Sky

One of the standout drama launches of the year is unquestionably Sky Atlantic’s Patrick Melrose. The five-parter memorably opens in London with a heroin-addled Melrose, played magisterially by Benedict Cumberbatch, receiving news of his abusive father’s death in New York. Melrose then travels there to bring home his father’s ashes. While in Manhattan, he embarks on an epic drugs binge. Expect the erstwhile Sherlock star to win multiple awards for this astonishing performance.

However it ends, the battle royal for the right to own most of the assets of 21st Century Fox, and all of Sky, reflects deep and significant trends in global media. The resolution (in favour of suitors Disney, Comcast or both) may end up being less important than what the outcome tells us about market dynamics.

This battle is about the response of legacy media to accelerating shifts in consumer behaviour and to the threats posed by the big digital disruptors. In a market where content and distribution are increasingly intermingled and global, size unlocks the prize.

Inside the American Embassy

Monday: Channel 4, 10pm

The Family Farm

Monday: BBC 2, 8pm

Flowers

Monday: Channel 4, 10pm

Corden will again host a star-studded line-up for the show’s second UK adventure, with guests including Cher, Cate Blanchett, Orlando Bloom, Niall Horan and the Foo Fighters.

The episodes will be broadcast from the historic Central Hall in Westminster, and the show’s signature musical and comedy segments, such as Crosswalk: The Musical and Take a Break, will be given a new British twist.

The show holds the YouTube record for the most-watched late-night clip with Adele’s Carpool Karaoke, which has more than 180 million views.

Robbie’s War: the Rise and Fall of a Playboy Millionaire

Monday: BBC Two, 9pm​

Set in the sun-drenched south of France, Julia Stiles (Dexter) leads as Georgina Clios, an American art curator seeking to uncover the truth about the death of her billionaire husband.

The drama picks up after the shocking events of the first season finale, as Stiles’ Georgina becomes entangled in the dark and murderous world that the super-rich characters inhabit.

Speculation that BBC Two’s Newsnight might be axed was firmly squashed in February, when Sky News head of politics, business and specialist journalism, Esme Wren, was appointed editor of the flagship show.

Doubts about its future had re-emerged last autumn with the introduction of Nick Ferrari and Emma Barnett’s ITV series, After the News, and the announcement that Newsnight editor Ian Katz was leaving for Channel 4 to become its director of programmes.

Following the life of Sally (Catharine Shepherd, Peep Show), a successful marketer, ensconced in a dull suburban life with David (Alex Macqueen, The Inbetweeners) the series follows the events after David proposes to Sally.

Sally has a crisis about the proposal and embarks on a wild affair with Emma (Julia Davis) a captivating musician, poet and author. Emma soon moves in starts rearranging Sally’s life, leaving her head spinning and questioning what she actually wants.