BRITBOX, AMAZON, DISNEY+ & NETFLIX
One Night
MyAnna Buring, a Swedish actress (The Witcher and Downton Abbey), stars in a Norwegian romcom about a blind date. The series was filmed twice: once in Norwegian and Swedish, and once in English. The gimmick is that it plays in real time.
The ten half-hour episodes cover the five-hour encounter between waitress Elizabeth (Buring) and Jonas (Gisli Orn Gardarsson), the guy her friend has persuaded her to meet – much against her better judgment – in a bar in Oslo.
MyAnna Buring, a Swedish actress, stars in an unusual Norwegian romantic comedy about a blind date.
Elizabeth has been single for two years, insists she prefers being on her own and is very nervous about the date – possibly with good reason. The evening begins excruciatingly awkwardly and there’s not a lot of rom or com at first, but then events take a surprising turn. BritBox, starting Thursday
Maradona: Blessed Dream
Nicolás Goldschmidt stars in this docudrama charting the life of Diego Armando Maradona (also featuring Juan Cruz Romero as the young player). He was an Argentine boy with a dream of greatness. He made his mark in football and earned a place in history.
Nicolás Goldschmidt stars in this docudrama charting the life of Diego Armando Maradona (also featuring Juan Cruz Romero, above, as the young player)
The series shows how he tried drugs and was scrutinized by the public, but he remained true to his principles regardless of the consequences. Amazon, starting Friday
Luce
Luce Edgar (Kelvin Henry Jr), a young black man who was born in war-torn Eritrea at seven years of age, was adopted by white American parents. He is a star student and athlete.
Everyone loves him. Or almost everyone. One of his teachers (Octavia Scott) tells his parents (Naomi Watts, Tim Roth) about a troubling essay he wrote advocating violence.
Is she pursuing a vendetta against him in some way? Or is the real Luce quite different from the image he gives the world? Intriguing psychological drama that doesn’t offer pat answers. Netflix, available now
Tyrant
There is a lot of political drama surrounding Abuddin, the ruling family of a fictional, turbulent Middle East country. As politicians, generals, and clerics vie for power, there is intrigue as well as backstabbing. The country transitions from despotism into democracy. Disney+, series 1 – 3 available from Wednesday
Swagger
Swagger is described as being similar to Friday Night Lights, but it’s about basketball and not American football. Jace Carson (Isaiah Hill), a schoolboy, is a brilliant young basketball player.
His mother Jenna (Shinelle Azoroh) is determined he’s going to be a pro. Jace is not without his challenges. Apple TV+, starting Friday
The Men Who Sold World Cup
A whistleblower from the bid team, ex-FIFA president Sepp Blatter, his former press chief, Jürgen Klinsmann and Landon Donovan are among those offering their views on allegations of corruption around Qatar’s successful attempt to land the 2022 World Cup. Discovery+, now
Classic Hammer Horror Collection
They include Scars Of Dracula – bat blood drips on to his ashes and Dracula (Christopher Lee, above) rises again; and, best of the lot, The Reptile – strange goings-on in Cornwall
Despite the ‘classic’ label, most here are from the second rank of the horror studio’s creations. That’s not to say they’re not great fun. They include Doctor Jekyll And Sister Hyde – a sex-change from the Robert Louis Stevenson novel for the good doctor’s evil alter ego; Scars Of Dracula – bat blood drips on to his ashes and Dracula (Christopher Lee) rises again; and, best of the lot, The Reptile – strange goings-on in Cornwall. BritBox, starting Monday
Nobody
Better Call Saul’s Bob Odenkirk plays Hutch Mansell, an apparently mild-mannered, slightly downtrodden husband and father with a pretty boring job – basically, a nobody.
When his home is burgled and he backs away from confrontation, he’s confirmed as timid and wimpish. His son is disappointed and his wife contemptuous. But events afterwards show us that there might be a lot more to Hutch than he’s been letting on.
Better Call Saul’s Bob Odenkirk (above) plays Hutch Mansell, an apparently mild-mannered, slightly downtrodden husband and father with a pretty boring job – basically, a nobody
This is an absurd, violent yet very entertaining action caper which is held together by Odenkirk’s charismatic performance. Odenkirk also has some great one-liners. You can get an idea of what you can expect from Derek Kolstad, the screenwriter behind John Wick. Sky Store is now available
TOP TEN HOTTEST DRAMAS TO WATCH NOW ON AMAZON
1. Justified
Based on Elmore Leonard’s stories about Raylan Givens. Timothy Olyphant portrays the unconventional lawman fighting crime, Harlan County in Kentucky.
2. Little Fires All Around
Reese Witherspoon and Kerry Washington star as two mothers from different social classes who find themselves in conflict when their lives become intertwined in an affluent suburb.
3. Homecoming
Creepy psychological thriller about memory manipulation and a dodgy ‘wellness’ company, the Geist Group. Series one stars Julia Roberts, series two stars Janelle Monáe.
