Vera
8.10pm, ITV
The bluff north-eastern detective drama may be guilty of occasional shortcomings, but a lack of topicality is certainly not an accusation that holds water this week. DCI Stanhope (Brenda Blethyn) enters a world of rural communities plagued by drug problems when she investigates the thoroughly tragic case of an unidentified teenage boy found dead in a barnacled boatyard. A tough watch, then, but one that yields a solution so satisfying it’s difficult not to punch the air with joy. Mike Bradley
This Morning: On Sunday
10.30am, ITV
If there is a downside to gainful employment, it’s that you miss out on This Morning. No longer. This new weekend edition, presented by Eamonn Holmes and Ruth Langsford, is a compilation of the best recipes, interviews and innuendo from the previous week, with some extra treats thrown in. Ellen E Jones
Les Misérables
9pm, BBC One
As tonight’s episode opens, Cosette is now a teenage girl, though one conflicted about the prospect of taking the veil at the convent where she and her guardian have sought refuge. Andrew Davies’s script shifts up a gear as a newly decorated Javert redoubles his resolve and Valjean plans a new adventure. MB
SAS: Who Dares Wins
9pm, Channel 4
The SAS instructors – led by terrifying hard-Brexit enthusiast Ant Middleton – continue to torment the recruits with an agonising mixture of physical and psychological pressure. Tonight, the candidates are faced with a lengthy trek through heavy snow followed by a night of camping 3,000 metres above sea level. Phil Harrison
Nolan: Australia’s Maverick Artist
9pm, BBC Four
Eccentric Melbourne painter Sidney Nolan is celebrated in an eye-opening account of his journey from tram driver’s son to standard bearer of Australian modernism. Even the bow-tied buffs assembled to sing his praises have to admit that much of the time Nolan was simply “taking the piss”. MB
Real Time With Bill Maher
9pm, Sky Atlantic
Defender of liberalism or irritating contrarian? Maher’s late-night satire show seems to annoy both sides of the political aisle these days, which some might suggest is evidence of its success. It returns for season No 17, with an opener set to cover the recent nonsense of the Trump shutdown. Gwilym Mumford
Film choice
The Commune, 10pm, BBC Four
In 1970s Copenhagen, lecturer Erik (Ulrich Thomsen) and his television newsreader wife Anna (Trine Dyrholm) inherit a huge house and elect to turn it into a commune with their friends, but sexual tensions soon test the new order. An emotionally charged tale from Thomas Vinterberg, director of Festen. Paul Howlett
Today’s best live sport
Premier League Football: Huddersfield Town v Man City, 12.30pm, Sky Sports Main Event
Strugglers face title-chasers. Fulham v Tottenham follows.
Snooker: The Masters, 1pm, BBC Two
The final from Ally Pally.
American Football: New Orleans Saints v Los Angeles Rams, 7pm, Sky Sports Main Event
NFC Conference clash. Kansas v New England Patriots follows.
