Future gazing
While most of us have already broken our New Year’s resolutions, there’s still one thing we can all commit to: a fresh batch of TV shows. Rebecca Balloch takes a peek at what’s coming up in 2023
Safe Home SBS
She’s a breakout star thanks to her sassy turn in the hit US comedy-drama The Bold Type; now Aisha Dee returns home to effortlessly lead this goosebump-making drama, which cracks open the taboos and stereotypes behind family violence. Based on playwright Anna Barnes’ experience, Dee is compelling as a 20-something professional who leaves her law-firm job to work at a struggling family violence legal centre. Also starring Virginia Gay (Winners and Losers) and Mabel Li (New Gold Mountain), and produced by Imogen Banks (Offspring), it’s a gripping thriller that fearlessly explores a deeply troubling issue.
Bay Of Fires ABC
Marta Dusseldorp (Jack Irish) dons a cosy, retro parka – along with a panicked expression – as a single mum escaping her old life in this quirky crime series. The eight-part drama, filmed in Tasmania’s breathtaking west coast with stunning cinematography, is sizzling with small-town feuds and peculiar people.
Toby Leonard Moore (Billions), Yael Stone (Orange is the
New Black) and
Pamela Rabe (Wentworth) are just some of the top-notch players in this character-led caper. Taking cues from Fargo and Ozark, it’s polished with a generous booster of humour to boot.
Strife Foxtel
Adapted by screenwriter Sarah Scheller (The Letdown) and starring the magnetic Asher Keddie (Offspring), this playful drama is based on media maven Mia Freedman’s refreshingly funny, no-holdsbarred memoir. Set in Sydney, it follows Evelyn Jones, an ambitious, charming and delightfully imperfect writer, who transforms from couch blogger to a trailblazer in female-led media, all the while managing a marriage breakdown and two children. It’s an inspirational, rollicking gander at a watershed moment for women in publishing.
Warnie Nine
This twopart biopic dramatising the life of the larrikin cricketer is sure to divide fans. Can anyone really embody the charisma of the champion leg spin bowler? Alex Williams gives it his best shot: as the star of Underground: The Julian Assange Story, he is no stranger to the challenge of playing a real-life person. Cringe-worthy moments are assured, but there’s no denying that the largerthan-life cricketer’s story is perfect TV fodder. But is it too soon?
Australian Idol Seven
Yes, you read that right: after 14 long years, the singing competition responsible for launching the careers of Guy Sebastian and Casey Donovan has been revived. Like all hit international franchises, if one network won’t greenlight it, another will eventually poach it. Once at home at Channel 10, Seven has awakened the iconic competition, inviting back veteran judge Kyle Sandilands and his biting banter. Joining him on the judging panel is crooner Harry Connick Jr., soulful pop singersongwriter Meghan Trainor and homegrown indie pop musician Amy Shark. It’s Idol for a new era.
Taskmaster 10
What do you get when you take sardonic comedian Tom Gleeson (Hard Quiz) and stick him in a cult-hit British game show? A riot of absurd, joyful laughs. After seven years, the award-winning, freewheeling and bonkers comedy panel series has finally been afforded an Aussie offshoot. Gleeson teams up with charming storyteller and funnyman Tom Cashman to set up ridiculous challenges for comedians. Julia Morris, Luke McGregor, Jimmy Rees, Nina Oyama and Danielle Walker are along for the ride. Buckle up!