around the world and the most successful Australian entertainers ever. Once dubbed, “The Beatles for preschoolers”, this one-hour and 40-minute story takes you behind the scenes and explores the personal issues confronted by the group including health issues and loss.

I remember in the early 1990’s some Early Childhood colleagues and I invited four young musicians who were training as Early Childhood teachers to come along and perform at our Children’s Week function. They were called The Wiggles, but didn’t yet have skivvies just colours and our contact who was studying with them also informed us that they were in a band called the Cockroaches, or some of them anyway. I was trying to remember what we paid them but I do remember a tank of fuel was involved. It was great to relive those days with included footage of those very early concerts and all your favourites, or your children’s favourite Wiggles songs. Rock A Bye Bear was always my number one. It’s a great story and well worth a watch. I’m pretty sure you can’t watch it without singing.