Abducted – Elizabeth I’s Child Actors
9pm, BBC Four
Far from clamouring to go to drama school, there was once a time when children had to be kidnapped to be put on the stage, as evinced by the bizarre fate of 13-year-old Thomas Clifton, violently abducted in 1600 by a theatrical impresario while walking to school. And the trail appeared to lead straight to Elizabeth I herself. Children’s author Katherine Rundell explores this true story from Elizabethan London, while hand-drawn animations fill in the gaps in a startling and sinister tale. Ali Catterall
Heatwave Britain
8pm, Channel 4
Is the blistering heat, yellow grass and parched countryside just a taste of summers to come? As farmers worry in the wake of a wet spring followed by a dangerously early harvest, and gardeners begin to despair for the chaos in their backyards, this one-off documentary charts rising anger over hosepipe and sprinkler bans and increasing water utility bills. Mike Bradley
Versailles
9pm, BBC Two
Too many steamy scenes or simply a case of poor ratings? Whatever the truth about the demise of TV’s campest period drama, from tonight we face the prospect of Mondays without a regular helping of the Machiavellian intrigues that filled the salons of Versailles. At least the series bows out with a finale fit for a king. MB
Saving Poundstretcher
9pm, Channel 4
Could discount store Poundstretcher be going the same way as Maplin? Not if “retail guru” (and founder of Poundworld) Chris Edwards has anything to do with it. As the series begins, Chris clashes with owner Aziz over his insistence on niche products and meets Tracey, the committed manager of the Bolton store. Phil Harrison
Tower Block Kids
9pm, Channel 5
This cute, if sombre, two-part documentary follows children living in high-rise blocks of flats. Here, we are in Stockport and Croydon, listening to siblings bemoan the miseries of sharing cramped rooms. They are also kept awake at night by the antisocial behaviour of those who were presumably once tower-block kids themselves. David Stubbs
For the People
Breaking new ground with a courtroom drama is no easy task, but Shonda Rhimes (Grey’s Anatomy, Scandal) has managed it with this show about six young, hungry lawyers who operate in the highest-profile US court. Like Scandal, it is smart and boasts a snappy script and attractive characters to care about. MB
Film choice
The Adjustment Bureau, 11pm, ITV4
Bourne screenwriter George Nolfi reunites with Matt Damon in this reality-bending sci-fi thriller adapted, inevitably, from a Philip K Dick story. Damon plays a congressman whose dalliance with Emily Blunt’s ballerina attracts the attention of the shadowy Adjustment Bureau and its superpowered enforcers. Paul Howlett
Live sport
European Championships 9am, BBC Two. Includes swimming semi-finals and track cycling finals.
Women’s tennis: Rogers Cup 4pm, BT Sport 1. Day one action from Montreal. The men’s event airs at the same time on Sky Sports Main Event.
Championship football: Hull City v Aston Villa 7pm, Sky Sports Main Event. Villa travel to the KCom Stadium.
