Satellite choice
MOVIE CLASSIC Anastasia, 4.15pm, Film4
INGRID BERGMAN (pictured) dazzles in this fascinating factbased drama. It’s the remarkable story of Anna Anderson, a troubled woman who claimed to be the murdered Russian princess.
FAMILY SHOW PAW Patrol Christmas Special, 5pm, Nickelodeon
THE talented rescue dogs are rehearsing a seasonal song, but they’re missing inspiration — there’s no snow. Bigger problems soon loom in this jolly special when the abduction of some performing penguins places their wider yuletide plans in jeopardy. (Sky 604, Virgin 712)
FOOTBALL Reading v Cardiff City, 7.30pm, Sky Football & Main Event
CARDIFF have made a strong start to the season, with goals from Junior Hoilett firing their promotion push. Tonight they head to the Madejski Stadium to face a Reading side who are desperate to move away from the relegation zone . . .
FILM MUSICAL Mamma Mia!, 7.50pm, ITV3
SET to the music of Abba, this uplifting romantic comedy has sun, sea, songs and a top-notch cast. Meryl Streep is the mum whose daughter wants to know who her dad is — from three potential candidates.
LIVES REVEALED The Secrets In My Family, 9pm, W
TWO confessions — one involving a sperm donor, the other a father’s previously unknown other family — are the subject of the final edition of this mix of genealogical research and family reunion. The journey of the Reverend Kes, from the second confession, is particularly moving.
DANGEROUS WORLD Hot Spots, 9pm, Sky Atlantic
THE first of an eye-opening new series, set to run monthly, which goes behind the scenes of reports from hostile areas. Veteran journalists Alex Crawford (pictured) and Stuart Ramsay are our guides, and the first episode deals with the fall of Islamic State in Raqqa, northern Syria.
CHILLER The Walking Dead, 9pm, Fox
THE losses have been steep on Rick’s side of the fight in season eight, even if most of the casualties have been characters you’d struggle to recognise. Yet, despite all the death, perhaps the biggest recent development has been the rift between Rick (Andrew Lincoln, pictured) and Daryl. This mid-season finale brings all the stories to a head.
ON-DEMAND MOVIE The Hitman’s Bodyguard, BT TV Store, Sky Store, Virgin
SAMUEL L. JACKSON and Ryan Reynolds star in this watchable buddy comedy about a sweary assassin (Jackson) and the bodyguard (Reynolds) who is assigned to protect him.
DARK DRAMA The Widower, 10pm, ITV3
REECE SHEARSMITH (The League Of Gentlemen) is on supremely unsettling form in ITV’s three-part drama from 2014 about the real-life wife-killer Malcolm Webster. Sheridan Smith plays the first woman to marry this softly spoken monster. This is the first of a repeat run that continues daily.