TV tonight: Our highlights for Tuesday, May 2, 2023

(Image credit: HBO/Warner Media)

On TV tonight, Perry Mason returns for a second season, The Yorkshire Vet faces more poorly pets, Gregg Wallace visits the Ambrosia rice pudding factory in Inside the Factory, John Sergeant's Big Steam Adventure continues and moving wartime drama A Small Light arrives on Disney Plus. 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

Perry Mason season 2, 10 pm, Sky Atlantic/NOW (box set)

Della Street (Juliet Rylance) and Perry Mason (Matthew Rhys) in Perry Mason season 2 — (Image credit: HBO/Warner Media)

If the note-perfect performances and compelling court cases at the heart of this prequel series aren’t enough to entice you, the incredibly faithful recreation of 1930s Los Angeles and superb period-style cinematography will probably do it. Matthew Rhys (The Americans) returns as the iconic defence attorney – originally played by Raymond Burr in the classic series from 1957 to 1993 – who, having started out as a low-rent PI, is experiencing a bout of imposter syndrome in his new career in civil law. But when he senses a potentially major miscarriage of justice in a high-profile murder trial, Perry can’t resist throwing himself into it. Juliet Rylance co-stars as secretary Della Street.

★★★★★ SP

The Big Steam Adventure, 9 pm, Channel 5

Broadcaster John Sergeant, actor Peter Davison and North Yorkshire Moors Railway’s Piglet continue their quest to travel from London to Scotland by steam. This week, on a diet of pasties, pickled eggs and kippers in a tin, they manage the leg from Peterborough to York by steam-powered train, barge, another steam train and, finally, a traction engine it takes all three of them to drive. The feel-good is as old-fashioned as their snacks, and the banter between all three of them is just as glorious. Best of all is the look on John’s face when he’s invited up to help ‘drive’ the train 92 Squadron (named after the Battle of Britain). ‘I’ve drawn the short straw,’ he gripes, loving every single minute of it.

★★★★ SM

Inside the Factory, 8 pm, BBC Two

Gregg Wallace visiting a rice pudding factory — (Image credit: BBC/Voltage TV)

If you think rice pudding is a dessert from yesteryear, think again – we spend £100 million on it every year. Gregg Wallace is at the Ambrosia factory in Devon, which produces 23 million cans of the soft rice and sweet milk combo per annum, to break down the ‘lots of science going on in this little tin’. As Gregg follows the canning process from Rice Intake to Dispatch, Ruth Goodman looks at the history of school dinners by subjecting some students to Spam. Cherry Healey also visits Tiptree, Essex, to find out about our favourite rice pudding accompaniment, strawberry preserve, in another jam-packed edition (ba-dum-tish!).

★★★ NT

The Yorkshire Vet, 8 pm, Channel 5

One of vet Julian Norton’s regular clients is dangling a jar of home-made marmalade as a thank you if he can save her terrier’s tail. Surely this doesn’t count as a bribe? Meanwhile, Peter Wright and the Greens are trading stories about the Thirsk days when James Herriot himself was likely to turn out if there was an animal in distress. Talking of which, Rohin Aojula has been called out to take a look at a horse that’s picked up a nasty injury while out on a ride. And he’s taken his dad along to show him just what that involves.

★★★ SM

A Small Light, Disney Plus

A Small Light on DIsney Plus stars Bel Powley and Joe Cole. — (Image credit: Disney Plus)

This moving eight-part drama – beginning with two episodes today – retells the story of Holocaust victim Anne Frank from the point of view of spirited Austrian Miep Gies (The Morning Show’s Bel Powley), who helped to hide the Frank family from the Nazis in occupied Amsterdam for more than two years. Powley is superb as Miep, and episode one charts her relationship with Otto Frank (Liev Schreiber, also excellent), who reluctantly employs her, a decision he will live to be very thankful for. Joe Cole and Caroline Catz are also among the impressive cast.

★★★★ IM

Best box set on TV tonight

Sweet Tooth season 2, Netflix

Dania Ramirez as Aimee and Naledi Murray as Wendy in "Sweet Tooth" on Netflix. — (Image credit: Netflix)

The family-friendly fantasy is back for a second series this week, with half-human hybrid Gus and his friends having to gather their strength to figure out what caused the Great Crumble, the chaotic era when 98% of the world’s population was killed off by a virus.

But as Gus begins a dark journey to find a cure for a new wave of the Sick, he also learns more about his own origins, as well as his mother Birdie’s role in the events leading up to the collapse of society. Christian Convery (recently seen in Cocaine Bear) returns as Gus, alongside Nonso Anozie and Adeel Akhtar. James Brolin acts as the narrator.

Best film on TV tonight

Fatal Attraction, 11 pm, Channel 5

The 1987 movie Fatal Attraction with Glenn Close, Michael Douglas and Anne Archer. — (Image credit: Paramount Picutres)

A married lawyer has a one-night stand with a business associate while his wife and children are out of town. He hopes to keep his infidelity a secret, but she is determined to continue the relationship, and begins obsessively stalking him and his unsuspecting family. Thriller, starring Michael Douglas, Glenn Close and Anne Archer.