TV guide: the best new shows to watch on RTÉ, BBC, UTV, E4, Disney+ and Apple TV+

Irish Times

27-04-2025

Pick of the Week
Kerry – Tides of Time
Sunday, RTÉ One, 6.30pm
We've always known there was something special about
Kerry
, but if you are still in doubt that this county rules them all, this two-part documentary promises to bring the Kingdom alive with stunning imagery and in beautifully observed detail. The series will explore the landscape and geology of the county, plus its history and archaeology, from when life first took hold on its rocky shoreline to early civilisations battling with the elements to build their lives among the woodlands, mountains and valleys.
The series will visit such Kerry landmarks as the Skellig Islands and Carrauntoohil, and we'll hear from historians, archaeologists and other experts who know Kerry like the back of their hand, and are ready to guide us on this magical journey, from evidence of the first-ever vertebrates on the planet, to the arrival of
Jedi knights
on Skellig Michael.
Highlights
Nationwide Special: Dublin Port
Monday, RTÉ One, 7pm
RTÉ Nationwide presenters Anne Cassin and Blathnaid Ni Chofaigh
It's hardly surprising to learn that Dublin Port plays a key role in bringing goods into our island nation, and is a vital link in the country's supply chain. But how does it all work? In this three-part Nationwide special, Bláthnaid Ní Chofaigh heads down to the docks to witness the daily working life of the port, and see how the many port personnel steer goods smoothly through the process. She joins one of the pilots to board a ship and help steer it into port, and watches the Vessel Traffic Service – air traffic control for ships – in action. And she also gets a look at a large ship known as a Brexit Buster as it brings freight straight from Europe.
Trump: First 100 Days
Monday, BBC One, 8.30pm
Has it been 100 days since the second inauguration of Donald Trump? It feels like 100 years, and certainly the damage the US president has done to the economy, civil society and democracy itself will probably take another 100 years to undo. To mark this milestone of mayhem, the BBC will look at how Trump has upended US politics and society, ramping up the culture wars, taking a chainsaw to the federal government and launching tariffs like economic ICBMs across the world.
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The programme will also look at the savaging of Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy in the Oval Office, Trump's stated aim to annex Canada and Greenland, and his intensified crackdown on immigration. With almost another 1,400 days of chaos to look forward to, this could run to a whole series.
The Essex Millionaire Murders
Monday and Tuesday, UTV, 9pm
In Easter 2023, Essex couple Carol and Stephen Baxter were found dead in their home by their daughter Ellena, in what looked like death by misadventure. But when forensics officers found out that the couple had been poisoned with Fentanyl, a powerful opioid, a murder investigation was launched. At first it was assumed someone close to the couple was involved, and family members came under immediate suspicion, but the truth of the Baxters' murders was more bizarre and incredible than police could have imagined.
Luke D'Wit, who had inveigled his way into the couple's lives over the previous decade, was the last person to have seen them alive, and this documentary unravels the full scope of D'Wit's years-long campaign – involving catfishing, fake personas and video surveillance – to gain control of the couple's lives – and ultimately their money.
The Honesty Box
Monday, E4, 9pm
E4's The Honesty Box with Vicky Pattison and Lucinda Light. Photograph: Channel 4
Spare a thought for the poor hunks and honeys taking part in reality dating shows these days. They've got to go through the hoops if they want to get some love action – whether it's no touching (Too Hot to Handle), no cheating (Temptation Island) or no clothes (Dating Naked). But this show might prove the most challenging, with its seemingly impossible demand: no lying.
Is honesty the best policy when looking for love? The hopefuls on this new nine-part series, hosted by Vicky Pattison, are about to find out. These sincere singletons will be living in 'Truetopia', where they'll have to follow one simple rule: don't tell porkies. The show will use AI technology to uncover any fibbers in the villa, and there's a cash prize of a hundred grand up for grabs just to keep the contestants honest.
