Vera
8pm, ITV
A sort of Northumbrian Columbo wearing Paddington Bear’s second-best hat, the dishevelled but quick-witted DCI Vera Stanhope is back. First up, that means the case of a copper murdered with a bullet to the head, whose charred body is found in an abattoir incinerator. Despite the gruesomeness of this set-up, it’s a reassuring series for the way Brenda Blethyn’s upright and dogged Stanhope never seems to need to rush to solve such major crimes. Jonathan Wright
Dancing on Ice
6pm, ITV
Blade re-runner: the format may have been on ice, literally, for the past four years but ITV has reactivated its slippery Strictly rival. Original hosts Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield return to the rink together for the first time since 2011, while series veterans Torvill and Dean are also back, albeit this time as judges rather than mentors. Among the dozen celebs brave enough to risk a frosty faceplant are Donna Air, Perri Shakes-Drayton, Lemar and Cheryl Baker. Graeme Virtue
The Biggest Little Railway in the World
8pm, Channel 4
As anyone who watched him renovate his chateau in France will attest, Dick Strawbridge is very much your go-to guy for quirky undertaking of sisyphean assignments. In this new series, Dick attempts to build a 70-mile railway across a stretch of Scottish highland so rugged it defeated Victorian engineers. In model form, that is. Tonight, he meets railway modellers and tries to gather a team with the fortitude to embrace this challenge. John Robinson
McMafia
9pm, BBC One
This thriller about the tentacles of global, corporatised crime still feels as if it’s in its first act: the disparate story strands slow the narrative pace, and tonight’s new problem for in-too-deep money man Alex (James Norton) merely manoeuvres him into a different position. Strong echoes of The Night Manager, though, as he’s obliged to spend a luxurious but threatening weekend on the Côte d’Azur. Exotic, eclectic locations are keeping McMafia above freezing point. Jack Seale
SAS: Who Dares Wins
9pm, Channel 4
The reality show that drags its participants as close to actual torture as is legally defensible returns for another series. Another 25 civilians are travelling to Morocco to surrender to the never-especially-tender mercies of perma-scowling misery-monger Ant Middleton and his equally intense pals Foxy, Ollie and Billy. This condensed version of SAS selection will test contenders’ physical, mental and emotional capabilities to the limit. Phil Harrison
Hawaii Five-0
9pm, Sky1
The reboot of Hawaii Five-0 returns for series eight with two new recruits stepping into the cumbersome size nines of Kono and Chin. One is ex-Navy Seal Junior Reigns, who is finished with serving his country, and the other is former lifeguard and police academy outcast Tani Rey, who is soon tasked with assisting when a gifted hacker breaks into the Hawaii state prison system and releases murderer and arsonist Jason Duclair, played by UFC champ Randy Couture. Ben Arnold
MacGyver
8pm, Sky1
Angus MacGyver (Lucas Till) is back and his satnav is set for Revenge. With Mac and Jack scouring the globe for prison escapee Murdoc, the day job is something to be dealt with swiftly and forcefully – not least when carrying out the clandestine recovery of a missing Navy Seal officer. Hostage takers should know better than to antagonise a man easily capable of fashioning a flamethrower from a rolled-up TV Guide and a pile of packing peanuts. Mark Gibbings Jones
Film choice
Farewell my Lovely, (Edward Dmytryk, 1944), Sunday, 6am, Movies4Men
Also known as Murder, My Sweet, there is nothing sweet about this hardboiled adaptation of Raymond Chandler’s thriller. A quintessential 1940s noir that features the reinvention of crooner Dick Powell as a serious actor – his Philip Marlowe, eyes bandaged and narrating the bleak tale in flashback, was thought by many superior to Bogart’s. It is lovingly crafted by Dmytryk, with sharp dialogue, gloomy photography and indelible performances from Mike Mazurki as the definitive Moose Malloy, setting the private eye after Claire Trevor’s marvellous Velma. Paul Howlett
Captain Phillips, (Paul Greengrass, 2013), 10.10pm, ITV
Greengrass’s account of a real-life Somali pirate hijacking is unnervingly intense, underpinned by a powerful sense of the global economic forces that separate the haves and have-nots. Ultimately, it focuses on the riveting confrontation between Tom Hanks, as the eponymous captain, and the electrifying newcomer Barkhad Abdi as the pirates’ leader, both struggling for control of the cargo ship Maersk Alabama. Paul Howlett
Stations of the Cross, (Dietrich Brüggemann, 2014), 11pm, BBC Four
In a quiet German town, a group of teenagers are preparing for confirmation in the staunchly traditional Catholic Society of St Paul. Among them is 14-year-old Maria (Lea van Acken), whose devout faith leaves her isolated at school, while being oppressed by an overbearing mother (Franziska Weisz). And so the idea of a beatific martyrdom takes hold, in a chilly, disturbing drama. Paul Howlett
Strictly Ballroom, (Baz Luhrmann, 1992), 11.25pm, BBC Two
Never mind that other Strictly … Luhrmann’s exuberant dancing tale sweeps you off your feet with dazzling comic swirls. Paul Mercurio is quickstepping Scott, who aims to be beau of the ballroom with some daring improvisations. Novice Fran (Tara Morice) agrees to tango (well, flamenco) in this bright, knowing, Aussie comedy. Paul Howlett
Live sport
FA Cup Football: Shrewsbury Town v West Ham United David Moyes’s improving Hammers visit Montgomery Waters Meadow. 1.40pm, BBC One
Premiership Rugby Union: Wasps v Saracens Coverage of the game from the Ricoh Arena. 2.30pm, BT Sport 1
Ashes Cricket: Australia v England Can England end a disappointing Test series on a high? 11pm, BT Sport 1
