Faraday receives a lesson in human cunning from Thomas Newton in his quest to outwit the CIA.

With apologies to Forrest Gump: ‘The Man Who Fell To Earth is like a bumper tub of Quality Street. You never know what you’re going to get, but the orange creams are a bit sickly, and there’s always a risk that you might get a toffee which could play havoc with your fillings.’

Luckily, episode 7 is one of the purple Hazelnut Caramels which offer a pleasing combination of flavours and textures with something substantial at its core.

After the lurching inconsistencies of the last few weeks, we are back on firmer territory, closer to a cat and mouse tech thriller, with Faraday and Justin looking for ways to thwart maverick CIA agent Spencer Clay. The script is better structured than we have come to expect, the story evenly balanced between some intriguing reveals about Clay’s true identity, and a rip-roaring and extremely well written set piece with Ejiofor and Bill Nighy as Thomas Newton, further unlocking his apprentice’s talents.

I am baffled by the patchy nature of this show. Lumet and Kurtzman are credited to every script, but I find it hard to believe that they don’t seem to be able to tell the difference between their many bum notes, and the occasional resonant and perfectly pitched high ‘c’.

An example. Last week I cringed as the episode waxed lyrical about humankind’s ability to invent and improvise as if this was in any way profound. This week it explores humankind’s addiction to believing in things that either aren’t true or simply can’t be proved. I’d say that the latter is actually important and interesting, especially in an era of fundamentalism and fake news, whereas the former is banal and simplistic. They don’t belong in the same series.

Verdict: Despite its many flaws I feel well disposed towards The Man Who Fell to Earth. Unlike Station Eleven which was so deathly slow and indulgent I could feel my life draining away as I resisted the temptation to fast-forward, The Man Who Fell to Earth is careering all over the place but it is never boring, and I’m still looking forward to checking in every week. Perhaps next time I’ll get the coconut one, which is my favourite. 8/10

Martin Jameson