From David Attenborough\u2019s latest maritime marvel, to David Tennant starring in phone-hacking drama series The Hack, to the arrival of Steven Knight\u2019s bombastic series House of Guinness, here\u2019s what to look forward to, and catch up on, this week.<\/p>\n
What\u2019s on TV tonight?<\/h2>\n
Deep Ocean: Kingdom of the Coelacanth<\/strong> Now, cameras follow a team of academics and experts on high-tech submersibles as they explore the deep sea near the island of Sulawesi in Indonesia in search of living coelacanths. The mini-submarines creep along the ocean floor searching out these unusual creatures, as scientists explain how their bony fins \u2013 which no other fish have \u2013 propel them in a way reminiscent of the way limbs work. Experts speculate that from coelacanths evolved animals with arms and legs, eventually crawling out of the sea and evolving into terrestrial life. It\u2019s a blue-chip project about a gripping subject \u2013 and it\u2019s got the Attenborough seal of approval.<\/p>\n b’<\/p>\n ‘<\/p>\n Tulsa King<\/strong> Freddie Flintoff\u2019s Field of Dreams: Ultimate Test<\/strong> Rob and Rylan\u2019s Passage to India<\/strong> Coldwater<\/strong> The Covid Contracts: Follow the Money<\/strong> Chris van Tulleken (c) explores the current risk of another pandemic – BBC<\/p>\n Disease X: Hunting the Pandemic<\/strong> After considering Japanese encephalitis and Nipah \u2013 the impact of which leaves even van Tulleken visibly shaken \u2013 H5N1, otherwise known as bird flu, is identified as a leading contender. While not yet transferring to humans to any effect, despite suspected infections of cow\u2019s milk in the United States, it is ripe with possibility for mutation. The most arresting sequence comes as three scenarios for a new pandemic are tested, depending on the pathogen\u2019s fatality levels. The results are sobering if not downright terrifying, but it\u2019s further evidence that knowledge is power, science is worth following, and experts remain an essential commodity.<\/p>\n b’<\/p>\n ‘<\/p>\n British Open Snooker<\/strong> Panorama: Gaza \u2013 Dying for Food<\/strong> The Guest<\/strong> Ancient Autopsy<\/strong> Anthony Wall Remembers\u2026 Arena<\/strong> Jon Richardson joins the cast of Waterloo Road – BBC<\/p>\n Waterloo Road<\/strong> It\u2019s a promising set-up for another incident-packed series, though less promising is Waterloo Road\u2019s new double-tap format, which sees a second episode air after the News, at 10.40pm. An acknowledgement that younger fans are far likelier to watch on iPlayer (where the series is available as boxset from 6am today).<\/p>\n b’<\/p>\n ‘<\/p>\n Crime Scene Zero<\/strong> Michael Portillo\u2019s 200 Years of the Railways<\/strong> The Great British Bake Off<\/strong> Michael Palin in Venezuela<\/strong> Romesh: Can\u2019t Knock the Hustle<\/strong> David Tennant stars as journalist Nick Davies – ITV<\/p>\n The Hack<\/strong> This tremendous seven-part drama tells a more complex story, however. It follows tenacious Guardian journalist Nick Davies, played by David Tennant, as he investigates a tip-off about invasions of privacy on Fleet Street. There are shades of Mr Bates Vs The Post Office<\/a> in how deftly it dramatises an ostensibly dry topic. Not to mention Toby Jones\u2019s appearance as Davies\u2019s editor, Alan Rusbridger.<\/p>\n But The Hack, written by Adolescence<\/a>\u2019s Jack Thorne<\/a>, is far more stylistic affair. The irreverent Davies, for instance, often breaks the fourth wall to talk us through the details, his narration chopping and changing like rewritten copy. This playfulness can tip into indulgence (such as a cameo-laden gag about anonymous sources), but it is rare to watch a drama so alive with ideas and anger. As tonight\u2019s episode argues, this is not just an inside baseball story about the press, but a scandal extending into police corruption, government judgment and even murder.<\/p>\n b’<\/p>\n ‘<\/p>\n Slow Horses<\/strong> Hotel Costiera<\/strong> Sneaker Wars: Adidas v Puma<\/strong> Shakespeare and Hathaway: Private Investigators<\/strong> The Shadow Scholars: Fake Essay Scandal<\/strong> Anthony Boyle and Louis Partridge star as the heirs to the Guinness brewery – Netflix<\/p>\n House of Guinness<\/strong> Thus, the four siblings must resolve their own differences: Anthony Boyle is contained Arthur to Louis Partridge\u2019s ambitious Edward; desperate, drunk Benjamin Jr (Fionn O\u2019Shea) is the loose cannon, while Anne\u2019s (Emily Fairn) cautious wisdom could yet be derailed by a liaison with James Norton\u2019s family enforcer. As you\u2019d expect from a Knight series, hardscrabble Dublin is persuasively realised and its roaring swagger and confidence is powered by Kneecap, Fontaines DC and other leading lights of modern Celtic music. Loads of style, but a fair bit of substance too.<\/p>\n b’<\/p>\n
BBC One\/iPlayer, 8.10pm
It\u2019s hard to believe that in less than a year, David Attenborough will turn 100, yet is still regularly lending his familiar and authoritative narration to projects like this fascinating one-off documentary. It feels an important film that is shedding light on a mysterious fish thought to be the missing link between fish and all land-living backboned animals, including humans. The coelacanth (pronounced seal-uh-canth) is a fish whose fossilised skeletons have been found in rocks that are 400 million years old. It was believed that coelacanths had been wiped out with the dinosaurs until, in 1938, a living one was found.<\/p>\n<\/span><\/div>\n
