Rise and Fall

Channel 4

Monday - Friday, 10pm

The week kicks off with Rise and Fall, a new reality TV series created by the makers of the RTS Programme Award nominee The Traitors. Hosted by Radio 1’s Greg James, the series throws 16 people from different walks of life together into demanding tasks and challenges to gain a cash prize.

James said: “I’ve been waiting a long time for a show like this to come along that I can get stuck into and be the ringleader of. It’s an amazingly mad idea and the contestants are going to make some incredible TV.”

The contestants will be split between Rulers and Grafters, but remain as one team throughout the series. The Grafters will compete in gruelling challenges to build the cash prize, living in basic conditions in a basement. But the Rulers? They will live in a lavish penthouse, encouraging the Grafters to work harder to achieve a bigger bounty, whilst making decisions that change the fate of the entire group.

If the Rulers push their Grafters too hard, they might well have a mutiny on their hands. Anyone in the group can rise to power, and anyone can fall to the rank of Grafter. The changing of roles will be decided by the contestants playing the game.

Race Across the World

Wednesday

BBC One, 9pm

Start your engines! This week’s TV picks kick off with Race Across the World, the pulsating travel competition show pitting teams against each other on a giant cross-country race to the finish line. In this third series, the teams will be travelling across Canada, with a £20,000 cash prize awaiting the fastest team.

Starting at the very edge of the Pacific Ocean in Vancouver, they must travel 16,000 kilometres across six time zones to reach St John’s Newfoundland, North America’s most easterly city perched on the Atlantic coast.

The BBC promises the third series to be the most extreme yet. As usual, the teams will be placed under extreme physical and psychological tests by the arduous journey. Check out our deep dive rankings of all the teams here.

Waco: American Apocalypse

Netflix

Wednesday

Head over to Netflix to get started on the new docuseries Waco: American Apocalypse. This gripping documentary explores the violent demise of the cult the Branch Davidians, and their famous leader David Koresh.

The Waco Siege was front page news when it happened over 51 days in spring 1993. After the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms suspected the religious cult was manufacturing and selling illegal weapons on their compound in Texas, they descended in droves to dismantle the operation.

Chaos ensued. A huge bloody battle took place between law enforcement and the cult, resulting in a fatal shootout and deathly fire. And the controversy doesn’t stop there. This documentary exhibits never before seen footage and extracts eyewitness accounts of the carnage.

Yellowjackets

Paramount+

Friday

Yellowjackets is back for series two, picking up where we left off in the Canadian wilderness after a plane crash left a group of high school football players fighting for survival.

We expect the plot to continue weaving storylines from 1996 and present day, cleverly time travelling viewers through the complex coming-of-age narrative. Series one left plenty of questions unanswered, namely: what does that mysterious symbol mean?!

The award-winning cast is returning for series two, with some exciting new additions. Melanie Lynskey is back to play Shauna, and Christina Ricci will step into Misty’s shoes again. New recruits come in the shape of Elijah Wood (Lord of the Rings), who plays Walter, the citizen detective, and Simone Kessell (Obi-Wan Kenobi) as adult Lottie.

The Cleaner 

BBC One

Friday, 9:30pm

The Cleaner wipes up Friday’s picks. Greg Davies is back for the second series of the comedy, starring as Paul ‘Wicky’ Wickstead, a crime scene cleaner scrubbing up grisly murders.

Series two throws Wicky into some interesting new crime scenes, including a theatre, an electrical goods store and a stately home. He can’t help but gossip with new characters and unfurl their stories as he cleans up bloody remains, but the place he’s really trying to get to is simply his local pub.

Last series featured some fantastic cameos, including David Mitchell (Back) and Helena Bonham Carter (Nolly). The cast of series two looks to follow suit. Zoë Wanamaker (Britannia), Asim Chaudhry (People Just Do Nothing), Harriet Walter (Succession) and Simon Callow (Four Weddings and a Funeral) all feature alongside many more exciting names in British comedy and drama.

Great Expectations

BBC One

Sunday, 9pm

The highly anticipated Great Expectations hits BBC One on Sunday. Starring a glittering cast, including Olivia Colman as Miss Havisham and Fionn Whitehead as Pip, the latest spin on Charles Dickens’ coming-of-age classic promises plenty of stardust.

This period drama is expected to stay true to the original tale. Matt Berry (IT Crowd) will star as Mr. Pumblechuck, and Shalom Brune-Franklin (The Tourist) will play Ms. Havisham’s adopted daughter Estella.

The adaptation was created, written and executive produced by Steven Knight, who is no stranger to Victorian dramas. The brains behind Peaky Blinders and BBC’s 2019 rework of A Christmas Carol, Knight brings buckets of experience to the format.

Want to find out more about Great Expectations? Check out everything you need to know here.