Catherine the Great
Helen Mirren has proved she can play Queen Elizabeth II with an austere grace, and now turns her attention to the notorious 18th-century empress of Russia, Catherine the Great. Documenting her rise to power after ousting her husband Peter III and facing challenges for the throne, this opulent period drama packs a backstabbing punch.
Thursday 3 October, 9pm, Sky Atlantic
Mo Gilligan: Momentum
Fresh from his stint as a late-night chatshow host, comedian Mo Gilligan has his first standup special airing on Netflix – a far cry from his early days of Twitter jokes. Expect tales of childhood antics and mastering “the complex art of dancing in the club”.
From Monday 30 September, Netflix
RuPaul’s Drag Race UK
Lip-sync for your life as the search for the UK’s own drag race superstar begins. Ten British queens will be judged by regulars Mama Ru and Michelle Visage, plus talkshow veterans Alan Carr, Graham Norton and a host of celebrity guests. References to Corrie and Kim Woodburn abound in a thoroughly British spin on the cult US show.
Thursday 3 October, 8pm, BBC Three
Murderabilia
You might be used to true-crime podcasts but this new series takes an unflinching look into the lives of people who collect crime memorabilia. From Paul, who collects the hair of serial killers, to Eric, who was engaged to a death-row inmate, hosts Alice Fiennes and Poppy Damon investigate the trend.
Podcast
Raising Dion
A supernatural take on a single mum drama, this Netflix original features a standout performance from cherubic newcomer Ja’Siah Young who discovers he has formidable, space-altering powers following the mysterious death of his father, played by Michael B Jordan. The special effects are out in full force but, at heart, this is a tender, moving depiction of grief, parenthood and the power of memory.
From Friday 4 October, Netflix
Sorry for Your Loss
A muted and touching look at the attempts of young widow Leigh (a disaffected Elizabeth Olsen) to find purpose in life following her husband’s sudden death. The second series begins with Leigh’s relationship with her brother-in-law escalating amid her continuing grief.
Tuesday 1 October, 7pm, Facebook Watch
The Good Place
It is time for a final lap around the afterlife as Michael Schur’s gleefully wicked take on morality (and frozen yoghurt) begins its final season. With season three ending on one last experiment to see whether a new set of recently deceased recruits deserve to make it into the Good Place, will our gang finally make it out of their purgatory?
Available now, Netflix
Living Undocumented
The labyrinthine US immigration system has been in the headlines for all the wrong reasons recently. This doc tells the story of eight families who all faced deportation in 2018. Hanging on to hope amid the heartbreak, it is an unvarnished exposé on the human cost of populist politics.
From Wednesday 2 October, Netflix
Sorcerer
The French Connection director William Friedkin rates this as his personal favourite. Adapted from the French thriller The Wages of Fear, it’s an intense tale of four desperate men – including Roy Scheider’s gangster on the run – ferrying a shipment of unstable nitroglycerine through a South American jungle, beset by existential furies.
Saturday 28 September, 1.10am, Film4
World on Fire
Set in Poland, Britain and Germany, this all-star drama tells the story of the unfolding first year of the second world war from the perspectives of uncompromising US journalist Helen Hunt, Sean Bean’s pacifist Mancunian bus conductor and separated lovers Julia Brown and Jonah Hauer-King. A compelling look at lives in love and war.
Sunday 29 September, 9pm, BBC Two
