On TV tonight, a clever new true crime drama begins on Disney Plus, Under the Banner of Heaven, with a great cast including Daisy Edgar-Jones and Andrew Garfield. The second season of the historical series The Great arrives on C4, High School Musical: The Musical: The Series season 3 dances its way onto Disney Plus and Dame Helen Mirren is the subject of The South Bank Show on Sky Arts. Here’s what you shouldn’t miss on TV tonight.
- Our hand-selected recommendations for what's on TV tonight include four 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
Under the Banner of Heaven, Disney Plus
Normal People’s Daisy Edgar-Jones stars as Brenda Wright Lafferty, a 24-year-old woman found murdered in her Utah home in 1984, along with her infant daughter, Erica, in this true-crime drama. Devout Mormon detective Jeb Pyre (Andrew Garfield) initially suspects Brenda’s husband Allen (The Serpent’s Billy Howle) of the crime, but suffers a crisis of faith when he learns that a fundamentalist religious sect may have played a part. With a carefully balanced portrayal of belief in many forms, and uniformly excellent performances, this gripping miniseries doesn’t shy away from the big questions about the power of faith.
★★★★ SP
The Great season 2, 10pm, Channel 4
The riotously funny (emphasis on the ‘riot’) comedy-drama about the rise of Catherine the Great, from the team behind Oscar-winning film The Favourite, returns for a second season (previously available on StarzPlay). Pregnant Catherine (Elle Fanning) has launched her coup against infantile husband Peter (Nicholas Hoult), but the warring royal couple are locked in stalemate and cloistered in opposite wings of the palace. Keen to protect his own life above all else, Peter goes on the run - but forgets to take any food, leaving Catherine with an easy way to get him to capitulate to her demands. Delightfully anachronistic fun.
★★★★ SP
The South Bank Show, 10pm, Sky Arts
Melvyn Bragg talks to an actor who has multiple BAFTA, Emmy and Golden Globes awards to her name, not to mention an Oscar – Dame Helen Mirren. She’s about to be seen in the thriller Sniff (directed by her husband, Taylor Hackford), along with Al Pacino and Morgan Freeman, as well as taking the lead in the Golda Meir biopic, Golda. Here, though, Melvyn goes right back to the beginning to Dame Helen’s early days as part of the Royal Shakespeare Company, as they discuss her remarkable career path through stage, TV, and film.
★★★★ JP
High School Musical: The Musical: The Series season 3, Disney Plus
The music-loving kids of East High are back for a third season which starts airing tonight. This time they’re at Camp Shallow Lake in California for the summer. There, they are tasked with putting on a production of Frozen and filming an accompanying docuseries. Joshua Bassett, Matt Cornett and Sofia Wylie return as regulars, while pop sensation Olivia Rodrigo is back for some guest-star appearances.
★★★ NC
Best box set to watch on TV tonight
Sanditon, season 2, ITV Hub
This adaptation of Jane Austen’s unfinished novel ended its first season on a major cliffhanger when heroine Charlotte (Rose Williams) left Sanditon heartbroken after true love Sidney (Theo James) married another woman to save his brother from financial ruin. As season two begins, Sidney is no longer around and a tragedy brings Charlotte back to Sanditon along with her sister Alison (Rosie Graham). Though Charlotte has sworn off romance, there’s no shortage of eligible men hoping to court her, like dashing war veteran Colonel Lennox (Tom Weston-Jones). As before, it’s a delicious Regency treat with a refreshingly modern (sense and) sensibility.
Best film to watch on TV tonight
Mary Queen of Scots, 10.50pm (times vary), BBC One
Theatre director Josie Rourke makes her film debut with this splendid-looking if stagy period drama about the bitter relationship between Mary Queen of Scots and Elizabeth I, although the latter takes a back seat. Saoirse Ronan and Margot Robbie display their bona fide talent as the respective warring cousins, whose story is given a feminist angle, especially in a scene in which they meet (which never happened). Guy Pearce, Martin Compston and Jack Lowden lend strong support.
Live Sport
- T20 Cricket, England vs South Africa, 6pm, BBC Two
- Women's Euro 2022, the second semi-final – Germany vs France, 7.30pm (k-o 8pm), BBC One
Soaps on TV tonight
- Emmerdale, 7.30pm, ITV
- Coronation Street, 8pm, ITV
- Hollyoaks, 6.30pm, C4
- Neighbours, 6pm, Channel 5
- Home and Away, 6pm & 6.30pm, 5Star
If you watch just one thing on TV tonight…
Don't miss Under the Banner of Heaven on TV tonight — a great cast elevates this sharp true crime drama.
Not found anything you want to watch on TV tonight? Check out our TV Guide.
Happy viewing!
