Bridgerton

Each series of the historical drama, likened to a regency era Gossip Girl, focuses on one member of the titular family. Series two saw Anthony Bridgerton (Jonathan Bailey, Fellow Travelers) take centre stage as he struggled to choose between his intended wife and ‘diamond of the season’, and her older sister Kate. The events of ‘the societal season’ are reported in a gossip style newsletter by the elusive Lady Whistledown, often to the dismay of the upper classes.

The six-part series stars Anjli Mohindra (Bodyguard) as Grace Narayan, a once successful police sergeant who has been forced into a “punishment post” on an obscure and sequestered island. When Narayan begins investigating the unsolved case of a missing teenager, what at first glance appears as a gritty police thriller, drifts into folk horror upon the unearthing of a bygone cult called True Way. Narayan comes to realise the cult, and its dedication to pagan god the ‘Red King’, are not as confined to the island’s past as it first appears.

They also revealed first look imagery for the highly anticipated live action Avatar: The Last Airbender, and trailers for reality dating show Love is Blind and Money Heist spin-off Berlin.

Read on for our overview.

Squid Game 2

In 2015, David Oyelowo, who played Martin Luther King in the film Selma and starred in BBC One’s Spooks, highlighted the lack of on-screen opportunities for people of colour in British period dramas.

Queen Charlotte will be reprised by Golda Rosheuvel (Death In Paradise), however she will be joined by India Ria Amarteifo (Military Wives), who will play a young version of the Queen.

Ruth Gemmell will also reprise her role as Lady Violet Bridgerton, alongside Adjoa Andoh (The Witcher) as Lady Danbury. Cory Mychreest (Mars) will play the Queen's love interest, a young King George the Third.

Then Barbara Met Alan 

Monday 

BBC Two, 9pm 

Starring Ruth Madeley and Arthur Hughes, the drama tells the true story of the group behind the unstoppable and fierce campaign of direct action that significantly moved forward the battle for disabled rights in Britain. 

Bridgerton 

Netflix 

In regency England appearances are everything and for the powerful Bridgerton family they face the constant battle between their duty and desires.

Inspired by the Julia Quinn novels, wealth, lust, betrayal and honour are navigated by those seeking to stay ahead in an English society filled with secrets and gossip. 

As television’s great disruptor, if Netflix is to take on a Regency period drama, expect it to try and reinvent the form. Enter Bridgerton, the streaming service’s Christmas big-hitter and a fresh take on the decades-old style.

For all the show’s traditional draws, such as the opulence of the debutante season, high-society scandal and growls of “I demand satisfaction”, a modern-­day sensibility has been smartly woven throughout.