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Y our day-by-day guide to all the best shows and films you don’t want to miss
New Sky drama 'Munich Games'
Untold: The Race of the Century
Paul Whitington and Sheena McGinley
Pick of the week Munich Games, Friday, September 9, Sky Atlantic, 9pm
F ifty years ago, an event intended to showcase the reconstructed and booming West Germany turned into a disaster that gripped the world. The XX Olympiad was the first Olympics to be held in Germany since 1936, when Hitler had used the Games to parade the tinny aesthetic of his Third Reich. Conscious of this, and with touching optimism, the West German government had dubbed the Munich Games ‘Die Heiteren Spiele’, or ‘The Cheerful Games’. That mood would be brutally shattered during the second week by an attack that came to be known as the Munich massacre.
Eleven Israeli athletes and coaches were killed by Palestinian terrorists, and the German authorities was heavily criticised for its handling of the subsequent siege. A documentary film marking the 50th anniversary of the attack will be shown on Sky Documentaries this week, but this new drama series is set in the present as well as the past.
It’s 2022, and a football match between Germany and Israel has been organised to commemorate the tragedy. Security services are on high alert to ensure that history does not repeat itself, and when Mossad agent Oren Simon intercepts a message on the dark web suggesting that an attack is imminent, he joins forces with German officer Maria Kohler to find those responsible before it’s too late.
Belfast Sunday, Sky Premiere, 8pm
Kenneth Branagh’s intensely personal film is set in Belfast in the late 1960s and based on his own childhood. Nine-year-old Buddy (Jude Hill) lives in a tight-knit, inner-city community where Protestants and Catholics run along pretty well. But when Loyalist gangs start burning Catholics out of their homes during the 1969 riots, it’s a sign of worse things to come. Buddy’s parents (Jamie Dornan and Caitríona Balfe) are Protestants, and now contemplate emigrating to England for the sake of their sons. But Buddy is devastated by this idea, as it will mean leaving behind his beloved grandparents (Judi Dench and Ciarán Hinds). Belfast is a bold, moving film, and a love letter to a lost era.
SATURDAY Live SNF Sky Sports Premier League , 5pm Aston Villa will cause something of an upset if they manage to get the better of Manchester City this afternoon. Kick-off at Villa Park is at 5.30pm.
Film The Martian Channel 4, 10pm When a manned mission to Mars is terminated by a storm, one crew member goes missing and is left behind, presumed dead. But biologist Mark Watney is very much alive, and now faces a battle for survival. Matt Damon stars.
State of Happiness BBC4, 9pm An oil crisis on foot of the Iranian coup is good news for Nyman Diving, Marius’s biological father makes a surprise appearance, and Anna makes a new friend.
SUNDAY Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins Channel 4, 9pm Fatima Whitbread, Calum Best and actors Maisie Smith and Jennifer Ellison are among the famous faces being put through their paces at boot camp, and tonight face the nightmare of a gas attack.
Film La Belle Epoque BBC2, 11.35pm When a middle-aged man discovers a company that uses sets and actors to stage historical reconstructions, he hires them to recreate the moment he first met his wife. Charming French comedy, with Daniel Auteuil and Fanny Ardant.
North Sea Connection RTÉ One, 9.30pm New drama series about a respectable Connemara fishing family that gets mixed up with a drug-smuggling gang. With Kerr Logan and Sinéad Cusack.
MONDAY The Capture BBC1, 9pm As the crime drama continues, Isaac’s paranoia intensifies in the aftermath of the TV interview when rumours about a love child circulate. Holliday Grainger stars.
Film Calm with Horses Film Four, 11.15pm Drama set in the west of Ireland and starring Cosmo Jarvis as a drug gang’s enforcer whose heart isn’t in it when he’s asked to kill for the first time. With Niamh Algar and Barry Keoghan.
Second Hand for 50 Grand Channel 4, 10pm A peek behind the scenes of a company that sources luxury second-hand goods for their clients, who this week include a former London city banker who urgently requires a £60,000 watch.
