Recipe for another era
10 shows to watch
JAMES WIGNEY, NATIONAL TELEVISION REVIEWER, SHARES HIS PICKS FOR THE WEEK AHEAD
CONAN O’BRIEN MUST GO BINGE, THURSDAY
US comedian Conan O’Brian is milking some comedy gold from being a brash, American serial pest in his hilarious new travel series. Inspired by fans he has met through his podcast, Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend, the former talk show host visits Norway, Thailand, Argentina and Ireland, pitching up on their doorsteps unannounced and then exploring local customs and sights while making a complete idiot of himself, sometimes in ridiculous versions of local costume. From cosplaying with Vikings in the frozen north to hunting for Bono (using a fake humanitarian award as bait) in a Dublin park it’s hardly educational, but it is laugh-out-loud funny.
BLUE LIGHTS THURSDAY, 9.20PM
Rookie cops Grace, Tommy and Annie might have helped bring down the McIntyre gang in the first season of this rock solid crime drama, but that doesn’t mean that things are getting any easier for Police Service of Northern Ireland on the mean streets of Belfast. Crime, like nature, abhors a vacuum and there are new players eager to swoop in and take over the drug trade. Crime stats are up and the understaffed officers are dealing with poverty, mental health and addiction – and the shadows of the Troubles and its paramilitary elements are never far away.
FRANKLIN NEW EPISODES FRIDAYS, APPLETV+
Franklin director Tim Van Patten says he chose Michael Douglas for the title role in his historical drama because of his “absolute lust for life”. And it translates perfectly to the sly charm and fierce intellect that Douglas brings to the American Founding Father. Partly filmed in Versailles, Franklin zeros in on the years he spent in France trying to muster support for the American War of Independence. But while he is initially met with a rock star reception, he soon discovers it will take all of his smarts to negotiate the intricacies of the French court.
CHINESE GRAND PRIX FRIDAY, FROM 1.30PM, KAYO
Formula One racing returns to the Shanghai circuit for the first time in five years and the big question is whether anyone can stop Max Verstappen from scooting away from the rest of the field to claim his fourth consecutive World Championship after he nabbed his third win of the season in Japan. Sunday’s showdown, which starts at 4pm, is also the first Sprint event of the season, meaning it’s a much shorter race that encourages overtaking and should make for an absolute thriller.
JEOPARDY! AUSTRALIA SATURDAY, 7.30PM, CHANNEL 9
Despite the homegrown claims of the title, this version of the long-running
US game show was actually filmed in Manchester, using Aussie expats as contestants (presumably cheaper than relocating host Stephen Fry). No matter though, it still has a distinctly Aussie flavour thanks to categories centred on our cultural institutions such as Kylie Minogue, Neighbours and cricket. Fans of the original can rest assured that all the familiar elements are still in play and Fry is very much in his element, even if not having as much fun as he did on QI.
SECRETS OF THE OCTOPUS MONDAY, DISNEY+
There’s no other way to put this: octopuses are weird – but awesomely so. And this three-part documentary, demonstrates why scientists think they are some of the smartest animals on the planet, who can think creatively, use tools and even communicate with other
species. It’s very much an Aussie affair, too, as marine biologist Alex Schell befriends Scarlett, the day octopus, on the Great Barrier Reef before the production shifts to Port Philip Bay to seek out the deadly blue-ringed octopus. Added bonus – it’s narrated by the ever-charming Paul Rudd. Unexpected drawback – you may never eat octopus again.
OUR LIVING WORLD NETFLIX
It’s a bumper week for nature documentaries and this outstanding four-part British series, narrated by Cate Blanchett, demonstrates the interconnectedness of Earth’s natural phenomena – from the macro level of tides and currents, right down to how tiny organisms can have an outsized effect on their environments. Some of the footage is simply mind-boggling, whether it’s
MASTERCHEF MONDAY, 7.30PM, CHANNEL 10
At the top of the first episode, holdover judge Andy Allen states the obvious that “this is the start of a new era for all of us”. After the sad death of Jock Zonfrillo last year and the departure of Melissa Leong, Channel 10 pressed reset on the long-running and much loved reality TV cooking show, bringing in three new judges in the form of Sofia Levin, billed as “Australia’s most exciting food writer”, season one runner-up Poh Ling Yeow and multiple Michelin-hatted, UK based French chef Jean-Christophe Novelli. And the early signs look like the varied ingredients will make a recipe for continued success. In this week’s opener, the 22 new contestants are tasked with cooking something that reflects their new beginnings and has Novelli buzzing around the kitchen freely sharing his vast expertise and Yeow refreshingly bringing her contestant’s knowledge to the judging arena. Of course, on MasterChef the feels are as important as the food, and the teary moment when aspiring chef Christian meets his childhood hero and guest judge Jamie Oliver is simply delicious. two musk oxen charging at each other in the Norwegian tundra, or tiny fiddler crabs waving yellow claws in unison on Aussie mangroves.
THE SYMPATHISER NEW EPISODES MONDAY, BINGE
Freshly minted Oscar-winner Robert Downey Jr has drawn the spotlight in this fascinating Vietnam War era historical drama and continues his rich vein of post-Iron Man form by bobbing up in multiple roles. But the real star of this adaptation of Viet Thanh Nguyen’s Pulitzer Prize winning 2015 novel is Aussie actor Hoa Xuande, as soldier/secret agent The Captain, who flees the Fall of Saigon for the US, where he is to continue spying for the Vietcong. Morally ambiguous, time-shifting, darkly funny and sometimes hard to follow, it sets up intriguing questions of identity, loyalty and provides a fresh perspective on that conflict.
DEADLINE GALLIPOLI TUESDAY, SEVEN+
With Anzac Day just around the corner, there’s no better time to revisit this excellent Australian-made miniseries, which tells the story of the infamous World War I military campaign from the perspective of four war correspondents: Brit Ellis Ashmead Bartlett (Hugh Dancy), official Aussie war correspondent Charles Bean (Joel Jackson), newspaper proprietor Keith Murdoch (Ewen Leslie) and photojournalist Philip Schuler (Sam Worthington). Determined to report the debacle as they saw it unfold, rather than a sanitised, army approved version they incurred the wrath of the powers-that-be.