DI Jimmy Perez is back on the case in Shetland, Crystal Palace FC's Academy opens its doors and Abbi Jacobson and co make A League of Their Own (no not that one).
Secrets of the Spies
Tuesday
ITV, 9.00pm
The life of a spy has long been glamourised by the big screen, but this documentary takes a realistic look at the job in all its inherent jeopardy.
Former spies are consulted as well as their families, police officers, historians and authors in order to shed light on recent cases, current methods and the long history of espionage in both real life and the realm of fiction. Because, the premise reads, it’s a world in which fact is often stranger than fiction.
Tom Daley: Illegal to Be Me
Tuesday
BBC One, 9.00pm
Ahead of this year’s Commonwealth Games, Olympic gold medallist diver Tom Daley visited the most homophobic countries among those competing to shine a light on the suffering of their athletes.
It is illegal to be gay in over half of the Commonwealth’s 56 member states, with punishments including whipping, life imprisonment and even death. Tom talks to top male and female sportspeople living under such extreme persecution and asks what the sporting community can do to help.
Shetland
Wednesday
BBC One, 9.00pm
Douglas Henshall’s final series of Shetland kicks off with his DI Jimmy Perez released from his surprise arrest at the end of series six.
He’s now tasked with looking into the secret past of a family new to the islands when their vulnerable son Connor goes missing. As he once attempted suicide, the parents are panicking. But the key to cracking the case might just be the reason they moved to Shetland in the first place.
Football Dreams: The Academy
Thursday
Channel 4, 9.00pm
Premier League football club Crystal Palace has opened the doors to its prestigious Academy for a new six-part documentary. Over the course of a season, the series follows a group of starlets aged between 8 and 18, all dreaming of turning professional, and the staff and families helping to make it happen.
The first episode visits 11-year-old friends and teammates Kairo, Kayden and Bola, who face a pivotal decision that may split up their close-knit group.
A League of Their Own
Friday
Prime Video
The 90s feelgood drama about the formation of a female pro baseball team in 1940s Chicago gets a TV remake, only with new characters and storylines.
Abbi Jacobson, Chanté Adams, D'Arcy Carden, Roberta Colindrez, Gbemisola Ikumel, Kelly McCormack, and Priscilla Delgado star as the tight-knit team, this time fighting to keep their dream of winning the league alive through tough games, injuries, sexual awakenings and road trips through a country still stricken with chauvinism.
Marriage
Sunday
BBC One, 9.00pm
RTS Award-winning comedy writer Stefan Golaszewski (Mum) moves into drama with the minutely observed Marriage. Sean Bean and Nicola Walker star as the married couple under the microscope, Ian and Emma, who are navigating all the insecurities, ambiguities, hopes and fears that come with a 27-year-long relationship.
We join them just as they return from a holiday in Spain, with Ian’s recent redundancy forcing them to adapt to their now drastically different career prospects.
