TV tonight: our highlights for Tuesday 17th March

New drama Penance is just one of the gems on today...

Julie Graham stars in a gripping new thriller, Joanna Lumley leaves Cuba for Haiti, and The Split reaches its dramatic finale. Here’s what you shouldn’t miss on TV tonight.

Our hand selected recommendations for what's on TV tonight include five TV shows, a film, the live sports fixtures 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

Joanna Lumley's Hidden Caribbean: Havana to Haiti, 9pm, ITV

Joanna Lumley concludes her Caribbean adventure, leaving Cuba to visit the often-unexplored country of Haiti. There, the Ab Fab star immerses herself in a colourful voodoo ceremony, discovering that some frantic drumming, dancing and chanting is said to allow participants to speak to and give thanks to the spirits. But it’s a sombre episode overall, as Joanna sees for herself the poverty in capital Port-au-Prince. Meeting some of the city’s 2,000 homeless children, she’s visibly moved, making this an emotional but worthwhile watch.

Rating: ★★★★ RF

Penance, 9pm, Channel 5

Challenging themes of grief, guilt and forbidden love are explored in this intense psychological thriller, showing over three nights. Julie Graham is Rosalie, a devoted mother left devastated by the death of her teenage son. Rosalie and daughter Maddie (Millie Inbetween’s Tallulah Greive) attend grief counselling where they meet charismatic Jed (Common’s Nico Mirallegro). But is he all he seems? The sizzling chemistry between stars Julie and Nico is one of the many reasons this drama – also starring Neil Morrissey and Art Malik – will hook you in right from the start and keep you watching. Worth every one of these five stars.

Rating: ★★★★★ VW

The Split, 9pm (times vary), BBC1

Nathan has reacted to Hannah’s recent revelation in a way that’s quite predictable but more surprising is a brief indiscretion at Zander’s stag party. This series has been entertaining for many reasons, but at its heart is the message that no amount of fancy champagne receptions can make a marriage break-up any less gut-wrenching. It’s a satisfying finale with enough matters left unresolved for a third series.

Rating: ★★★★ JP

Back in Time for the Corner Shop, 8pm, BBC2

TV tonight Back in Time for the Corner Shop — The Arderns' shop has entered the 1970s

The Ardern family are putting on flares and brown leather jackets this week as they welcome in the 1970s. The decade starts on a high, with the time-travelling corner shop fully embracing self-service and the many big brands and convenience foods that fill the shelves. But promotion is vital as the battle against the big supermarket chains continues, with eldest son Sam finding himself inside a giant chicken costume to advertise their ‘cheap cheap prices’! There’s also a visit from snooker celebrity John Virgo, as the city of Sheffield went snooker loopy for the 1977 World Championships at the Crucible Theatre.

Rating: ★★★★ JL

The Great Celebrity Bake Off for SU2C, 8pm, C4

Hollywood royalty enters the tent in the form of genial Oscar-winner Richard Dreyfuss, and Patsy (or ‘Pasty’ as Paul calls her) Palmer, James Buckley and Scarlett Moffatt prove an equally entertaining mix as fellow competitors. They’re aiming for a perfect swirl on their roulade and to recreate their perfect place in cake form…

Rating: ★★★★ CC

Best box set to watch

Moving On, BBC iPlayer - five episodes, available now

Mark Addy shows his impressive versatility as he portrays an ex-rugby pro with a secret in episode three, series 11 of Jimmy McGovern’s compelling drama.

Best film to watch on TV tonight

The Post, Netflix

Steadfast newspaper publisher Kay Graham (Meryl Streep) and crusading Washington Post editor Ben Bradlee (Tom Hanks) team up to expose the lies of President Nixon’s US government over Vietnam, paving the way for Watergate, in Steven Spielberg’s highly topical fact-based drama set in 1971.