This year the BBC turns 100. Fundamental to Britain and funded by licence fee payers, the BBC has garnered a worldwide reputation for quality. For this special post highlighting the highlights of the corporation's massive contribution to television, I've decided to...
The Best of 2021: From It’s a Sin to Mare of Easttown 2021 really delivered.
This without question my favourite post of the year. It's another chance to celebrate the best television had to offer. 2021 was another strong year. Standouts It's a Sin, Mare of Easttown, Only Murders in the Building and the long-awaited third season of Succession....
News Roundup: First Look at ‘Stay Close,’ ‘Then Barbara Met Alan’ and Only Murders news.
*Netflix have released the trailer for their upcoming Harlan Coben adaptation 'Stay Close'. The Good Fight's Cush Jumbo leads an all star cast which includes Richard Armitage, James Nesbitt, Jo Joyner and Sarah Parish for the twisty thriller. The eight-part drama...
NEWS: ITV announce cast for ‘Stephen’
ITV have confirmed the cast for their upcoming single drama 'Stephen'.Sharlene Whyte, Steve Coogan and Hugh Quarshie will play leading roles in Stephen, the three-part sequel to the groundbreaking single drama, The Murder of Stephen Lawrence.Stephen will portray...
NEWS: BBC One announces a raft of new commissions at Edinburgh TV Festival
BBC's Director of Content Charlotte Moore announced a raft of new commissions for BBC One with new dramas, sitcoms and documentaries all being announced. Sherlock co-creator Dracula Steven Moffatt brings a new four-part drama series to the channel in the form of...
NEWS: Channel 5 confirms more homegrown drama
Broadcast is reporting that Channel 5 is to increase their output of original drama. The Small Hand (w/t) is a 120- minute thriller about an antiques dealer who finds himself haunted by the ghost of a young boy. Based on the novel of the same name by Susan Hill, who...
ITV announce ‘Invisible’.
Filming begins this August on Invisible, a series of feature-length crime mysteries, featuring two intriguing stories in this first outing, and starring BAFTA winner Jason Watkins (The Crown, The Lost Honour of Christopher Jefferies, W1A) and Tala Gouveia (Cold Feet)....
BBC Three announce raft of new shows
Speaking today at Edinburgh TV festival, Damian Kavanagh, Controller BBC Three, announced four new commissions for the youth-focused channel. Amongst the commissions are Billy Whizz (w/t), a documentary that follows the remarkable story of Billy Monger, a young racing...
First Look: BBC Two’s Mother’s Day.
The BBC have released first look pictures for their upcoming one-off drama Mother's Day. Written by Nick Leather (Murdered For Being Different, Broken) Mother’s Day focuses on two ordinary women living either side of the Irish Sea, brought together in the wake of the...
NEWS: ITV to make Torvill & Dean drama.
ITV’s Head of Drama Polly Hill today confirmed commission of Torvill and Dean, a single film narrating Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean’s early years and the creative impetus that finally drove them to become ice dancing royalty. Written by leading film,...
Sheridan Smith to star in Jimmy Mcgovern drama
Sheridan Smith (The Moorside, Cilla), Alison Steadman (Hold The Sunset, Gavin & Stacey) and Sinead Keenan (Little Boy Blue, Being Human) will star in Care, a new drama written by Jimmy McGovern (Broken, The Accused, The Street) and Gillian Juckes, whose real life...
Benedict Cumberbatch for Channel 4 Brexit drama
He's currently winning praise for Showtime's Patrick Melrose, but we already know where we'll see Benedict Cumberbatch next on TV Channel 4 have announced he will star in one-off drama Brexit (Working Title), a political thriller written by playwright James Graham,...
Matt on the Box: Call the Midwife, The Miniaturist, The Great Christmas Bake-Off, Child Genius Vs Celebrities and Eric, Ernie and Me
So how was your Christmas? As ever mine was made up of over-indulging on Quality Street and watching the majority of what was on the box over the festive period. Whilst not a comprehensive guide of everything I watched the first Matt on the Box column in over a year...
Benedict Cumberbatch shines in The Child in Time
The BBC1 adaptation of Ian McEwan’s 1987 novel The Child in Time follows Stephen Lewis (Benedict Cumberbatch), a children’s author, who loses his four year-old daughter Kate in a supermarket. The 90-minute drama pivots between the lives of Stephen and his wife...
Dave Allen biopic for BBC2
The BBC have ordered a biopic on beloved Irish comedian Dave Allen. Written by Stephen Russell (We’re Doomed: The Dad’s Army Story, Hattie, and Peaky Blinders), the hour long drama will explore how Dave’s comedy genius was shaped by the tragic loss of his father, his...
First Look: The Child in Time
The BBC have released a trailer for new single drama The Child in Time starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Kelly MacDonald. Set two years after his daughter went missing, The Child In Time follows Stephen Lewis (Benedict Cumberbatch), a children's author, as he...
BBC Three Controller announces raft of new programming
The BBC are heiling BBC Three's move online a success. Damian Kavanagh, Controller, BBC Three says: “BBC Three moved online 18 months ago and at the time I said the transition would be a marathon not a sprint as we learnt and adapted our behaviour to ensure we reach...
Matt on the Box: I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here, My Mother and Other Strangers, NW and Sunny D
So another week has passed and with it a bundle of TV highlights for me to cover but to be honest the past seven days have really been dominated by one programme. That show is of course the returning I'm a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here with the jungle antics playing...
Matt on the Box: Damilola – Our Loved Boy, Close to the Enemy, Dark Heart and The Missing
Hi folks and welcome to another look back at a week in TV as I focus on a number of rather gloomy dramas as well as a shocking twist. We start with a drama that focuses on a tragedy but has somewhat of an uplifting conclusion in the real-life one-off film Damilola -...
The Watchman: Another engrossing docudrama from Channel 4
Contributed by Matt Donnelly In the last year or so Channel 4 have found success in presenting several factual dramas which deal with present day issues. In CyberBully we saw Maisie Williams' teen threatened by an unseen spectre whilst The People Next Door saw...
Jonathan Creek returns to BBC One.
Alan Davies is set to return as Jonathan Creek as the BBC announce a new 90 minute special from David Renwick. According to legend, a 19th century sorcerer named Jacob Surtees would summon the powers of Hell to terrorise and subjugate his victims at his home, Daemons’...
Matt on the Box: Reg, New Blood, Power Monkeys, Agatha Raisin and Big Brother
Welcome to the final Matt on the Box before football completely dominates our screens and there's no proper TV for about a fortnight. BBC drama provided the big highlights of the week starting off with a new film from Jimmy McGovern in the form of Reg. The Reg of the...
Matt on the Box: A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Disappearance, Versailles, Love Island and Britain’s Got Talent
Welcome to a look at another group of very different TV shows that all played out on our tellyboxes over the last seven days. After three very good instalments of the latest series of The Hollow Crown you would think that the BBC would hold off on the Shakespeare...
Matt on the Box: Undercover, Marcella, The Durrells, The People Next Door and Drive
Another week has passed in TV land and that means its time for another look back at the biggest shows that have graced our screens in the last seven days. In my opinion we've been a little spoilt this week as a number of new dramas have begun their new runs and we...