On TV tonight, the brilliant Sherwood continues in BBC One and more relatives are reunited in Long Lost Family on ITV. British Asian history is explored in Back in Time for Birmingham on BBC Two and Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall returns for River Cottage Reunited on More4. Tom Selleck stars in Blue Bloods on Sky Witness and on C4 there's an extraordinary new documentary that reveals How to Hire a Hitman. Here’s what you shouldn’t miss on TV tonight.
- Our hand selected recommendations for what's on TV tonight include six 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
Sherwood, 9pm, BBC One
This captivating series provides us with a feast of impressions and intrigue tonight as the ongoing murder investigations and manhunts are mixed with poignant character studies. One of the most fascinating relationships is that of estranged sisters Julie and Cathy, played with visceral conviction by Lesley Manville and Claire Rushbrook, and a beautifully shot garden scene between the pair is an emotionally charged highlight. Elsewhere, there’s a memorable cameo from Stephen Tompkinson, as an ex-miner who reveals an incendiary secret while in town for Gary Jackson’s funeral.
★★★★★ SMA
Long Lost Family, 9pm, ITV
Born profoundly deaf, Joselyn Taylor has spent a lifetime wondering if that was why her birth mother gave her up for adoption. But the 67-year-old grandmother finally gets all the answers in tonight’s moving episode when the team track down her older half brother, James. Not only does James remember holding Joselyn as a baby, but he also reveals the reason why their mother was forced to give her up – it was because she was an unmarried single mother, and not because of Joselyn’s hearing problems. But that’s not the end of the story, and there’s a further twist in the tale when James discovers yet more family secrets…
★★★★ HD
Back in Time for Birmingham, 8pm, BBC Two
The living history series follows a Birmingham family – mum and dad Manisha and Vishal, daughter Alisha and son Akash – as they experience British Asian history. They start in the 1950s, when immigrants arrived from India and Pakistan to take up jobs in industry in the Midlands under spartan conditions, as Vishal and Akash learn when forced to share a bed and eat baked-bean curry! Later in the series, we’ll see them become more self-sufficient, as well as experiencing racist violence sparked by Enoch Powell’s "Rivers of Blood" speech.
★★★★ IM
River Cottage Reunited, 9pm, More4
Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall is at his affable best in this welcome reboot of the iconic River Cottage series. Revelling in his new outdoor ‘veg patch kitchen’, Hugh gets down to business rustling up cauliflower ‘steaks’ before going head-to-head in a ‘beer-off’ with fermenting guru Rachel de Thample, transforming a fermented tea drink into a low-alcohol beer. There’s fun and games trying to coax excitable piglets into a new pen, while Hugh proves pretty nifty with a chainsaw as he attempts to recreate wild bee hives from tree trunks.
★★★★ RF
Blue Bloods, 9pm, Sky Witness/NOW
Tom Selleck returns in the 12th series of the US cop drama as NYPD police commissioner Frank Reagan, patriarch of a law-and-order family that includes a detective son (Donnie Wahlberg) and district attorney daughter (Bridget Moynahan). In the opener, Frank is at odds with the New York mayor (Dylan Walsh) following an increase in crime. Watch out for Tony Danza and the return of Lyle Lovett and Alex Kingston this series.
★★★ RMC
How to Hire a Hitman, 10pm, C4
For this extraordinary two-part documentary, presenter Yinka Bokinni investigates a contract-killing website on the dark web run by a man known only as Yura. A recent hack into the site revealed 282 plots to kill. But Yinka soon reveals a twist in this tale – Yura is in fact an online scammer who has taken people’s money but never delivered on the hits. When law enforcement agencies investigated, however, it led to arrests around the world for plotting to kill.
★★★ HD
Best box set to watch on TV tonight
The Lazarus Project, Sky Box Sets/NOW
Giri/Haji creator Joe Barton offers up a fast-paced new entry into the sci-fi canon with this eight-part series, as George (I May Destroy You’s Paapa Essiedu) gets recruited into a top-secret organisation with the power to reset time if humanity is threatened with extinction. At first, he’s delighted with his new superhero-esque gig, but then he’s struck by a personal tragedy – which he isn’t allowed to undo. This excellent thriller deploys moral dilemmas and high-octane chase scenes, and it boasts a cracking ensemble cast which includes Caroline Quentin.
Best film to watch on TV tonight
The Craft Legacy, Netflix
This respectful sequel to the 1996 film updates the mythology and builds on the first film's themes. Lily (Cailee Spaeny) hates her new school until a trio of gothy outsiders (Zoey Luna, Gideon Adlon and Lovie Simone) invite her to join their coven. But, this time, the witches aren't out for revenge. They just want everyone to be nicer and their power comes more from their friendship than spell books. An effective supernatural coming-of-age movie.
Live Sport
- Tennis: Eastbourne, 1pm, BBC Two
Soaps on TV tonight
- EastEnders, 7.30pm, BBC One
- 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 Sherwood on TV tonight – this brilliant drama just gets better and better.
Not found anything you want to watch on TV tonight? Check out our TV Guide.
Happy viewing!
