Anthony Hopkins heads the cast in swords 'n' sandals epic Those About to Die, Natalie Portman stars in Lady in the Lake, there’s a Lulu night on the Beeb and 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown returns for a new run . . .
Pick of the Day
Those About to Die, Prime Video
Directed by Roland Emmerich and starring Anthony Hopkins, Iwan Rheon and Sara Martins, this is the latest swords 'n’ sandals epic.
Set in Rome, 79 AD, the bored, restless, and increasingly violent population is kept in line by two things: free food and spectacular entertainment.
As the taste in entertainment becomes more jaded and bloodthirsty, a stadium designed for gladiatorial combat is needed - the Colosseum.
Underground, thousands of people work and live - among them thousands who will die for the games.
New or Returning Shows
8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown, 9.00pm, Channel 4
This is always good for a Friday night laugh.
Jimmy Carr (above) returns to host the hybrid of the comedy panel show and the words-and-numbers quiz, as Jon Richardson and Dan Tiernan take on Richard Ayoade and Katherine Ryan.
Mathematician Rachel Riley looks after the letters and numbers, while John Kearns joins lexicographer Susie Dent in Dictionary Corner.
BBC Proms 2024, 7.00pm, BBC Two
Clive Myrie (below) and special guests launch the 2024 BBC Proms season from the Royal Albert Hall, with Beethoven's famous Fifth Symphony.
A dazzling all-female line-up features pianist extraordinaire Isata Kanneh-Mason, superstar soprano Sophie Bevan and acclaimed conductor Elim Chan, conducting her First Night debut.
This show kicks off eight weeks of music with a programme that also includes Handel's Music for Royal Fireworks and a world premiere from 27-year-old composer Ben Nobuto.
Don’t Miss
Late Night, 9.20pm, RTÉ2
Here’s a pretty good comedy drama, starring Emma Thompson, John Lithgow and Mindy Kaling.
Late-night talk show host Katherine Newbury fears slipping ratings mean she is set to lose her long-running series. So she comes up with a plan.
She adds an inexperienced writer to her staff, mainly on the basis that she is an Indian-American woman with fresh perspective, as all the other writers are white men.
As viewership improves, a sex scandal involving Katherine comes to light, and the host's future is once more put in the spotlight.
Lulu at the BBC, 9.00pm, BBC Four
Opening a night dedicated to Scottish singer Lulu (below), here’s a collection of her most popular hits, covers and classics from a range of shows, including her own series and TV specials that were a feature of the BBC's light entertainment schedules in the 1960s and '70s.
Followed at 10.10pm by It’s Lulu, a documentary profiling the life and career of the singer, who first shot to fame at the age of 15 with her chart-topping cover of the Isley Brothers' Shout.
Featuring contributions by Lulu, as well as Emma Bunton, Maurice Gibb, Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders. First broadcast in 1999
Then it’s Lulu at the Blazer’s Club, Aa1981 performance by the singer in front of fans at Blazer's Club in Windsor.
Finally, at 11.20pm there’s Sounds of the Sixties, which includes Sandie Shaw, Dusty Springfield and - of course - Lulu.
New to Stream
Lady in the Lake, Apple TV+
Natalie Portman stars in this limited series based on the novel of the same name by Laura Lippman.
Set in 1960s’ Baltimore, Portman plays Maddie Schwartz, a housewife who decides to leave her doting husband and big Pikesville home to pursue a career as a newspaper investigative journalist.
She becomes obsessed with unraveling the mystery of two separate killings: eleven-year-old Tessie Fine and the underreported murder of a bar worker named Cleo Sherwood.
Skywalkers: A Love Story, Netflix
Part romance, part thriller, this documentary film follows a daredevil couple as they take their relationship to terrifying new heights in a wild scheme to climb the world’s second highest skyscraper and perform a death-defying stunt on the spire.
Young Woman and the Sea, Disney+
Daisy Ridley stars in the true story of as the accomplished swimmer Trudy Ederl who was born to immigrant parents in New York City in 1905.
Through the support of her older sister and trainers, she overcame adversity and the animosity of a patriarchal society to rise through the ranks of the Olympic swimming team.
She also went on to complete the staggering achievement of swimming the Englich Channel - a 21-mile trek from France to England.
The film also stars Tilda Cobham-Hervey, Stephen Graham, Kim Bodnia, Christopher Eccleston, and Glenn Fleshler, and is based on the book Young Woman and the Sea: How Trudy Ederle Conquered the English Channel and Inspired the World by Glenn Stout.
Omnivore, Apple TV+
Created and narrated by René Redzepi, the chef and co-owner of world-renowned restaurant Noma, this is an immersive journey into the world of food.
Each episode celebrates the cultivation, transformation and consumption of the world's most essential ingredients, including bananas, chilies, coffee, corn, pork, rice, salt and tuna, revealing how they serve as the cornerstones of global cultural heritage.
Redzepi and Emmy Award-winning executive producer Matt Goulding guide viewers on a globe-spanning odyssey, unveiling intricate stories behind the ingredients that have shaped societies, cultures, beliefs and the course of human history.
Find Me Falling, Netflix
Coming off a flop album and his biggest hit's dwindling popularity, aging rock star John Allman (Harry Connick Jr.) decides to take a break from his career to reclaim his spark.
He moves to an isolated cliffside home on the idyllic Mediterranean island of Cyprus. His dream of keeping a low profile is derailed when he is routinely confronted by desperate souls and later faced with even more complicated surprises when an old flame reignites.
