Children in Need 2018 (BBC1, 7.30pm)

YOU know that Christmas isn’t too far away when Children in Need comes around again. The first part of the telethon ends at 10pm, before which Tess Daly and Ade Adepitan kick off the entertainment with a performance from a hit West End musical and a song from the Children’s Choir, featuring singers from across the UK in a live link-up. Graham Norton and Mel Giedroyc then take over, presenting more fun, fundraising and surprise guests, as well as a report about the Rickshaw Challenge team as it crosses the finish line in Salford and a Strictly Come Dancing special. The programme returns at 10.40pm with Marvin and Rochelle Humes joined by new co-host Rob Beckett for almost three further hours of entertainment.

Unreported World (C4, 7.30pm)

MARCEL Theroux is granted rare access to North Korea, witnessing the first Mass Games to be held in five years, in which 100,000 citizens sing for the fatherland in celebration of the country’s 70th anniversary. He tours Pyongyang’s metro system, visits a trade fair and a collective farm, and gets an officially sanctioned haircut. However, as he observes a changing country with an emerging soft capitalism, Theroux is constantly reminded of the things his official minder Mr Ri isn’t showing them, such as the numerous political prisoners and the one in five children stunted by a lack of food.

100 Years of the RAF (C5, 8pm)

ON April 1, 1918, the Royal Air Force was born. It is now the oldest independent air force in the world and at the time of its formation, the largest. In this documentary, Martyn Lewis narrates the RAF’s history. It features previously unseen historical footage of both world wars.

Alone at Home (C4, 8pm)

ALISON and husband Andrew have three children. Their youngest two, 12-year-old Lola and 10-year-old Travis, often argue, leaving Alison “at her wit’s end”. Lola wants to prove that she is more capable than her parents believe is the case. Their eldest child, 15-year-old Charlie, has Down’s syndrome, although Alison feels people underestimate him and hopes four days “home alone” under arm’s-length supervision will see him become more independent and confident.