This week’s best TV
FRIDAY REQUIEM (BBC1, 9pm)
THIS six-part chiller centres on a young cellist (Ripper Street’s Lydia Wilson with a striking platinum do) preparing to abandon a life of swiping right by relocating from London to New York.
But when a family tragedy wrecks her plans, Matilda and her accompanist Hal (Joel Fry) find themselves in a small Welsh community, stirring up memories of a cold case from two decades ago.
SATURDAY CHARLES I’S TREASURES REUNITED (BBC2, 9PM)
SINCE the New Year, the BBC has been celebrating the Royal Collection with programmes across TV and radio - and their season has definitely been given the Windsor seal of approval.
But the latest entry in the season, Charles I’s Treasures Reunited, proves that the artworks amassed by British royals haven’t always been treated with such reverence.
SUNDAY MCMAFIA (BBC1, 9pm)
WITH enough twists, turns and red herrings to make your average episode of Homeland look like a feature-length Spongebob, McMafia has kept its core of viewers gripped – but has, it must be said, shed a few along the way.
Here, Alex heads to Moscow for a seemingly routine business trip, blissfully unaware that, thanks to Dmitri, he’s hurtling towards an ever more dangerous situation.
With a final showdown looming, the plucky hedge-fund manager must draw on all his wits – and play his final trump card – before facing Vadim in a dramatic confrontation.
MONDAY TRAUMA (ITV, 9pm)
DOCTOR Foster was one of the most highly regarded series of recent years, so when its writer, Olivier Award-winner Mike Bartlett, comes out with a new TV thriller then it’s understandable that ears should prick up.
In a story which seems very current, Lester plays Jon Allerton, a high-flying and successful consultant working in the trauma department of a hospital; Dan Bowker (Simm) is the working-class father of a 15-year-old boy, Alex, who is brought in to Allerton’s ward after he is stabbed.
When the worst happens, and Alex dies from his injuries, Dan is devastated – and decides to pull at the thread which holds Allerton’s apparently charmed life together, and do what he can to take revenge on this cocksure surgeon.
TUESDAY SHETLAND (BBC One, 9pm)
ONE of the secrets of Shetland’s success is its far north setting - the isles themselves are almost a character in their own right.
This time around, fans of the books don’t need to worry about a favourite story being torn apart by a screenwriter, because this time, it’s a completely original tale that runs throughout the six-part series. The plot focuses on local man Thomas Malone, who has spent the past 23 years behind bars after being found guilty of murdering teenager Lizzie Kilmuir.
WEDNESDAY DAMNED (Channel 4, 10pm)
THE staff of Elm Heath Social Services deal with a single-mum sex worker, a case of historic abuse and the records that have potentially gone missing from the newly digitised files.
So, it’s not a great time for Denise (Georgie Glenn) to bring Mimi (Lolly Adefope) into the fold, especially as newly single Al (Alan Davies) and a permanently stressed Rose are too busy dealing with their own domestic disasters to mentor her.
THURSDAY THE JOB INTERVIEW (Channel 4, 10pm)
APPARENTLY, The Job Interview is a ‘fixed-rig format.’
If you’re wondering what that means, you’re not alone. It’s TV jargon for a show shot on multiple cameras so that as many angles and aspects of a story can be captured at once without having a crew hanging around.
It’s thought that the lack of camera personnel hanging around encourages participants to act more naturally.
However, acting naturally is far from easy during a job interview. This is a time when you’re attempting to project the best possible version of yourself in a bid to impress a potential employer.