Sarah Goldberg and Susan Stanley star in SisterS, The Dog Academy looks at canine psychology, Taskmaster and Gordon Ramsay’s Future Food Stars return, while David Harewood presents Get on Up: The Triumph of Black America . . .
Pick of the Day
SisterS, 10.15pm, RTÉ One
Streaming on RTÉ Player
Here’s a comedy drama, created by, written by and starring Emmy nominee Sarah Goldberg – aka Sally from HBO show Barry – and Dubliner Susan Stanley.
After the death of her mother, Canadian thirtysomething Sare (Goldberg) decides to travel to Ireland to find her birth father but gets a lot more than she bargained for.
Amongst the surprises is her half-sister Sue, played by Stanley. After a shaky start, they decide to seek out the one thing they have in common: their father.
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In real life, Goldman and Stanley are BFF actors who began writing together after meeting at acting colege, and have co-created, co-written and co-produced this smart dramedy, which also features Pat Shortt, Carrie Crowley – and a tremendous turn from Sophie Thompson.
All episodes will be available on the RTÉ Player following tonight’s broadcast.
Don’t Miss
Jesus Christ Superstar, 9.00pm, BBC Four
For better or worse – depending on your taste in music – this is pretty much the epitome of the rock opera genre that became hugely popular in the1960s and ’70s.
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The film’s based on the mega-successful Andrew Lloyd Webber stage show and starring Ted Neeley, Carl Anderson, Yvonne Elliman and Barry Dennan.
It’s a musical following the last days in the life of Jesus Christ, seen from the perspective of the disciple Judas, who is gradually tempted into betraying his friend and sending him to his death.
New or Returning Shows
Taskmaster, 9.00pm, Channel 4
Greg Davies (below) sets tasks for Frankie Boyle, Ivo Graham, Jenny Eclair, Kiell Smith-Bynoe and Mae Martin, as the latest band of intrepid players hoping to become the 15th Taskmaster champion.
In this opening episode, Jenny dances around a giant golden pineapple in a wedding dress, while Frankie discovers why cats love balls of string so much.
Greg’s ‘Admiral of Admin’ Alex Horne – the brainbox behind this show – helps maintain order amid the chaos.
The Dog Academy, 8.00pm, Channel 4
Shades of Cesar Milan here as this new series features a crack team of Britain’s top specialist trainers instruct beleaguered owners in dog management skills and dog psychology.
Ferocious cockapoo Bear is driving a wedge between owners Paul and Louise. With their marriage under stress, Victoria and Adam (above) must help tame Bear’s aggressive behaviour before it’s too late.
Eleven-year-old Chihuahua Gina is a pocket rocket with an attitude problem. Because of her penchant for attacking other dogs, mum and son Cindy and Cory have to carry her around in a special zipped-up safety bag.
It remains to be seen whether the trainers can teach an old dog new tricks.
Gordon Ramsay’s Future Food Stars, 9.00pm, BBC One
The acerbic chef resumes his search for the UK’s most exciting and innovative new food and drink business.
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He’ll be hand-picking 12 of the best up-and-coming food and drink entrepreneurs to compete to earn an investment – £150,000 of his own money.
This second season starts by Ramsay inviting the contenders to Glenapp Castle, where he tasks them with creating banquets celebrating his birth-place – Scotland.
Will they thrive under pressure or crumble as members of the Edinburgh Royal Military Tattoo, no less, sit down to feast?
Get on Up: The Triumph of Black America, 9.00pm, BBC Two
This should be good.
Actor David Harewood (below) travels across the US to discover the stories behind his artistic heroes from the 1960s to the 1990s.
Along the way he discovers how these African-American performers, filmmakers and writers have come to transform popular culture around the world.
Says Harewood: “The series is a personal journey through African American culture during my lifetime.
“Starting in the 1960s the decade I was born, and those significant moments that have affected me and really shifted the dial in terms of how Black culture has been perceived and had a global impact.”
Jason & Maude: In Memory of Maudie, 9.00pm, UTV/ITV1
Actor Jason Watkins (below, with Thandie Newton in Line of Duty) and his wife Clara Francis tell the emotional story of their daughter Maudie, who died suddenly aged just two and a half in the early hours of New Year’s Day 2011.
Maudie died of undiagnosed sepsis, a condition where the body’s immune system overreacts to an infection, causing it to go into overdrive and attack the body’s tissues and organs.
Since the tragedy, Jason and Clara have been seeking to raise awareness of sepsis and also to help and give hope to other bereaved parents.
Now, as the family are about to move from the flat where Maudie was born and died, they feel the time is right to tell their story and explore their own grief.
Billy Connolly Does, 9.00pm, Gold
As the second season of this series begins, Billy tackles heroes and villains, both public and personal, from the Swiss and their expletive-inducing ‘neutrality’ to memories of his sister looking out for him.
New to Stream
Unstable, Netflix
Ellis Dragon (Rob Lowe) is a universally admired, eccentric, narcissist-adjacent biotech entrepreneur working to make the world a better place. He’s also in emotional free-fall.
His son Jackson Dragon (John Owen Lowe) is… none of those things. Can Jackson save Ellis and his company and salvage their estranged relationship while also doing what may actually be impossible: escaping the shadow of his larger-than-life father?
They’ll figure it out. Well, maybe.
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Riverdale: Season 7, Netflix
The supernatural crime drama returns for its seventh – and – final season.
With over 100 episodes, Riverdale has been one of the biggest shows from The CW over the past six years.
Mark Pedowitz, the chairman and CEO of The CW, said: “We will treat the show in the manner it deserves . . . We want to make sure it goes out the right way.”
Fans will know what to expect at this stage. Let’s hope the show gets a good send-off.