Pose
Ryan Murphy’s inventive series about a group of LGBT dancers in the late-80s New York ballroom scene is the best-looking thing to swagger on to screens this year. The vogue battles willl take your breath away. But beneath the sharp outfits, there’s a weight to proceedings, mostly due to the Aids epidemic that unfolds alongside the dancing and drama.
Thursday 21 March, 9pm, BBC Two
Blockbusters
A new generation gets the chance to snigger at the phrase “Can I have a P, please” as the quiz show gets rebooted. This time, Dara Ó Briain hosts – taking over from the late, great Bob Holness – and the guests are drawn from the nation’s students and sixth-formers.
Thursday 21 March, 8pm, Comedy Central
The OA Part II
Many would have assumed that Brit Marling’s enigmatic drama would not return after the very definitive ending to season one. But nothing is as it seems in The OA, and Marling’s cult survivor is back, now navigating a different dimension in which she is a Russian countess. As you do.
From Friday 22 March, Netflix
Mums Make Porn
Now that that title has your attention, here’s a worthwhile documentary on pornography’s hold on young people, and the parents looking to put a stop to that. This three-parter sees three mothers declare war on the industry with their own “alternative” skin flick, one that will promote more healthy attitudes toward sex and relationships.
Wednesday 20 March, 10pm, Channel 4
Billions
A fourth season for New York’s very angry, unfeasibly rich and utterly ruthless assortment of attorneys, hedge-fund managers and politicians as this drama starring Damian Lewis, Paul Giamatti and Maggie Siff returns. There’s a new alliance in town but, as usual in Billions, the conspirators neither like nor trust one another. So expect the usual spite, malice and backstabbing.
Wednesday, 9pm, Sky Atlantic
Harry’s Heroes: The Full English
The lardy football heroes of yesteryear submit to the tender mercies of Harry Redknapp and John Barnes in preparation for one last job. The likes of Matt Le Tissier, Paul Merson and Chris Waddle go back into training – on the horizon: a game against Germany.
Monday 18 March, 9pm, ITV
Invisibilia
Hanna Roisin and Alix Spiegel’s helpful and likable podcast exploring often unconsidered details of everyday life returns. The new series begins with an exploration of pain management. The hosts meet a dancer in perpetual agony with a hip injury. Doctors can find nothing wrong with her – could simply ignoring it work?
Podcast
How to Go Viral: The Art of the Meme With Richard Clay
When BBC Four is reporting on memes you know that they have crossed the threshold from youth concern to mainstream domination. This doc sees digital culture professor Clay get to the bottom of their ubiquitousness and try and make one of his own.
Wednesday 20 March, 9pm, BBC Four
Our Little Sister
The gentle spirit of Ozu permeates Hirokazu Kore-eda’s perceptive family drama – not that there is much drama; events play out softly and delicately. It concerns three sisters – bank worker Yoshi, shop assistant Chika and nurse Sachi – who discover at their father’s funeral that they have a half-sister, Suzu, whose arrival has them reassessing their lives.
Monday 18 March, 11.30pm, BBC Four
The Dirt
Mötley Crüe’s lurid memoir has been screaming for a big-screen treatment ever since it was published in 2001. Instead it heads to Netflix, with a biopic directed by Jackass alumnus Jeff Tremaine and starring Douglas Booth, Iwan Rheon and Machine Gun Kelly. Expect sex, drugs and numerous TV sets lobbed out of hotel windows.
From Friday 22 March, Netflix
