Top of the box! 9 must-watch shows hitting TV this week
Anna Wintour throws it back to the 90s, Joey King embraces her flaws, Lily Collins takes Emily to Rome plus six more sizzling shows to add to your watchlist.
PICK OF THE WEEK
In Vogue: The 90s, Disney+, Fri 13 Sep
Gen Z can keep their Brat summers and attempts at a Y2K revival, they would all be nothing without 90s Vogue, and this glorious documentary demonstrates just why. Told through the eyes of Anna Wintour, Edward Enninful and a whole slew of A-listers – hello Victoria Beckham, Mary J Blige, Naomi Campbell, Gwyneth Paltrow, Sarah Jessica Parker, Claudia Schiffer the list goes on – In Vogue: The 90s takes a definitive look at the ways the decade reshaped fashion. From the rise of the Super’s to the seismic arrival of Kate Moss to the impact of AIDS. Not short on goss, this is a must-watch for fashion lovers and a delicious walk down memory lane for anyone born before the year 2000.
In My Own words: Alison Lapper, BBC One, Mon 9 Sep
Ready for an emotional rollercoaster of a watch? Artist, muse and mother, Alison Lapper, takes a look back over her extraordinary life in this emotionally intimate documentary. From her disability and the backlash over Marc Quinn’s sculpture of her for Trafalgar Square’s fourth plinth in 2005, to her art and losing her only son, Parys, to an accidental overdose in 2019. Though you’ll need to keep the tissues on standby, Lapper’s remarkable story is an inspiration to watch.
Jack Whitehall: Fatherhood With My Father, Netflix, Tue 10 Sep
Get set for a slightly different type of travelogue from the Whitehall clan. With fatherhood imminent for Jack, he embarks on a tour with Michael “Daddy” Whitehall in tow to answer all the big questions he has about becoming a Dad. From parental retreats and technological advancements (hello synthesised contractions) to Father Whitehall’s rather old fashioned outlook on gender roles, the pair cover it all in their usual silly fashion. An amusing, easy watch which fans of this father and son duo will love.
Ross Kemp: The Mafia and Britain, Sky History, Tue 10 Sep
He captivated us back in the day with his riveting docs on gangs, pirates and frontline fighting, now Eastenders‘ former hard man, Ross Kemp, is back at it this time with a deep dive on The Mafia and Britain. In this interesting film, Kemp reveals the extent of Britain’s historical dealings with the mob and embarks on a journey encompassing alcohol exports during prohibition, the notorious Kray Twins and the five families, gambling in the Sixties and Columbian drug cartels. Fascinating stuff even if gangsters and the like aren’t your usual TV tipple.
Emily in Paris, Netflix, Thu 12 Sep
Emily in Paris, or rather Rome, is back for part deux this week where she’s doing a great job of channeling her inner Audrey Hepburn – check out the Charade like ski fits and Vespa riding à la Roman Holiday. Anyway, we digress, the second outing for season four sees our Emily Cooper (Lily Collins) leaving Paris for Rome – as the French breathe a collective sigh of relief – for a mixture of business and pleasure. Cue some Italian arm candy and another hottie for Emily to lose her head over. Predictable? Of course, but we’ve stuck with it this long.
Into The Fire: The Lost daughter, Netflix, Thu 12 Sep
True crime fodder incoming! This remarkable documentary (uh hum, produced by Charlize Theron) follows mother Cathy Tarkanian as she embarks on a mission to find out what happened to the daughter she put up for adoption 35 years earlier. A mission which unearths a stranger than fiction story when she learns that her child is officially missing, last seen by the adoptive parents in 1989. Gasp. Dramatic and a true test of maternal devotion, you’ll binge this in a heartbeat to find out what the hell happened.
Uglies, Netflix, Fri 13 Sep
Joey King, Laverne Cox, Chase Stokes, Keith Powers and Brianne Tju star in this sci-fi slash body horror based on the popular YA novel by Scott Westerfeld. Set in a futuristic dystopia where everyone is considered ugly until they turn 16 and are forced to undergo mandatory cosmetic surgery to make them pretty. Tally (King) like the rest of the Uglies cannot wait for her surgery, until one of her friends disappears and her journey to find them upends everything she thought she wanted. Cool special effects and an interesting premise make this perfect for a Friday film night.
The Grand Tour: One For the Road, Prime Video, Fri 13 Sep
Over two decades Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond have travelled thousands of miles, driven a lot of cars, had many breakdowns (emotional and vehicular), one near-death experience and a whole lotta laughs, but the time has come for them to hang up their car keys for good. After one last hurrah, of course. This final grand tour sees the trio take cars they’ve always wanted to own on an emotional race through Zimbabwe. Expect the usual levels of banter, boot cut jeans and blokey oneupmanship in One For The Road.
Nightsleeper, BBC One, Sun 15 Sep
Nothing like a tense thriller to relieve those Sunday scaries. Naaaat but all aboard the Nightsleeper we go as it’s too good to miss! Joe Cole, Alexandra Roach, Sharon Small and Sharon Rooney star in this real-time nail-biter about the hacking of a sleeper train travelling from Glasgow to London. It follows a government agency’s fraught efforts to intervene as events begin to escalate on board. An explosive, action-packed, mile-a-minute of a watch.