Paramount+
The third series of this Sylvester Stallone vehicle<\/a> reveals who abducted Dwight \u201cThe General\u201d Manfredi (Stallone) and what they want, which leaves the mobster with a dilemma. He breaks ties with his girlfriend (Dana Delany) and considers a new venture, all with the slow-moving swagger and wisecracks we expect of Stallone.<\/p>\n
BBC One, 8.15pm; all episodes are already available on iPlayer
Flintoff hits a sticky wicket in the penultimate episode of his engaging series, when low turnouts at Manchester and Liverpool threaten the viability of the new clubs. The girls\u2019 team is overwhelmed by their first opponents, private school pupils with top-notch facilities. The show benefits hugely from Flintoff\u2019s charisma and heart.<\/p>\n
BBC One, 9pm; all episodes are already available on iPlayer
Rob Rinder and Rylan Clark\u2019s odyssey continues with a trip to Rajasthan, where the pair are dazzled by castles and jewels, including some explicit statuettes. The travelogue comes alive thanks to the pair\u2019s offbeat banter, with Clark divulging his unusual habits and the men having poignant chats about love.<\/p>\n
ITV, 9pm; all episodes are already available on ITVX
Tonight\u2019s third episode of this unsettling thriller sees Tommy (Ewen Bremner) and Rebecca\u2019s (Eve Myles) son Cameron disappear, and their reaction sheds new light on secrets in the creepy Christian couple\u2019s relationship. Tommy continues to reclaim his debt from John (Andrew Lincoln), pushing the latter into more bad decisions. An engaging if preposterous suburban thriller.<\/p>\n
ITV\/ITVX, 10.15pm\u00a0
A documentary to make your blood boil; it takes a critical look at the Johnson government\u2019s \u201cVIP lane\u201d created during the pandemic to award contracts for PPE and Covid tests. It alleges that many contractors recommended by party members made a killing during Covid, despite selling substandard products, and how that wastage has left Brits with an onerous tax burden. VP<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nWhat\u2019s on TV this week?<\/h2>\n
\nMonday 22 September<\/span><\/h2>\n
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BBC Two\/iPlayer, 9pm
The consistently alarming content of this hour-long Horizon documentary is to some extent mitigated by the involvement of Dr Chris van Tulleken<\/a>, a reassuring and sensible presence throughout his investigation into the next pandemic \u2013 something considered more or less inevitable by WHO virologists. It could, he explains, be a variant on a known virus or something entirely new, something more or less harmless to humans, or something lethal. Fortunately, there are experts monitoring, analysing and preparing, and van Tulleken travels to Geneva, Malaysia and Bangladesh to watch their work.<\/p>\n<\/span><\/div>\n
ITV4\/ITVX, 12.45pm & 6.45pm
Mark Selby will begin the defence of his title in a 32-strong field against rank outsider David Grace, while Judd Trump, Ronnie O\u2019Sullivan and world champion Zhao Xintong will also be in action today. Coverage continues across the week.<\/p>\n
BBC One\/iPlayer, 8pm; NI, 8.30pm; Scot, 11.40pm
Jeremy Bowen reports on the food shortages now affecting millions of displaced Palestinians as Israel intensifies its military campaign, the motives and competence of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation are called into question and several nations, the UK among them, prepare to recognise a Palestinian state at the United Nations.<\/p>\n
BBC One\/iPlayer, 9pm
This enjoyably ludicrous thriller comes to a suitably intense climax, as Ria (Gabrielle Creevy) has to dodge the police and the increasingly deranged Fran (Eve Myles) in the hunt for evidence to clear her name.<\/p>\n
More4, 9pm
Professor Susannah Lipscomb begins her ambitious four-part survey of famous historical deaths with Cleopatra, considering whether her demise came about from a snake bite. Forensic pathologist Dr Richard Shepherd is on hand to apply some modern techniques to a mystery enduring for millennia in a solid if low-key affair.<\/p>\n
BBC Four\/iPlayer, 10pm
With Alan Yentob<\/a> gone, Anthony Wall is the last remaining custodian of Arena\u2019s glory years, when the style of the arts strand was as idiosyncratic as its subject matter. The series editor here introduces three classics from the archives as proof: a consideration of the legacy of Paul Anka\u2019s My Way at 10.15pm, a profile of William Golding at 10.50pm, and a piece on the cultural significance of the banana at 12.20am. GT<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nTuesday 23 September<\/span><\/h2>\n
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BBC One, 9pm & 10.40pm; all episodes will be available on iPlayer
