Must-watch shows for this summer from Netflix, Apple TV, Channel 5 and beyond
One glance at the TV guide shows we are in for a summer of sport, with the Euro 2024, Wimbledon and the Olympics sprinting on to our screens.
But for those who like even more drama than England’s thriller against Slovakia, there is plenty to look forward to.
Here, Sara Wallis looks at the comedies that will knock it out the park and gritty dramas that will make you hold your breath longer than in an England/Germany final. (But probably with a better ending). Here’s her line-up of the 11 shows you do not want to miss this summer...
Emily in Paris will be back for a fourth season on Netflix
MR BIGSTUFF, Sky Max, July 17
Danny Dyer makes his TV comedy debut in this story of brothers Lee (Dyer) and Glen (Ryan Sampson, who also wrote the script).
Glen is a nervy perfectionist trying to live the suburban dream, while Lee is an alpha male with a prescription drug addiction and a biscuit tin full of his dad’s ashes.
The comedy, also starring Harriet Webb, explores broken families, fragile masculinity and... carpet sales.
★★★★
THE NIGHT CALLER, C5, July 7
Starring Robert Glenister, Sean Pertwee and Suzanne Packer, this Liverpool-set thriller is about a lonely taxi driver’s growing obsession with Lawrence, a late-night Radio DJ.
One night, black cab driver Tony plucks up the courage to ring NightTalk and soon becomes a “friend of the show”.
But in time, his bond develops into something unhealthy. Then by chance, Lawrence gets into Tony’s cab, and things take a turn.
★★★★
TOM JONES, ITV1, summer
Based on Henry Fielding’s classic 1749 novel, this period drama stars Solly McLeod as hero Tom, alongside Sophie Wilde as heroine Sophia Western.
The pair must overcome enormous obstacles before finding their way to each other. Previously shown on ITVX, watch out for Ted Lasso actress Hannah Waddingham as the seductive Lady Bellaston.
SLIP, ITVX, August 8
Written and created by Zoe Lister-Jones, she plays Mae Cannon, a 30-something woman who gets a chance to live out out versions
of her life through a series of parallel universes....
The show also stars Schitt’s Creek actress Emily Hampshire.
★★★★
THOSE ABOUT TO DIE, Prime Video, July 19
Heading back to Ancient Rome, this epic and lavish historical drama stars Anthony Hopkins, Iwan Rheon, Sara Martins, Rupert Penry-Jones and Tom Hughes.
And you can expect action and violence as it’s set in the corrupt world of chariot racing and gladiatorial fights. It explores a side of Rome never before told: the dirty business of entertaining the masses, giving the mob what they want most –blood and sport.
★★★★★
Jenna Coleman takes the lead role in The Jetty airing on July 15 on BBC One
THE JETTY, BBC1/iPlayer, July 15
Jenna Coleman takes on her first detective role in this spooky thriller tackling themes of sexual morality, identity and memory.
A fire destroys a building on a jetty and Det Ember Manning must work out how it links a journalist probing a missing persons cold case and a man’s illicit relationship with two underage girls. Det Manning is also more involved than she thinks.
★★★★
EMILY IN PARIS, Season 4, Netflix, August 15
After a chaotic cliffhanger ending to season three, when pregnant Camille dumped her groom Gabriel at the altar because of his feelings for Emily, we are already on edge.
Even if you are coming into the show new, the complicated love triangle of Emily (Lily Collins), Gabriel (Lucas Bravo) and ex-boyfriend Alfie (Lucien Laviscount) makes for a tres bon comedy with a bit of ooh la la for good measure.
★★★★
The Rings of Power have left Lord of the Rings fans on the edge of their seats during its first season
LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RINGS OF POWER, Season 2, Prime Video, August 29
Set thousands of years before The Hobbit, this takes viewers back to the fabled Second Age of Middle-Earth’s history.
From the Misty Mountains to the elf capital of Lindon, and the kingdom of Numenor, expect a sweeping epic. Rory Kinnear, Ciaran Hinds and Tanya Moodie join the cast, with Charlie Vickers as Sauron.
★★★★
ONLY MURDERS IN THE BUILDING, Season 4, Disney+, August 27
Selena Gomez, Martin Short and Steve Martin return with more podcast murder mysteries.
Schitt’s Creek star Eugene Levy, Desperate Housewives’ Eva Longoria and The Hangover’s Zach Galifianakis appear as fictionalised versions of themselves playing the heroes.
★★★★★
Natalie Portman stars as a housewife-turned-reporter in Apple TV+'s Lady In the Lake
LADY IN THE LAKE, Apple TV+, July 19
Natalie Portman leads this thriller about two women whose lives clash after the disappearance of a young girl in Baltimore in 1966.
Portman stars as housewife- turned-reporter Maddie, while Moses Ingram plays Cleo, a mother working to advance the Black progressive agenda.
★★★★★
Sarah Parish and Mark Heap head the cast of ITV's Piglets, coming up in July
PIGLETS, ITV1/ITVX, July
New recruits are put through their paces in this six-part comedy based in a fictional police training college.
Created by the team behind hospital hit Green Wing, it follows six very different would-be cops and the staff whose thankless task is to knock them into shape.
Heading the cast are Sarah Parish and Mark Heap as no-nonsense Supt Julie Spry and some-nonsense Supt Bob Weekes.
★★★★
Follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Threads.