TV highlights 18/07/2012

Victoria Pendleton: Cycling's Golden Girl 9pm, BBC1 If you're up to the eyeballs in insipid rousing montages of "our Olympic hopefuls", this fascinating documentary could be the perfect antidote. Telling the story of the gold-winning track cyclist's career trajectory, it's a brutally honest psychological study of the lives of athletes and the mentality required to succeed. Pendleton is refreshingly frank when discussing her fear of letting people down and the emptiness she felt on winning gold in Beijing. London 2012 is seen by many as her swansong. She's hoping to go out with a splash. Clare Considine Cherry Healey: How To Get A Life 9pm, BBC3 Cherry meets hard-working and hard-partying people to find out "what price we pay for working and playing so hard". She presents the opening segment with her toddler hitting her on the head to illustrate the difficulty of a work/life balance. "Mummy, I don't want you to talk," says the tot, wisely. Cherry follows a young City trader on his typical 20-hour day. "I can pretend I'm in Sex And The City," says Cherry, as the caffeinated City boy stares bleakly at his Blackberry. Then she tries being a nightclub hostess. Inevitably for a BBC3 film of this type, she is "persuaded" to try podium dancing in her underwear for no obvious reason. What a crock. Julia Raeside Frontline: The Real CSI 9pm, PBS The popularity of the CSI franchise has reinforced the notion of the veracity of forensic procedures in modern detective work. However, as this documentary reveals, there is no actual scientific basis for many of the techniques the FBI long assumed to be infallible – fingerprint testing, for example. There is no national standard for forensic science, which is subjective and variable in its outcomes, and to set up as a "forensic scientist" in the US requires only a certificate acquired online. Result: innocents banged up, guilty walk free. David Stubbs Pet Shop Boys: Live At The O2 2009 10pm, Sky Arts 1 Concert film of the performance (gig doesn't quite cover it) the Petties gave at the O2 Arena as part of their Pandemonium Tour. Even judged by their high standards, it's a cracker. Amid brilliant choreography, Neil and (a jigging) Chris lead the crowd through a set of classics and savvy cover versions. Too many highlights to mention: how about Closer To Heaven segueing into Left To My Own Devices, and a barnstorming Always On My Mind? Ali Catterall The Wrestlers: Fighting With My Family 10pm, Channel 4 The Knight family are the pre-eminent dynasty in British wrestling, but that's far from a glamorous position to be in. Dad Ricky runs the "World Association of Wrestling" from the family's council house in Norwich, the reality of which is promoting sparsely attended events in Great Yarmouth. The money isn't in UK holiday resorts but in America, where Ricky hopes son Zak and daughter Britani can become WWE superstars. A good film about the subculture, but it's unpleasant to see parents so keen to participate in the commodification of their own kids. John Robinson Great British Islam 11.15pm, BBC1 Ramadan is almost upon us, a cue for this documentary, which tells the story of how three Englishmen embraced Islam. Nothing too remarkable there, except each converted at a time when being a Muslim was seen as akin to being a traitor to your own country. The documentary follows surviving relatives on journeys to find out more about the achievements and the legacy of their forebears. Jonathan Wright