Over the hottest British summer since records began, the notion of rain (what is that?), chilly nights, indulgent knitwear and cosying up in front of the telly felt very far away. But the leaves have started to fall from the trees, and the new season is officially here, bringing with it a terrific roster of dramas, comedies and reality TV. There are many televisual treats to choose from in the next three months, from the revamped Strictly to Nigella joining Bake Off, the return of Rivals, and Netflix’s take on two magnificent novels: John Steinbeck’s East of Eden and Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice.
It can be hard to narrow it all down to what’s worth watching, so here are 20 highlights to look forward to, selected by The Independent’s culture writers. Earlier this year, the inaugural cast of SNL UK achieved the impressive feat of producing a live sketch show that made the sceptical British public say: “Oh, that actually wasn’t terrible.” Now, they’ve got to do it all over again as the Sky series returns. Its cast of comedy up-and-comers are back to welcome a new round of celebrity hosts – starting with Jurassic Park star Jeff Goldblum – for 75 minutes of political satire and meme-worthy impressions.
With a new prime minister in Number 10 and the world just generally burning, there’ll have plenty of material to work with. Lauren Morris Once again, it’s time for a new line-up of celebrities to endure 13 weeks of spray tans, blisters and trodden-on toes as Strictly Come Dancing returns in September. It won’t all be business as usual though, with the TV juggernaut undergoing its biggest face lift yet.
Emma Willis, Josh Widdicombe and promoted pro Johannes Radebe are making their debuts as new Strictly hosts, while the famous cast truly vary in star power — with Gavin and Stacey’s Melanie Walters rubbing shoulders with dog trainer Graeme Hall and TikTok star John Nellis. Bring on the BBC’s sequin-heavy fever dream! LM As two combative murder investigators in the first season of HBO’s True Detective, Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson formed one of TV’s best modern odd couples; Brothers, a new comedy series reuniting the duo, is likely to be a less grisly affair.
Here, Harrelson and McConaughey play versions of themselves, who live on a ranch together and discover that they may in fact be biological siblings (a twist mirroring a spurious-but-conceivably-plausible theory about their own lives). This will be Harrelson’s first stint as a sitcom regular since Cheers, more than 30 years ago: for McConaughey, it’s new territory. This alone makes Brothers an intriguing proposition.
Louis Chilton Two North West footballing families have opened up their doors to reality camera crews this season. Over on Amazon, we have Michael Owen, his Love Island star daughter Gemma and, erm, their thoroughbred race horses. And on Disney+, building off the success of their “Wagatha Christie” doc from a few years back, we have Coleen and Wayne Rooney and their four kids.
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