Netflix

At one point in his book Inside Black Mirror, when discussing the inspiration for his global dystopian sci-fi phenomenon, Charlie Brooker credits the “shiny adverts for Apple” that were appearing at the time. He says: “Being a paranoid person, as soon as I see any advert where everyone’s really happy and smiley, I immediately think it’s a bit like a sinister advert in a dystopian movie.… The fact that it looked so happy meant that it couldn’t last.”

Steeltown Murders

Monday

BBC One, 9.00pm

After a string of murders in 1973 Port Talbot, three detectives embark on a case that spans three decades, needing the forensic breakthroughs of the 21^st century to finally bring justice.

Chimp Empire, which follows two rival troops of chimps, was previewed at a sold-out joint RTS West of England/Wildscreen Network screening at the Watershed in Bristol, ahead of its release on Netflix last month.

The team spent 18 months filming a four-part series that required extensive research. “We spent months analysing every detail about every chimp known to the scientists,” explained Reed, “so we had these huge backstories from every individual chimp.”

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.

Based on Alice Oseman’s best-selling graphic novels of the same name, Heartstopper follows the close high school friendship between Nick (Kit Connor) and Charlie (Joe Locke) that blossoms into a burgeoning romance.

All lead cast members will return for series two, including Kit Connor, Joe Locke, Yasmin Finney, William Gao, Corinna Brown, Kizzy Edgell, Sebastian Croft, Tobie Donovan, Rhea Norwood and Jenny Walser.

The Academy Award-winning director’s (The Shape of Water) new horror anthology series will drop in double-episode batches across four days, starting from 25 October.

Each of the eight episodes spins a sinister standalone story from one of the teams of writers and directors personally chosen by Del Toro.

The trailer offers glimpses of the "whole worlds" they have created, including several of the beautiful, practically-made monsters that have become a Del Toro trademark.

The company have signed an overall deal with Netflix to develop a series of film and television projects, including two set within the world of Stranger Things.

Both a live-action Stranger Things spin-off and a new stage play have been announced by Netflix via their Twitter account. While details remain sparse, the spin-off has been described as ‘a live action series […] based on an original idea by The Duffer Brothers.’

Split into two parts, the penultimate series looks set to be its wildest one yet, with the Hawkins gang heading to all-out war against the creatures of the Upside Down.

The teenage gang of Mike (Finn Wolfhard), Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo), Lucas (Calen McLaughlin) and Max (Sadie Sink) are entering high school, while Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) and Will (Noah Schnapp) have been relocated with the rest of the Byers family to California. The crew must uncover the mysteries of a haunted house in Hawkins which threatens to unleash more terror on the cursed town.

Kate Garraway: Caring for Derek

ITV

Tuesday, 9pm

Following last year’s impactful documentary Finding Derek, ITV revisits the Garraway family as Derek Draper continues to recover from the effects of Covid-19 at home.