All 4
The Passenger
The latest Euro drama from All 4’s munificent foreign-language curator Walter Presents is a Gallic crime series not set in built-up Paris or Marseille but among the sprawling, verdant vineyards of Bordeaux. In this unlikely locale, a serial killer recreates images from classical mythology – first up, severing a man’s head and replacing it with that of a bull to create a grim approximation of a minotaur. A gripping, six-part whodunnit with impressive producer and writer credits in the form of Luc Besson and crime writer Jean-Christophe Grangé respectively.
Available from Friday
Netflix
Pacific Heat
This latest Netflix offering is a slick, knowing animated comedy set in a brightly rendered version of Australia’s Gold Coast. It follows the exploits of a self-parodically glamorous, chiselled and tanned undercover police unit as they tackle everything from petty criminals to international drug cartels. At this early stage, the show is more than a little indebted to FX’s Archer in both tone and visual grammar. Hopefully, it’ll establish its own identity as it beds in.
Available from Friday 2 December
BBC3
Brainwashing Stacey
Even in its iPlayer-only incarnation, BBC3 continues to pack Stacey Dooley off to the world’s more contested corners. In the first of this new series, poor Stacey is spending time with some US anti-abortion campaigners. The assignment takes the form of a summer camp hosted by the Survivors organisation, during which Dooley will subject herself to a potentially devastating tidal wave of virulently anti-science and anti-commonsense rhetoric and assess the effect is has, both on her and the unfortunate American youngsters who are involved in this stuff for real. As gauche as Dooley’s offerings can sometimes be, this is given an extra edge of potency by the knowledge that these people now have representation in the White House.
Available from Thursday 1 December
Google Daydream
The Turning Forest
This collaboration between the BBC, virtual reality studio VRTOV and Google’s Daydream headset is one of those exploratory projects that feels like an admirable attempt to explore a version of the future. It’s an immersive, interactive film that premiered at this year’s Tribeca film festival and is, essentially, a virtual world which you’ll be free to wander in and explore. The tone suggests a psychedelic Where The Wild Things Are, which should make it irresistible to kids and big kids alike.
Available now
Podcast
A Stab In The Dark
These days, no TV platform can really consider itself complete if it can’t offer some sort of crime-related podcast or serial. This UKTV offering is a decent addition, drawing together some big-hitting guests. In the opening episode, crime writer Val McDermid and former BBC head of drama Kate Harwood join Mark Billingham to discuss the changing representation of female crime-fighters over the years. Subsequent episodes feature the likes of David Morrissey and Ann Cleeves.
Available now
