Today's top tips include the IFTA Film & Drama Awards 2021, Ghislaine Maxwell: Epstein’s Shadow, the return of biker drama Mayans MC, and the finale of Jim Sheridan’s Murder at the Cottage . . .
Pick of the Day
IFTA Film & Drama Awards 2021, 10.00pm, Virgin Media One
One of the many things that the pandemic has messed up is the entertainment industry’s many awards nights. They're just not the same.
On the up side, the fact that most famous folk are stuck at home these days means that it’s easier to get them involved in something like this Irish awards event.
The likes of Oscar-winner Olivia Colman and Star Wars' legend Mark Hamill (below) are on board this year, while Gráinne Seoige hosts coverage of the now virtual award ceremony.
Nominations were shortlisted by Irish Academy members alongside a specialist jury panel of industry experts from around the world.
TV shows and films up for awards included Normal People, Dating Amber, Herself, Smother and Blood.
Don’t Miss
Ghislaine Maxwell: Epstein’s Shadow, 9.00pm, Sky Documentaries
Streaming on NOW TV
Part two of this documentary takes up after the death of her father in 1991, a time when Ghislaine Maxwell fled to New York where she fell in love with the corrupt Jeffrey Epstein.
When she met Epstein, she became his girlfriend, employee, partner and alleged madame in his sex trafficking scheme.
The penultimate part of the tale promises to untangle the complicated story of power, sex and money leading to Ghislaine Maxwell's arrest and pointing to her upcoming trial.
New or Returning Shows
Mayans MC, 11.30pm, BBC Two
The return of the crime drama (a Sons of Anarchy spin-off) about a biker gang set in the borderlands between Mexico and the USA, which is now up to its third season.
The Mayans and their Californian town suffer as federal forces crack down on all illegal activity, and grieving Galindo lets his legitimate project dry up too.
Discovery Concerts, 7.15pm, BBC Four
Katie Derham introduces a performance by the BBC Concert Orchestra of the full score to David Lean's 1957 film The Bridge on the River Kwai – composed by Malcolm Arnold.
She talks to film composer Debbie Wiseman about what makes it so special, both as a piece in its own right and as an element of the film.
Derham also discovers the story of the composer's troubled life, from his committed pacifism during the Second World War to his later struggles with mental illness and alcoholism.
Ending Tonight
Murder at the Cottage: The Search for Justice for Sophie, 10.00pm, Sky Documentaries
Streaming on NOW TV
After 24 years of suspicion, the French authorities put Ian Bailey on trial in absentia for the brutal murder of Sophie Toscan du Plantier in West Cork in 1996.
The defendant remains in his home in Ireland while French Magistrates deliberate on his fate.
In this episode, Jim Sheridan conducts a unique cross-examination of Bailey with the evidence presented against him, in the French Court.
Now, a week of reckoning looms as the French Judiciary finally hold the English journalist, who was the first reporter on the murder scene back in 1996, to account.
If convicted, he faces twenty-five years in jail.
Back in Ireland, Bailey attends a local market miles from the murder scene to sell some chickens while he awaits his fate.
Impossible Animals: With Patrick Ayree, 8.00pm, Sky Nature
Streaming on NOW TV
In the final episode of the series, viewers can journey with Patrick Ayree to the some of the world’s most fascinating and treacherous coastlines.
In this turbulent environment, the creatures here are ruled by the tides. In the battle to survive the explosive white-water world, animals here have morphed their bodies in bizarre and fascinating ways.
Sunday Cinema
Metal Heart, 9.30pm, RTÉ One
Director Hugh O'Conor's coming-of-age comedy drama, starring Jordanne Jones, Leah McNamara and Moe Dunford.
A bubbling rivalry between shy goth Emma and her blonde socialite twin sister Chantal comes to a head when their parents leave them home alone for the summer.
Chantal's plans are put on hold when she suffers a minor car crash, and matters take an intriguing turn when Dan, a mysterious young neighbour moves in next door.
Yesterday, 8.15pm, BBC One
Danny Boyle's romantic comedy, starring Himesh Patel and Lily James, is certainly a fun way to pass this Sunday night.
It might even put you in a good mood - an experience that seems almost verboten these days.
Jack, a struggling musician, gets hit by a bus during a mysterious event.
When he regains consciousness, he finds that he is the only person who can remember the Beatles, and sets out to exploit the opportunity by passing their hits off as his own compositions.
Family Flicks
Clash of the Titans, 2.55pm, BBC One
Here’s a classic mythical adventure, starring Harry Hamlin, Laurence Olivier, Maggie Smith and Judi Bowker, with special effects by Ray Harryhausen.
A hero of ancient Greece vows to save a princess from being sacrificed to a ferocious sea monster.
In order to defeat the creature he must first embark on a journey into the underworld and seize the head of the monstrous Medusa, whose gaze turns men to stone.
Into the Woods, 1.00pm, BBC Two
Musical fantasy, based on Stephen Sondheim's hit stage show, which entwines the fairy tale stories of Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Jack and the Beanstalk and Rapunzel.
It stars Meryl Streep, James Corden, Anna Kendrick and Emily Blunt, with a cameo by Johnny Depp as the Big Bad Wolf.
The story revolves around a wicked witch who agrees to lift a curse on a young couple if they will help restore her once beautiful looks.
Click here for TV listings
