Stargazing Live BBC2, 8pm

FEW would realise it but Dara O Briain is secretly a frustrated astronomer. Though he trained as a physicist, he's been living with an unopened telescope in his attic for as long as he can remember.

And that, these days, is enough to qualify a person to present a programme on the subject. Forget that Patrick Moore bloke, Dara's the man if it's space that lights your candle.

To be fair, he is at least joined by Professor Brian Cox, pictured above right, who takes him on a crash course of the skies, showing him how to spot and take pictures of celestial marvels as the comedian looks to bring the wonders of the stars into our living rooms.

From their base at the Lovell Telescope at the University of Manchester, Dara and Brian take viewers on a whistle-stop tour across the galaxy as they identify three of January's unusual astronomical events – a partial solar eclipse, the Quadrantids Meteor Shower and Jupiter aligning with Uranus.

Guest Jonathan Ross, meanwhile, finds anyone can be an astronomer as he's asked to prove he can navigate the night skies with just a pencil, paper and a humble pair of binoculars.

Astronomer Mark Thomson is also on hand to offer viewers tips on how to navigate their way across the darkness, while Liz Bonnin explains how the stars affect people even during the daytime.