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DRAMA

GANGS OF LONDON Brutally violent but addictive crime series

The cinematic gangster thriller starring Peaky Blinders’ Joe Cole (right) has rapidly become Sky Atlantic’s most binged show of the year. When a teenage thug is tricked into killing Finn Wallace, London’s most powerful crime boss, the stability of the underworld is threatened as the Wallace family and their associates go all out to discover who ordered the hit. Was it the Albanians? The Kurds? The Pakistanis? There are some astonishing fight sequences but, be warned, this is a brutal series that revels in violence; in the 90-minute opener alone, one man has an ashtray smashed into his mouth, another is burned to death and yet another is killed with a meat cleaver. Sky/NOW TV, available now

McMILLIONS NEW SHOW How one man cheated Ronald McDonald

Anyone who has visited McDonald’s in the past decade will be familiar with the Monopoly-based giveaway the fast-food giant periodically rolls out. This fun game of chance was, however, exploited by one man – Jerry Jacobson – who over a decade managed to defraud nearly $25 million worth of prizes. This six-part docuseries explores the mastermind behind the plan and the FBI agents on his tail. Sky/NOW TV, from Wednesday

BALTHAZAR NEW SHOW Graphic French crime drama with sexy star

Raphaël Balthazar is a brilliant and handsome forensic pathologist who has ‘slept with half the female cops in Paris’, according to his colleague, but still grieves for his dead wife. He even talks to her in their apartment. Now, 12 years after her horrific murder, it looks as if her killer may have struck again. Each of the six episodes sees Balthazar (Tomer Sisley) involved in a new case while he also works on finding his wife’s killer. A huge hit in France, but the post-mortem scenes are very graphic. You’ll need a strong stomach. Acorn TV, from Monday

TAYLOR SWIFT CITY OF LOVER CONCERT La Swift in an intimate concert for her fans

In a once-in-a-lifetime musical event, Taylor Swift performs songs from her award-winning seventh album, Lover, to an intimate crowd of hand-picked Swifties flown in from 37 countries. Swift’s set list includes tracks The Man, You Need To Calm Down and Me! as well as much-loved songs from her older albums such as I Knew You Were Trouble, Shake It Off and Red. Filmed last September at L’Olympia theatre in Paris, the City of Love, this show gives fans unprecedented access to behind-the-scenes moments with Swift (left) and marks her only concert performance this year after her Lover Fest tour was cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Disney+, available now

ROSENCRANTZ & GUILDENSTERN ARE DEAD Classic play brought back to life

Tom Stoppard’s only film as a director, based on his Tony award-winning stage comedy drama. The tale follows two minor characters from Shakespeare’s Hamlet, who find themselves on the road to Elsinore Castle at the behest of the king of Denmark. Along the way they encounter a band of players, are asked to find out what is troubling the prince Hamlet and ponder the meaning of their own existence. Gary

Oldman and Tim Roth excel as the eponymous duo, while the star-studded supporting cast features Richard Dreyfuss, Iain Glen, Ian Richardson, Joanna Miles and Donald Sumpter. Acorn TV, from Monday

LANCE How the wheels came off for a cycling superhero

Lance Armstrong (above) was once the most famous and inspirational sportsman on the planet, a seven-time Tour de France winner who had survived testicular cancer and founded a charity that raised millions to support cancer sufferers around the world. He dated rock stars, travelled by private jet and transcended sport to become a global celebrity. We know now, of course, that it was only through the use of banned drugs – notably EPO – that he was able to dominate the world’s toughest cycle race from 1999 to 2006. This absorbing documentary charts his spectacular rise and fall in forensic detail, with contributions from friends, enemies, journalists, former team-mates and the man himself. Regrets? He’s got quite a few… ESPN Player (espnplayer. com); part one from Monday, part two June 1

BREAKING BAD The must-see teachercum-drug dealer show

One of the most celebrated, critically acclaimed dramas of the past 20 years. When mild-mannered chemistry teacher Walter White (Bryan Cranston) is diagnosed with lung cancer, he starts manufacturing the street drug methamphetamine in order to secure his family’s financial future. Aided and abetted by his former pupil Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul), he turns out to be very good at it. The five series chart his transformation into a ruthless, murderous drugs baron. As he tells his horrified wife in a famous scene: ‘I am not IN danger... I AM the danger.’ AMC UK/BT, from Sun, 9pm

THE BIG FIB Children catch adults in the act of telling a porkie

Community star Yvette Nicole Brown takes charge of a new game show inspired by the podcast Pants On Fire. In each episode (30 have been made in total), two adults claim to be experts in a particular subject, but one of them is lying. It’s up to the child contestant to figure out which of them is honest, and which is telling porkie pies. Flight Of The Conchords’ Rhys Darby is also set to feature as Brown’s robot sidekick C.L.I.V.E., who’s always on hand with fascinating facts. Disney+, available now