If they find telling the truth too hard to handle, they'll have 'sincerity coach' Lucinda Light to help them change their lying ways and learn to be more upfront about themselves. What's the bet the show won't have to fork out a penny in prize money?
Genius Game
Wednesday, Virgin Media One and UTV, 9pm
Genius Game: David Tennant presents the new gameshow. Photograph: Remarkable Entertainment
You've passed Mastermind, made it through Millionaire, and aced QI, but can you rise to the intellectual challenge of Genius Game? This new gameshow, presented by Bafta and Emmy award-winning actor David Tennant, will see a group of insanely clever people going head to head in a battle of survival, with a cash prize for whoever can outsmart their opponents. Tennant is The Creator, setting such mind-boggling tasks as Gold Heist and the Zombie Game, and the contestants will have to work together while also manipulating and deceiving each other. The game requires not only brains to burn but also sizzling social skills, as the contestants will have to gain trust, build alliances and pick up on subtle signals.
VE Day 80: We Were There
Thursday, BBC One, 9pm
Next week, Britain celebrates the 80th anniversary of Victory in Europe Day, when the second World War in Europe came to an end, and the BBC will be running a whole tranche of programmes to commemorate that May 8th landmark. Is there anyone left alive who remembers that famous day? You do the maths. In this programme, Rachel Burdon hears recollections of VE Day from the few surviving people who were there when Winston Churchill announced that Germany had surrendered. Some of them were just children on that momentous day, but still remember when the royal family came out on the balcony of Buckingham Palace to join the celebrations; others were soldiers who helped in Hitler's defeat and in liberating prisoners from the concentration camps, and many of them are over 100 years old, but with their memories of the day still vivid.
Taskmaster
Thursday, Channel 4, 9pm
Taskmster: Alex Horne and Greg Davies
Taskmaster and its offspring, Junior Taskmaster, have transformed a generation of work-shy adults and children into eager beavers, keen to take on any number of challenges, however bizarre or difficult. Everybody wants to be a taskmaster, and the fiendish brainchild of Greg Davies and Little Alex Horne, which has once again been nominated for a Bafta, is back for a new series, with five brave – or foolish – comedy writers and actors lining up to do whatever it takes to win the coveted golden Greg head.
Comedian and writer Fatiha El-Ghorri, comedian, actor and podcaster Jason Mantzoukas, actor and writer Matthew Baynton, podcaster and broadcaster Rosie Ramsey and comedian, actor and podcaster Stevie Martin will be facing a whole new set of surreal tasks from Davies and Horne that will sorely test their inventiveness, problem-solving skills and, of course, their sanity.
Streaming
Suspect: The Shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes
From Wednesday, April 30th, Disney+
In July 2005, London was on high alert following a devastating terrorist attack, when suicide bombers targeted the city's transport network, killing 52 people and injuring nearly 800. In the wake of the deadly bombings, police and antiterrorist forces went all-out to prevent another 7/7, and when a second attempted terrorist attack failed, they embarked on a huge operation to track down the perpetrators and take them down. But the authorities made a critical error, misidentifying innocent Brazilian Jean Charles de Menezes as a terrorist, and shooting him dead in a train station as he was on his way to work. This four-part drama series reconstructs the tragic events of 20 years ago, the subsequent storm of misinformation and evasion that followed the unlawful killing, and the struggle of the de Menezes family to get justice.
Carême
From Wednesday, April 30th, Apple TV+
Lyna Khoudri and Benjamin Voisin in Carême, Apple TV+
TV chefs are 10 a penny these days, but who was the first celebrity chef? This sumptuous French series tells the story of the culinary sensation Antonin Carême, who leaves his humble beginnings as a kitchen boy in late-18th-century Paris behind to fire up French high society with his incredible pastry creations and flamboyant style of food presentation. As his fame and reputation grow throughout Europe, he's the name on everyone's lips. But Emperor Napoleon isn't too impressed – until he realises he can use Carême's skills to expand his influence among the rich and powerful of Paris. And with Europe's leaders eager to get the chef into their kitchens, the power brokers at home see their chance to recruit him as a spy for France. (That last bit may be fictional.)