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Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Janine Yaqoob

12 must-watch TV shows in 2023 from old faves to Martin Compston battling an oil rig

Sit down and get comfy on the sofa because there’s a lot of great telly coming up in 2023.

With a dash of comedy, a sprinkling of reality and a dollop of drama, there’s something for everyone.

And surely we can't wait for the return of iconic offerings like Gladiators and Big Brother - as well as new dramas such as The Rig with Line of Duty favourite Martin Compston and Game of Thrones star Iain Glen.

From returning shows to brand new offerings, our TV editor Janine Yaqoob picks her top 12 shows for the year ahead. We can't wait...

Big Brother

The iconic reality show is back for its 20th series.

It will air on ITV2 after the channel gained the rights, four years since it last aired on Channel 5.

Former contestant Alison Hammond is one of the names tipped to host the much-loved show, which has given us contestants like Craig Phillips, Brian Dowling and Kate Lawler.

  • ITV2, AUTUMN 2023

Fifteen-Love

Aidan Turner and Ella Lily Hyland in Fifteen Love on Amazon Prime (Amazon Prime)

A story about trust, power and obsession, set in the world of elite tennis, Fifteen Love follows the story of a young tennis prodigy whose career is cut short through injury (Ella Lily Hyland) and her maverick coach (Aidan Turner). Five years on, she makes an explosive allegation against her former coach.

From the makers of Line of Duty, it promises to serve up plenty of drama as they battle over the truth while they both seek glory at the Grand Slam grass court event of the year.

  • AMAZON PRIME VIDEO, DATE TBC

Gladiators

Are you ready?! Gladiators will be back on Saturday nights in 2023, almost 30 years after the show first aired.

Expect the usual mix of muscle-filled silliness as contestants showcase their speed and strength and take on the Gladiators to win.

  • BBC ONE, AUTUMN

Nolly

Helen Bonham Carter takes the title role (ITV)
Russell T Davies bring us Nolly (Getty Images)

Screenwriter Russell T Davies (Doctor Who, It’s A Sin) looks set to continue his hot streak with Nolly – a drama about the actress Noele Gordon, starring Helena Bonham Carter.

More than 40 years after Nolly’s shock sacking from ITV ’s Crossroads, the drama lifts the lid on her spectacular fall from grace.

  • ITVX, FEBRUARY

Queen of Oz

Catherine Tate stars as Princess Georgiana – a disgraced member of the Royal Family whose party-girl lifestyle is for ever in the papers.

In the wake of her latest scandal, Georgiana’s father abdicates his Australian throne in favour of his daughter.

The trouble is, she has zero interest in Oz beyond the Hemsworth brothers…

  • BBC1, DATE TBC

Unforgotten

Sanjeev Bhaskar and Sinéad Keenan will pair up this time (ITV)

After the shock death of DCI Cassie Stuart (Nicola Walker) last season, the new series of this crime drama looks a little bit different.

Sanjeev Bhaskar’s Sunil Khan will now be solving murder cold cases with BAFTA-winner Sinead Keenan, who joins the show as DCI Jessica ‘Jessie’ James.

  • ITV1 AND ITVX, EARLY 2023

Best Interests

Best Interests with Michael Sheen is highly anticipated (BBC/Chapter One)

Sharon Horgan and Michael Sheen play married couple Nicci and Andrew, whose daughter Marnie has a life-threatening condition.

Written by Jack Thorne (Enola Holmes, The Swimmers, The Virtues), Best Interests is one of the most highly anticipated series in 2023.

A story of a family driven apart by having to make choices no parent would ever want to make. Marnie has a life-threatening condition. The doctors believe it is in her best interests to be allowed to die, but her loving family disagree.

And so begins a fight that will take them through every stage of a legal process, as they struggle to contemplate this huge decision. Who decides? And in whose best interests will it be?

BBC1, DATE TBC

Dreamland

Dreamland stars Freema Agyeman and Lily Allen (©Sky UK Limited.)

Lily Allen leads the cast of this seaside comedy, which was inspired by Sharon Horgan’s 2018 award-winning short film of the same name.

Dreamland is a multi-generational comedy about a dysfunctional family, set in Margate.

  • SKY COMEDY & NOW TV, 2023

Cheat

Fresh from his EastEnders exit, Danny Dyer will present a new game show on Netflix.

An unusual detour from the streaming giant into the world of quizzes, he will be joined by comedian and Strictly Come Dancing favourite Ellie Taylor.

The high-stakes quiz gives contestants the chance to win £50,000 through general knowledge questions, but the twist is that you can still win if you don’t know the answer – this is the one quiz show where it pays to cheat.

  • NETFLIX, 2023

Doctor Who 60th anniversary

IT will be a bumper year for Doctor Who fans with David Tennant and Catherine Tate reuniting for three specials to mark the show’s anniversary.

Tennant will play the 14th Doctor before handing over the baton to Sex Education star Ncuti Gatwa at Christmas.

Gatwa will be joined by Corrie’s Millie Gibson, as companion Ruby Sunday.

  • BBC1, NOVEMBER

Succession

More power struggles this year in Succession (HBO)

Series four of this hit drama sees the return of foul-mouthed media mogul Logan Roy (Brian Cox) and his four feuding children.

And this time around, the battle for control of Waystar Royco gets even more intense. Who will triumph in the epic power struggle?

  • SKY ATLANTIC & NOW TV, SPRING

The Rig

Martin Compston in The Rig on Amazon Prime (Amazon Prime)

Line of Duty’s Martin Compston and Game of Thrones Iain Glen star in this North Sea oil rig thriller.

A group is due to return to the mainland when a mysterious fog envelopes them and supernatural forces take hold. As the rig is hit by massive tremors, the crew try to identify the unknown cause but a major accident forces them to question who they can really trust.

  • AMAZON PRIME VIDEO, JANUARY 6

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