TELEVISION BRIEFING / Battles of the sexes

Tonight's schedules are on the receiving end of domestic violence. Public Eye (8pm BBC2) has a report on men abusing women, while SHORT STORIES (8.30pm C4) offers 'Pulling the Punches', a moving film by Jonathan Barker about a man who undergoes counselling after beating up his girlfriend. The attack happened when Michael had drunk a crate of beer; his victim, Bernice, received a broken nose, cuts and bruises. Having been convicted of GBH and rejected by his partner, he registered with the Everyman Centre in Brixton which aims to rid men of violent impulses. The counsellor, Luke Daniels, holds Michael's hand and encourages him to confront his feelings about his violent father. Unsurprisingly, it all ends in tears. Michael has now given up drink and started to read books with titles like Loving Each Other, but Bernice is not convinced that this leopard can change his spots.

THE FACE OF TUTANKHAMUN (9pm BBC2) finally gets to the juicy bit: The Curse. Lord Carnarvon, who financed the expedition, died a matter of weeks after leading the party into the tomb. This fuelled speculation about 'The Curse of the Pharoahs', an ever-fascinating myth which is examined in this episode. Were the archaeologists cursed or was the air in the tomb just very unhealthy?

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