The best on the box
Stuff’s James Croot‘s top television picks for the week ahead.
The Doctor Blake Mysteries, 7.30pm, Friday, Vibe
As the fifth season of this popular Aussie period drama opens, an exhibition boxing match in Ballarat turns sour when one of the boxers is seemingly beaten to death in front of hundreds of witnesses. Now Blake (Craig Mclachlan) must try to determine a cause of death, as all eyes turn to the boxer’s seemingly unscrupulous opponent.
Blue Planet II, 7.30pm, Sunday, TVNZ1
Sir David Attenborough narrates this new, seven-part follow-up to the 2001 series about our oceans. Filming took place over the course of more than four years, involving 125 expeditions across 39 countries. More than 6000 hours of underwater dive footage was captured. This week’s premiere episode (One Ocean), takes us on a journey that includes the depths of New Zealand’s own waters, where false killer whales have a unique relationship with the bottleneck dolphins.
Trust Me, 8.45pm, Sunday, TVNZ1
New four-part UK drama in which a desperate former nurse (Broadchurch‘s Jodie Whittaker) steals the identity of her best friend, in order to begin a new life as a doctor. ‘‘As bogus doctor Cath Hardacre, Whittaker radiated the quality of tensile steel primed to snap,’’ wrote The Telegraph’ s Ed Power.
Brian Johnson’s A Life on the Road, 8.35pm, Tuesday, Prime
The AC/DC frontman hosts this six-part series in which he talks about touring with some of music’s greatest ever rockers. Those featured include Metallica’s Lars Ulrich, The Police’s Sting, Pink Floyd’s Nick Mason, Led Zeppelin’s Robert Plant, Def Leppard’s Joe Elliot and this week’s guest – The Who’s Roger Daltrey.
The Truth About Meat, 9.30pm, Tuesday, TVNZ1
This 2016 BBC documentary, follows Chris Bavin, a greengrocer by trade and a carnivore by nature, who wants to know if he can keep meat in his diet and stay healthy. He teams up with top scientists to put meat under the microscope and examine it as never before. They follow 40 volunteers on a groundbreaking study to find out exactly how much meat is good for us, testing whether paying more for chicken makes it any better for us, discovering a way to dramatically reduce the health risks associated with processed meats and revealing an unlikely lean supermeat that won’t break the bank.
Vodafone Music Awards, 8.30pm, Thursday, Three
A performance by Kiwi music superstar Lorde is likely to be the highlight of this year’s edition of New Zealand music’s big awards night. Hosted by Jono Pryor and Ben Boyce, the show will also feature songs by SWIDT, Theia, Teeks and Devilskin.