BBC Two

Leading the charge is Defending The Guilty a courtroom drama from Kieron Quirke (Cuckoo). Katherine Parkinson (Humans) plays Caroline, the cynical and experienced pupil master of Will (played by Flower's Will Sharpe), an idealistic pupil barrister. Will must navigate his way through the complexities of the justice system, to fight it out with several other hopeful contenders for a single job at the end of training. Expect cut-throat exploits and plenty of back-stabbing.

Other commissions include the deeply personal David Harewood: Psychosis and Me, and innovative new formats such as Murder, in which a crime is seen through the eyes of the professionals who investigate it. It was also announced that successful existing series including Hospital, A House Through Time and Surgeons: At The Edge Of Life have been recommissioned. 

The film follows Oscar-winning director Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire) as he travels to Bethlehem for an unconventional nativity performance, in a place which Banksy deems "the least Christmassy place on earth".

The "Alternativity" takes place in a carpark near Manger Square, Bethlehem, which is widely believed to be the birthplace of Jesus Christ. 

Having never travelled to the Middle East before, and with extreme instructions from the mysterious artist whom he has never met, Boyle travels to Bethlehem to put on a festive show from scratch.

The latest documentary series from Louis Theroux will begin on BBC Two in early October.

Factual: The Human Body: Secrets of Your Life Revealed

Monday

BBC Two, 9pm

​In the first episode of the three-part series, Chris and Xand Van Tulleken explore the latest research into how humans grow and the dramatic changes the body goes through.

The twins uncover why humans experience childhood longer than any other creature on Earth, and look at the incredible power of breast milk.

The new titles include an interactive history series about the 20th Century, a behind-the-scenes documentary exploring the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, a documentary looking at the changes in the British Army over the last year, an 80s LA drama from director John Singleton, a film about legendary artist Jean-Michel Basquiat, and three special episodes of The League of Gentlemen.

The cooking series will be presented by Zoe Ball and Nadiya Hussain, as they visit kitchens around country to find the best classic family recipes.

The recipes will be judged by renowned cookery teacher Rosemary Shrager and Michelin-starred chef Giorgio Locatelli. The two judges will set challenges in both the studio kitchen and home kitchens, as they cut down the 16 teams of over eight heats, three semi-finals and one major grand final!

Monday

Ripper Street

9pm, BBC Two

Matthew Macfadyen returns for the final series of period drama Ripper Street. 

Following the shocking murder of Inspector Bennet Drake, outlaws Edmund Reid, Homer Jackson and Long Susan join forces to avenge the death of their old friend - despite being hunted by the police themselves.

BBC Two's Channel Editor Patrick Holland expressed his vision for BBC Two, which will focus on themes of reasserting the role of authorship, engaging with and becoming more relevant to the audience, and embracing all the specialisms on the channel from science, history and arts to current affairs, history, documentaries.

The new titles include a series of new documentary titles including an exploration of families living on the poverty line, a behind the headlines look at the sequence of events that caused Brexit, and the story of the horrific murder of Jo Cox MP.

“We thought it was the right time to do something big about the NHS – it was encountering lots of problems and it was being treated as a political football.

“We wanted to get over what was happening right now in the NHS and aimed for broadcast in January when the NHS often faces a winter crisis,” explained BBC Two commissioning editor Danny Horan at the event, which was held at ITV London Studios.