The Last Days of Mary Queen of Scots
8pm, Channel 5
Debut of a new six-part series that will focus on significant historical figures and their exits from this corporeal realm. The first head on the block – literally, in this case – is that of Mary, Queen of Scots, executed for treason in 1587, aged 44, on the orders of her cousin, Elizabeth I. It is one of British history’s most ripping yarns, and the assembled historians do a commendable job of recounting it, in between the inevitable silly am-dram reconstructions. Andrew Mueller
The Truth About Your Medicine Cabinet
9pm, BBC1
“Always read the small print” seems to be the prevailing message of this look at the medicines on pharmacists’ shelves, which natural remedies might help make redundant. Here, Dr Christoffer Rudolpho van Tulleken examines everything from muscle pain alleviators to cough cures. In the latter case, he finds a remarkably effective solution via that old standby honey and lemon, which “even the NHS website recommends, just like my mum”. Ali Catterall
Banished
9pm, BBC2
Spoiler: tonight, someone might be hanged. As the curious period saga about too many moral absolutes in too confined a space reaches its penultimate instalment, once again a criminal banished to Oz is threatened with the noose. It’s getting a bit like the “I will section you!” episode of Peep Show, but with hanging. The lack of an underlying story arc to release pressure bends the drama into strange shapes: sometimes powerful, sometimes – in the case of a raped convict drawn to her oppressor – alien and unnerving. Jack Seale
Ice Rink on the Estate
9pm, ITV
Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean head back to their home town of Nottingham to take a group of young novice ice skaters from the tough neighbourhoods of St Ann’s and Sneinton and train them up to perform a hopefully spectacular ice show. The uptake is initially slow, but a bit of graft from the Olympians gets them a potential, if wobbly, cast. It’s a predictably rough ride corralling the rambunctious teenagers, some of whom have issues more pressing than figure skating to deal with in their lives. Ben Arnold
Fortitude
9pm, Sky Atlantic
Last in a series that, if nothing else, has brought a certain Scandinavian aesthetic to British-grown TV drama. Tonight, Jason is quizzed about the whereabouts of the mammoth, Elena’s condition deteriorates alarmingly, out in the snowy wastes there’s a lengthy fistfight that teeters on the brink of comical, while Vincent takes drastic action against a swarm of insects emanating from his own mouth. Choice quote: “It is not wasps that should make us doubt the existence of a benevolent God – it is us, his children.” So true. David Stubbs
Inside No 9
10pm, BBC2
Pity Elizabeth Gadge (Ruth Sheen). After being accused of consorting with the devil, she has to face two of England’s most feared witch-finders, Clarke and Warren (Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith). She faces being burned at the stake, and her trial is the most exciting event in Little Happens since “the escaped cow”. What unfolds, as the anthology series continues, is essentially a Hammer Horror played for laughs. As dimwitted local bigwig Sir Andrew Pike, David Warner quite brilliantly makes the most of every line he’s given. Jonathan Wright
Mad Men
10pm, Sky Atlantic
Matt Weiner’s alluring period drama returns for the concluding half of its final season after an interminable 12-month break. When we last visited Sterling Cooper, change was in the air after a rival agency made a lucrative bid for the company. As is the custom with Mad Men, no previews were available to view as we went to print, but apparently this episode revolves around Don meeting someone whose face he can’t quite place. A further clue may be found in the somewhat ominous episode title: Severance. Gwilym Mumford
Today’s best live sport
Horse racing: Grand National meeting
Day one of the meet, which concludes with the big race itself on Saturday. 1.45pm, Channel 4
Premier League darts
Round 10, live from Sheffield’s Motorpoint Arena. 7pm, Sky Sports 1
Golf: The Masters
Opening day’s coverage from the Augusta National. Can Bubba Watson defend his title? 7pm, Sky Sports 4
Scottish Championship football: Queen of the South v Rangers
Promotion rivals face off at Palmerston Park. 7.30pm, BT Sport 1
