It's Country night on The Late Late Show, Bernie Taupin heads the guest list on The Graham Norton Show, there’s an Elton John night on the Beeb, while Ghosts returns for a final run . . .
Pick of the Day
The Late Late Show, 9.35pm, RTÉ One
Streaming on RTÉ Player
It’s only a few weeks in – but Patrick Kielty puts on a stetson for the first Late Late Show special of his tenure, as the much-loved Country night comes around.
His predecessor Ryan Tubridy was – you might say – reared far from the Country 'n’ Irish scene, but it should be quite a different story for Kielty, who comes from proper provincial stock in Dundrum, county Down.
Plenty of country fans in the cities, of course, but it takes a country man to walk a country mile and all of that.
Should be fun.
Don’t Miss
The Graham Norton Show, 10.40pm, BBC One
This week Graham Norton (below) meets the lyricist behind Elton John's hits, as legendary lyricist Bernie Taupin discusses his memoir Scattershot: Life, Music, Elton and Me.
Taupin rarely puts his head above the parapet, so this is quite a scoop.
Also: actress and comedian Catherine Tate chats about taking to the West End stage in The Enfield Haunting, while actor and rapper Ashley Walters reflects on his part in the final season of Top Boy.
Talented comedian-cum-musician Bill Bailey also appears, promoting his tour Thoughtifier. Plus, there’s music from French singer-songwriter Christine and the Queens.
Elton John at the BBC, 9.00pm, BBC Four
An Elton John night opens with a selection of interviews, news clips and archive BBC session performances from throughout the singer's career.
Featuring many of his biggest hits and starting with his first solo concert at the BBC in 1970 (see below), to his Top of the Pops performances in the 1980s and 1990s right through to his 2016 performance for Radio 2 Live in Hyde Park.
Followed by Elton John: In Concert (10pm) with a show from 1970, which should make for fascinating viewing. Then at 10.30pm there’sThe Making of Elton John: Madman Across the Water.
Finally, at 11.30pm Elton John: Uncensored is a 2019 interview with Graham Norton.
New or Returning Shows
Have I Got News for You, 9.00pm, BBC One
Victoria Coren Mitchell – my favourite poker player in the world bar former RTÉ talking head and all-round gent Con Murphy – returns to hosts the satirical current affairs quiz.
The opening guest panellists are Carol Vorderman (many a smart schoolboy’s crush back in the 1980s on Countdown) and Ignacio Lopez, who will join regular team captains Ian Hislop and Paul Merton
Collectively, all concerned poke fun at the week's headlines.
Ghosts, 8.30pm, BBC One
It’s the sixth and final season of this very English and charmingly old school supernatural comedy, starring Charlotte Ritchie, Kiell Smith-Bynoe and Simon Farnaby.
Mike approaches Alison to discuss their finances following the loss of their B&B business.
But Alison is more preoccupied with plotting revenge on the Ghosts for April Fool's Day and recruits a playful Humphrey to execute her plans.
Meanwhile, Mike is shocked to find someone from their insurance company on his doorstep - an unannounced visit to check the details of the gatehouse fire.
Can Mike convince her that lightning really can strike thrice?
New to Stream
Fair Play, Netflix
Netflix apparently coughed up something in the region of $20 million for this thriller, starring Phoebe Dynevor,Alden Ehrenreich and Eddie Marsan.
An unexpected promotion at a cut-throat hedge fund pushes a couple's romance to the brink, threatening to unravel far more than their recent engagement.
Loki Season 2, Disney
Tom Hiddleston and Owen Wilson - oh man, the moustache! - star in the much-anticipated (and definitely long-awaited) second season of the Marvel show about the Norse God of Mischief.
The new run of six weekly episodes will see Loki attempting to reignite his friendship with Mobius while also trying to convince him that the TVA’s new boss is both the old boss and something much worse.
Desperately Seeking Soulmate, Prime Video
Journalist Alice Hines delves into the world of Twin Flames Universe, an online group run by the couple Jeff and Shaleia Divine.
Their promise is to match members with their perfect partner, but after talking to former participants who describe the extreme lengths they have taken in order to claim their ‘twin flame,’ Alice soon discovers that the promise of true love comes at a price.
Totally Killer, Prime Video
35 years after the shocking murder of three teens, the infamous Sweet Sixteen Killer returns on Halloween night to claim a fourth victim.
17-year-old Jamie (Kiernan Shipka) ignores her overprotective mom's (Julie Bowen) warning and comes face to face with the masked maniac.
Cocaine Bear, Sky Cinema & NOW
Keri Russell, O’Shea Jackson Jr., Christian Convery, Alden Ehrenreich, Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Brooklynn Prince star in director Elizabeth Banks’ fact-based movie.
It’s inspired by the 1985 true story of a drug runner's plane crash, missing cocaine, and the black bear that ate it all.
An oddball group of cops, criminals, tourists and teens converge in a Georgia forest where a 500-pound apex predator has ingested a staggering amount of cocaine and gone on a coke-fuelled rampage for more blow - and blood.