4. Mad Men
One of the most beloved TV series. A decade of American social history – from 1960 to 1970 – is refracted through the prism of the tempestuous lives and loves of a group of Madison Avenue ad agency workers.
Rachel Brosnahan (above), plays a Jewish housewife living in New York in 1950s New York
5. The Marvelous Mrs Maisel
Rachel Brosnahan plays the role of a Jewish woman living in New York in 1950s trying to make it in comedy.
6. The Boys
There’s high-octane drama when a bunch of rough-and-ready vigilantes set out to take down a gang of corrupt superheroes and the corporation that runs them.
7. The Expanse
Wonderful sci-fi series set hundreds years in the future when human colonization of the solar system has occurred. But tensions are increasing between opposing factions on Earth and Mars.
The sixth and final series will be released in December.
8. Outlander
Popular period drama with a touch of fantasy. Claire (Caitriona balfe) is a 20th Century nurse who finds herself in 18th Century Scotland and falls in love with Jamie (Sam Heughan).
9. Vikings
Bloody story about Ragnar Lóthbrok, a farmer who is at the beginning of the show but becomes a hero.
10. Elementary
Jonny Lee Miller plays Sherlock Holmes, a modern take on Conan Doyle’s character. The play is set in New York. Lucy Liu plays Dr Joan Watson, his companion.
UKTV PLAY, BBC iPLAYER & ALL4
The Two Ronnies
Corbett and Barker were, arguably, the nation’s favourite comedy double act, and series three and four, from 1974/75, which can now be enjoyed again on demand, saw the masters of spoof at their peak.
Here you’ll find hapless detectives Charley Farley and Piggy Malone in the serial Death Can Be Fatal, parodies of Upstairs, Downstairs, Barker’s wonderful Minister of Information sketch, dancing from Pan’s People, Corbett’s classic armchair soliloquys and, of course, their signature parody, the News.
Corbett and Barker (above) were, arguably, the nation’s favourite comedy double act, and series three and four, from 1974/75, saw the masters of spoof at their peak
It’s no coincidence that their much-loved payoff ‘… and it’s goodnight from him’ is today every bit as iconic as News At Ten’s ‘… and finally’. UKTV Play, available now
Fever pitch: The Rise Of The Premier League
Before the Premier League was created in 1992, football wasn’t glamorous. So what happened? This fascinating documentary, consisting of four parts, reveals the pivotal moment was Italia 90. England reached the semi finals and media moguls began to take notice.
We hear from the Beckhams, the Cantonas, the Shearers… and Vinnie Jones. BBC iPlayer, available now
Help/National Treasure
Jack Thorne has a double bill. Jodie Comer plays a caregiver who is trying to survive the pandemic in Help, which was recently shown. National Treasure, a 2016 quiz-show host who is accused of rape, stars Robbie Coltrane. All4, available now
Eighth Grade
Bo Burnham’s critically acclaimed directing debut follows Kayla (Elsie Fisher, above), an introverted teenager trying to navigate the final week of her eighth-grade year, which has been little short of a disaster, before starting high school.
Bo Burnham’s critically acclaimed directing debut follows Kayla (Elsie Fisher, above), an introverted teenager trying to navigate the final week of her eighth-grade year
She turns to YouTube to express herself in advice blogs in which she pretends to have it all together – but the reality is much different. BBC iPlayer, starting Sunday
Small Island
Two-part, Bafta-nominated adaptation of Andrea Levy’s novel about Jamaicans and Londoners whose lives intertwine during the Second World War with a great cast, including Naomie Harris, Ashley Walters and Ruth Wilson.
Adaptation of Andrea Levy’s novel about Jamaicans and Londoners whose lives intertwine with a great cast, including Naomie Harris, Ashley Walters and Ruth Wilson (above)
Hortense (Harris), a teacher who wants to travel to England, and Queenie Wilson (Wilson), a woman who has moved from a Yorkshire farm to London. UKTV Play, Sunday
Inside The Bat Cave
This extraordinary film gives a glimpse into one of the most endangered animals in the world. The film captures the secret life of a greater horseshoe bat colony, including the birth of a new generation. It is filmed using cutting-edge technology. BBC iPlayer until Tuesday
Peter Sellers: A state of comic ecstasy
Peter Sellers, the mercurial Peter Sellers, often claimed he was a nobody, an emptyshell, able to take on any role but himself. Unless, of course, he was playing up on set with violent tantrums, playing around with the world’s most beautiful women (Sophia Loren, Britt Ekland) or brilliantly playing the fool in The Goon Show.
Peter Sellers said that he was never a nobody. Unless he was playing up on set while playing around with the world’s most beautiful women (Sophia Loren, Britt Ekland, above, with Sellers)
Britt, his exwife, and Victoria, his daughters, give a full assessment of his legacy. BBC iPlayer, Tuesday