The farcical British comedy “The Worst Week of My Life” (8:40 p.m., BBC America) returns for a second seven-episode season. Last year’s “Worst” counted down the seven days preceding Howard (Ben Miller) and Mel’s (Sarah Alexander) wedding.

During the course of that disastrous week, the well-intentioned but unlucky Howard lost the engagement ring (a precious family heirloom), accidentally groped his future mother-in-law, sent Mel’s grandmother to the hospital and was accused of fathering the child of a deranged co-worker. Oh, and he also accidentally threw Binky, Mel’s family dog, into a cement mixer.

Fans of “Meet the Parents” and the new ABC series “Big Day” definitely should check this out. Miller plays the luckless Howard with a charming diffidence that reminded me of Hugh Grant in his best roles. Howard’s awkward actions and his reactions to absurd and near-tragic situations are amplified by the extremely passive-aggressive British reserve exhibited by almost every other character. This stands in stark contrast to ABC’s “Big Day,” a show peopled by zany extroverts.

In the new season’s “Worst,” Howard and Mel anticipate the birth of their first child during an overscheduled week that involves a funeral, a moving day and an unexpected downsizing at Howard’s firm. Not to give too much away here, but Howard is recruited to act as a last-minute pallbearer. The fact that you can anticipate the slapstick disaster does not make it any less cringe-worthy or amusing.

¢ Who wouldn’t want food fit for a queen? “Secrets of the Royal Kitchen” (8 p.m., WE) offers interviews with the royal chefs who have cooked for Britain’s Queen Elizabeth for state dinners and midnight snacks, at Buckingham Palace and on the Royal Yacht.

“Kitchen” also recalls the gastronomic aspects of the Queen’s many diplomatic tours. Over the decades she has been asked to eat some exotic stuff, including a Central American delicacy that closely resembled a common rodent. London’s tabloid press had a field day with that repast. It’s not every day you get to run the headline “Queen Eats a Rat!”

¢ Ashley Judd and Salma Hayek travel through Central America in the one-hour documentary “Ashley Judd and YouthAids: Confronting the Pandemic” (7 p.m., TLC), showcasing ways people have changed behavior that puts them at risk of contracting HIV.

Other World AIDS-day programming includes “Positively Naked” (6 p.m., Cinemax), a chronicle of the making of a photograph of 100 HIV-positive people. Showtime will air the 2003 “Beat the Drum” (7 p.m., Showtime), about a Zulu boy whose village has been decimated by the disease.

Tonight’s other highlights

¢ American skaters take on international competition on “Ice Wars 2006: USA vs. The World” (7 p.m., CBS).

¢ Joanne Woodward won an Oscar for her turn in the 1957 drama “The Three Faces of Eve” (7 p.m., Fox Movie Channel).

¢ Ed and Danny face a ticking clock on a two-hour “Las Vegas” (8 p.m., NBC).

¢ An art heist may be an insurance scam on “Numb3rs” (9 p.m., CBS).