BOX SETS AND ON DEMAND

Stacey Dooley Investigates: The Whale Hunters (BBC3, available now)

The eponymous broadcaster has proved herself to be one of the most engaging and fearless TV journalists over the past decade, and it’s largely thanks to BBC3. For her latest case she looks at the ever controversial issue of whale hunting. Sadly the number of countries participating is growing. Stacey investigates the issue both its traditional and commercial forms, to see how moral, ethical or environmentally friendly it really is. While traditionalists say whaling is a sustainable and natural food resource, sceptics believe it causes more harm than good, claiming it is inhumane and barbaric. On the Lofoten Islands in the northern part of Norway, Ms Dooley joins skipper Bjorn and his crew on a week-long commercial whaling trip to the Arctic Circle to find out more.

Hard Up (BBC3, available now)

BBC Thee’s sitcom This Country was one of the funniest documentary-style sitcoms since The Office as it explored young people’s lives in the Cotswolds. In the real world, 130 miles south of that region, cameras have been documenting the realities of growing up in North Devon. This three-part series examines one of Britain’s most beautiful counties, and unlike This Country, it’s no laughing matter. While young people face a crowded housing market, violence and limited jobs, unlike Kerry and Kurtan, these characters are smart, driven and ambitious. The first episode features Harry as he tries to get out of supported accommodation.

Ragnarok (Netflix, from Fri)

Teens with special powers have been the staple of US fantasy adventures for years, whether in shows like Heroes and Stranger

Things, or big screen offerings like Chronicle. The idea may have been done to death, but it’s good to see a Norwegian coming-of-age drama contributing a new angle on Norse mythology. Boasting some breathtaking scenery and a cast thankfully lacking any baggage (at least to us in Blighty), the series is set in the small, fictitious town of Edda, where some of the locals are perhaps not all who they claim to be. Via some of these gifted characters, we experience a drastically changing world, including melting poles, warm winters and violent downpours. The cast includes includes Henriette Steenstrup and OddMagnus Williamson.

Ted Bundy: Falling for a Killer (Amazon Prime, from Fri)

Last year’s Ted Bundy biopic, Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile, was a bittersweet love story which felt like the poor relation to director Joe Berlinger’s remarkable documentary Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes. It was a horribly misguided move which meant whether intentional or not, you started rooting for the psychopath. And Bundy was definitely not some antihero robbing from the rich and giving to the poor. He kidnapped, raped, and murdered numerous young women and girls. Now this five-part docu-series examines Bundy’s crimes from a female perspective.

Ted Bundy