The end of civilisation as we know it has been postponed. Again. The culprit this time is Great Expectations (BBC1, Sunday).

Advance publicity had God-fearing people and literary purists bracing themselves for Steven Knight’s take on Dickens’ tale. With the creator of Peaky Blinders in charge who knew what to expect.

Would Miss Havisham’s bonnet turn out to have a razor blade hidden in its brim? We knew Pip was unlikely to have a substance abuse problem because Olivia Colman’s Miss H had bagged that. There was even talk of anti-colonial rants, class war and endless effing and jeffing.

Well, what a disappointment. It was a whole 29 minutes before young Pip, late for church on Christmas Day, came out with “s***!”. After his bully of a sister mentioned the pork pie the lad had recently purloined, he let rip again with “s***, s***, s***!”

READ MORE: The Roys are back and raring for a battle royale

Apart from an impressive opening scene and some novel casting (Matt “Toast of London” Berry as Mr Pumblechook: nice) it was business as usual. Scenes familiar from every other adaptation, now officially too many to count, were played out. The haunting Kent marshes, Magwitch seizing Pip, the boy meeting Miss Havisham … all there. The episode had a chance to redeem itself with the first glimpse of Miss H, but even then, Colman’s jilted bride paled in comparison to Gillian Anderson’s 2011 model.

I’ll keep the faith for episode two because it’s Knight, but for now the pre-screening hoo-ha looks like a way of diverting viewers’ attention from the sameness of the new version (and the big bucks spent on it).

If it was colourful language you were after the only show in town was Succession (Sky Atlantic/Now, Monday), back for a fourth and final series. Jesse Armstrong’s savagely funny portrait of media mogul Logan Roy (Brian Cox) and his useless offspring remains a masterclass in characterisation and dialogue. It’s the only show I know that people admit to watching twice, or more, just to make sure they haven’t missed a moment.

Cox’s Logan remains king of his castle, but watch out for slithering Tom (Matthew Macfadyen playing a blinder). Tom’s dissection of Greg’s date was cruel but funny and so spot on (don’t know about you, but I will never bring a large handbag to a party again).

Six Four (STV Player, Thursday) was not in the same league as Succession - few productions are - but this chewy conspiracy thriller had a lot going for it, not least its Glasgow setting. London and Edinburgh had look-ins, but Glasgow dominated. As many a film crew has found, it doesn’t take too much to make the dear green place resemble a Manhattan-like concrete jungle, and Six Four duly obliged.

READ MORE: Kevin McKidd lifts lid on new crime drama

Another bonus was a convincingly crumpled Kevin McKidd playing a detective constable whose daughter had gone missing. While that was going on another missing person case, this one dating back 16 years, reared its head and threatened ramifications close to home.

Both Six Four and Great Expectations fell victim to the new fashion for gloominess. I’m all for atmosphere and a touch of the gothic (in the case of Great Expectations), or a dash of noir (Six Four), but some scenes looked as if they had been shot in the belly of a whale. Put a brighter bulb in the big light people, otherwise dinginess will be taking over from mumbling as viewers’ pet peeve.

A fond farewell this week to Paul O’Grady, whose For the Love of Dogs was always welcome on this page. What would O’Grady have made of The Dog Academy (Channel 4, Thursday)? Made by the same people behind The Dog House, the new show looked at problems that can happen once a dog has entered the home (and heart).

Bear the cockapoo was the apple of his “dad” Paul’s eye, but his aggressive behaviour was giving everyone else the right pip, particularly his wife Louise. Teeth were involved which is always bad news. Things had come to such a pass that the couple’s marriage was on the line.

As is usually the case it was a case of cherchez les owners for the root of the problems. Bear went off with a trainer while Paul and Louise sat on a couch and poured their hearts out to another of the Academy’s staff. As did the owner of Gina, a chihuahua/Tasmanian devil cross who had a huge problem being around other dogs.

READ MORE: Tributes pour in for Paul O'Grady

The humans had their say, and the dogs, via the therapist, explained what might be going on between canine ears. It was like Couples Therapy, with Dr Orna’s dog chipping in.

With expert behavioural advice and training everything turned out okay. Between this programme and good old reliable Dogs Behaving (Very) Badly on Channel 5, the demand for training is proving as insatiable as a Lab’s appetite. O’Grady, though fond of a little anarchy, would have approved of telly doing its bit to help.