TV tonight: Our highlights for Thursday, June 15

Aaron Paul in a spacesuit for Black Mirror season 6
(Image credit: Nick Wall/Netflix)

On TV tonight, the long-awaited sixth season of Black Mirror lands on Netflix, vampire comedy Count Abdulla hits ITVX, a new season of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds arrives on Paramount Plus, and GOLD airs the lost pilot of the British comedy classic, Blackadder. Here's what you shouldn't miss on TV Tonight.

  • Our hand-selected recommendations for what's on TV tonight include TV shows, a film, live sport and the latest trending need-to-binge-on-now box set 
  • Keep up to date with the latest soap spoiler storylines on TV tonight with our daily soap synopsis 
  • For more information about what’s on TV tonight see our TV Guide

What's on TV tonight

Our expert TV journalists have picked the best things on TV tonight... 

Best TV shows on TV tonight

Black Mirror season 6, Netflix

Salma Hayek in a yellow jumpsuit for Black Mirror season 6

(Image credit: Nick Wall/Netflix)

It’s four years since we last saw Charlie Brooker’s tech-based anthology series – and now it’s back for series six. There’s a great cast, with Aaron Paul and Josh Hartnett starring in an episode called Beyond the Sea set in 1969 about two men on a hi-tech mission, while British stars John Hannah and Monica Dolan’s story sees them in a Scottish town with dark secrets. Other stars include Industry’s Myha’la Herrold, plus Paapa Essiedu, Annie Murphy and Salma Hayek Pinault. 

NC 

Who Do You Think You Are?, 9 pm, BBC One

Who Do You Think You Are key art

(Image credit: BBC/Wall to Wall)

Much to his wife Shara’s annoyance, Bear Grylls has always walked the dogs and wandered around his house in a kilt, despite not being Scottish! But he gets the last laugh in this episode of the genealogy series when he discovers that he’s actually descended from the famous Scottish Stuart and Campbell clans and that his 21 times great-grandfather is none other than King of Scots, Robert the Bruce! Also in this episode, Bear delves into the military history of his grandfather, Ted, who was the commander of a clandestine unit called T Force, and was tasked with tracking down high-ranking Nazi scientists. 

★★★★ HD 

Blackadder: The Lost Pilot, 9 pm, GOLD

Blackadder without Tony Robinson’s Baldrick? It’s unthinkable and yet, as this documentary marking 40 years since the classic sitcom starring Rowan Atkinson first aired, that’s exactly what happened in the pilot. The previously unseen episode is shown for the first time as part of this programme, and features a different actor as Blackadder’s downtrodden servant. But before that, Tony interviews some of the key players, including producer John Lloyd and writers Richard Curtis and Ben Elton, to tell the backstory of the pilot, which features a number of other elements that were changed for the first series, but resurfaced in the second. A delightful retrospective of one of our best-loved British sitcoms, and its ‘twisty-turny’ road to comedy gold. 

★★★★ IM 

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, Paramount Plus

Anson Mount in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds

(Image credit: Michael Gibson/Paramount+)

The latest addition to the Star Trek universe, set in the decade before The Original Series and featuring younger versions of iconic characters such as Spock (Ethan Peck) and Nyota Uhura (Celia Rose Gooding),  returns for a much-anticipated second season. It picks up the action from the cliffhanger ending to the first season when Una Chin-Riley, aka Number One (Rebecca Romijn), was arrested for lying about being a genetically engineered Illyrian. She now stands trial for violating Starfleet regulations, with the captain of the USS Enterprise, Christopher Pike (Anson Mount), among those giving evidence.

JE 

Count Abdulla, ITVX (box set)

Kathy and Abdulla in Count Abdulla

(Image credit: Fudge Park/ITV)

When doctor Abdulla Khan (Arian Nik) gets into an argument with a strange woman at a bus stop, he discovers a deadly new thirst for life… Vampire Kathy (Jaime Winstone) has unintentionally turned him into a fellow bloodsucker! Overnight Abdulla develops retractable incisors, an aversion to sunlight and a distinct lack of a reflection. He’s also drawn to the hospital blood bank. The medic in him thinks it’s iron deficiency; the horror-movie buff suspects it’s a crisis of a different flavour – and he’s not stoked about it! A conflicted Muslim vampire with mother issues? Count Abdulla is just what the doctor ordered. 

★★★★ ER

Best box set on TV tonight

Never Have I Ever season 4, Netflix

Lee Rodriguez, Maitreyi Ramakrishnan and Ramona Young in Never Have I Ever

(Image credit: Courtesy of Netflix)

A coming-of-age comedy, Never Have I Ever is about the complicated life of a modern-day first-generation Indian American teenage girl, Devi, an overachieving high school student who has a short fuse that gets her into difficult situations.

Here’s the official plot summary for season 4 from Netflix: "Senior year has finally arrived. Between college conundrums, identity crises and crushes that won't fade, are Devi and the gang ready to face the future?"

Best film on TV tonight

Casino Royale, 9 pm, ITV4

Daniel Craig Casino Royale

(Image credit: Daniel Craig in Casino Royale)

Ageing spy James Bond comes out of retirement to tackle a mysterious mastermind who wants to take over the world. Meanwhile, another agent disguises himself as Bond to face the evil genius over the baccarat table. Spoof spy adventure, starring David Niven, Peter Sellers, Woody Allen, Orson Welles, Deborah Kerr and Ursula Andress.

Soaps

Live Sport

  • US Open Golf, from 3 pm, Sky Sports Main Event

If you watch just one thing on TV tonight…

Don't miss Black Mirror on TV tonight.

Not found anything you want to watch on TV tonight? Check out our TV Guide

Happy viewing!

Martin Shore
Staff Writer at WhatToWatch.com

Martin was a Staff Writer with WhatToWatch.com, where he produced a variety of articles focused on the latest and greatest films and TV shows. Now he works for our sister site Tom's Guide in the same role.

Some of his favorite shows are What We Do In The Shadows, Bridgerton, Gangs of London, The Witcher, Doctor Who, and Ghosts. When he’s not watching TV or at the movies, Martin’s probably still in front of a screen playing the latest video games, reading, or watching the NFL.