The arrival of new headteacher Dame Stella Drake (Lindsey Coulson) at the beginning, and the return of ex-head Mr Rimmer (Jason Merrells) at the end, were two of the most successful developments last series. So it is to major new characters that the long-running schoolroom drama looks again, as it returns for a 16th run. The star appointment is comedian Jon Richardson \u2013 familiar from years as a team captain on Channel 4\u2019s 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown \u2013 who comes on board as the school\u2019s charismatic new media studies teacher, Darius Donovan, and quickly starts shaking things up in the staffroom. Just as important, though, are newcomers Fintan Buckard and Savannah Kunyo, who play Ben and Hope Drake, Dame Stella\u2019s entertainingly spirited grandchildren, whom she\u2019s taken in since their mother (an occasionally-appearing Christine Bottomley) suffered a breakdown.<\/p>\n<\/span><\/div>\n
Netflix
A South Korean variation on the murder-mystery weekend. In a unique twist, every player takes on the roles of both suspect and detective, engaging in mind games, misdirection and battles of deduction to outsmart the competition and uncover the truth about who\u2019s guilty. A bit shouty, but fun.<\/p>\n
BBC Two\/iPlayer, 8pm
The pastel-hued railway enthusiast begins the concluding part of his bicentennial tribute in Derby, joining the 40,000-strong crowd admiring the largest-ever gathering of historic locomotives, before heading to Manchester to step back in time on the world\u2019s first intercity line.<\/p>\n
Channel 4, 8pm
A first-ever \u201cback to school\u201d themed week finds the bakers put to the test by flapjacks, a school-cake Technical with a catch, and a school-fete Showstopper overflowing with nostalgic tuck-shop treats.<\/p>\n
Channel 5, 9pm
From enjoying a deserted idyllic beach resort to being detained by heavily armed government agents, our most venerable TV traveller (and pioneering comedian; his response to an encounter with an anaconda: \u201cAre there any pythons here?\u201d) continues his tour, gently highlighting the extreme contradictions of a country that\u2019s breathtakingly beautiful yet ruled by a ruthless autocrat.<\/p>\n
Sky Max\/NOW, 10pm
In the first of four shows \u2013 part stand-up, part comedy travelogue \u2013 Romesh Ranganathan<\/a> performs his Hustle stand-up tour<\/a> gig in full at the O2 in London, before heading off to India, the US, South Korea and Canada to debunk all the claims he made in it (but failed to fact-check) about the modern obsession with work, self-improvement and success. GO<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nWednesday 24 September<\/span><\/h2>\n
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ITV1, 9pm; all episodes will be available on ITVX
You are likely familiar with the broad strokes of the phone-hacking scandal. The revelations that News of the World journalists had been illegally hacking into the voicemails of celebrities, royals, politicians and vulnerable members of the public led to the closure of the paper in 2011.<\/p>\n<\/span><\/div>\n
Apple TV+
Gary Oldman\u2019s profane, farting MI5 pro Jackson Lamb is as hilarious as ever. Yet the fifth series of this sublime spy thriller belongs to Christopher Chung\u2019s obnoxious hacker Roddy, who finds himself tied up in a terrorist conspiracy. The biggest clue that something is wrong? He has a date.<\/p>\n
Amazon Prime Video
Handsome ex-marine Daniel de Luca (Jesse Williams), a fixer for an Italian luxury hotel on the Amalfi Coast, solves mysteries ranging from kidnapped dogs to murdered guests. Yes, that\u2019s right \u2013 another cosy Death in Paradise<\/a>-esque crime drama! This one is big on budget but lacking in spark.<\/p>\n
Disney+
In 1948, two feuding brothers from Germany set up two competing sportswear companies, Adidas and Puma. This lavish three-part documentary (featuring interviews with David Beckham and Usain Bolt) goes behind the scenes of both brands and tells the story of how a sibling rivalry became a battle for dominance.<\/p>\n
U&Alibi, 8pm
The fifth series of this whimsical murder mystery finds Shakespeare (Jo Joyner) and Hathaway (Mark Benton) having gone their separate ways. The reasons why are a mystery. But it does lead to a delightful plot involving each of them being hired by a different side of a feuding married couple.<\/p>\n
Channel 4, 10pm
This fascinating documentary follows Oxford professor Patricia Kingori as she investigates the shadowy business of highly educated Kenyans being hired to write academic essays for students in the US and UK. Unsurprisingly, it is yet another industry feeling the threat of artificial intelligence.<\/p>\n
\nThursday 25 September<\/span><\/h2>\n
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Netflix
House of Guinness starts with a ruck. Of course it does. It\u2019s a Steven Knight<\/a> drama and as such shares with Great Expectations<\/a>, A Thousand Blows<\/a> and Peaky Blinders<\/a> many of his enduring fascinations: the fires of industry; family dynasties operating on the margins of legality; hot-headed men and pragmatic matriarchs; urgent, anachronistic soundtracks; and rucks. It takes as its premise a succession struggle following the death of Sir Benjamin Guinness in 1868, the brewing baron whose children now aspire to take his creation global against opposition from both Fenians and the temperance movement. The future of the firm and, it is implied, of Ireland herself, depends on their ability to work together.<\/p>\n