TUESDAY Champions League Live RTÉ2, 7.30pm Darragh Maloney and guests present live coverage of one of tonight’s Champions League ties, with Chelsea away to Dinamo Zagreb, and RB Salzburg hosting AC Milan.
Film Eastern Promises BBC2, 11.15pm David Cronenberg’s brutal thriller stars Viggo Mortensen as a driver for the Russian mob in London, who slowly works his way up the ranks. With Naomi Watts, Sinéad Cusack and Vincent Cassel.
First Dates Hotel Channel 4, 9pm Among the guests at Fred Sirieix’s hotel this week are former military paramedic Gareth, who has found dating tricky and is unsettled when he’s paired with Carys, a woman with whom he was previously matched on a dating site.
WEDNESDAY Grand Designs Channel 4, 9pm Kate and Rob have been living in a 1940s prefab house built by Rob’s grandfather that’s now past its best. So their plan is to replace it with a bespoke modern home that will also be made in a factory.
Film Desperately Seeking Susan TG4, 10.30pm Classic 1980s comedy starring Rosanna Arquette as Roberta, a bored suburban housewife who gets bumped on the head and wakes up convinced she’s a rebellious fugitive called Susan. With Madonna and Aidan Quinn.
The Great Channel 4, 11.05pm Catherine’s plans are falling apart and she is beginning to doubt the future of her reign when her mother pays an unexpected visit. With Elle Fanning and Gillian Anderson.
THURSDAY Celebrity MasterChef BBC1, 8pm Mary Berry joins judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace to set the seven remaining contestants the challenge of recreating one of her signature classic recipes.
Film 20th Century Women Sky Cinema Drama, 8pm Mike Mills’s semi-autobiographical drama stars Annette Bening as Dorothea Fields, a fifty-something single mother in 1970s California who decides she needs a little help raising her teenage son.
Blow-Ins RTÉ One, 10.15pm One of Ireland’s remotest and most spectacularly beautiful places, the Dingle Peninsula has a large population of immigrants, whom locals call the ‘blow-ins’. This is their story.
FRIDAY Friday Night Soccer RTÉ2, 7.30pm Derry City host Bohemians at the Brandywell, with the home side pushing for a place in the top three. The game gets underway at 7.45pm.
Film The 355 Sky Cinema Premiere, 8pm Thriller starring Jessica Chastain as Mason Browne, a CIA operative who joins forces with three other female agents to rescue a lethal weapon that has fallen into mercenary hands. With Penélope Cruz.
The Last Leg Channel 4, 10pm Aisling Bea and Richard Ayoade join Adam Hills, Alex Brooker and Josh Widdicombe for a comic review of the week.
The Anthrax Attacks, Netflix, Thursday Twenty-one years ago, one of the largest and most complex FBI investigations in the history of law enforcement (current Trump-related concurrent debacles notwithstanding) occurred. One week after the horror of the 9/11 attacks, five Americans were killed — and at least 17 fell ill — in what became one of the nation’s worst biological attacks. From Oscar-nominated director Dan Krauss (Extremis, The Kill Team) comes this incredible scientific tale of paranoia, poison, and the postal system, set against the backdrop of the war on terror. Using a combination of interviews and scripted reenactments, based on emails and FBI field notes, the documentary feature also shares shocking stories that resonate from investigators, survivors, and the families of those who were infected. Starring Clark Gregg as Dr Bruce Ivins, this is a BBC Studios production — and, therefore, rather quite good.
Dated and Related Netflix, streaming now ’Tis worse telly is getting... At first glance, you’d be forgiven for thinking this involves family members dating each other. It is — in fact — based on them dating together. As in, alongside each other. In tandem. So siblings can survey how their nearest and dearest flirt, treat partners, plus their signature moves. Super. Having someone who knows you better than anyone should help you navigate the tricky world of dating. But will they act as the ultimate wingman and help you find love? Or scupper your plans and make things super awks…
All or Nothing: Arsenal Amazon Prime, streaming now All eight episodes from the series are now available on the platform. And, let’s be honest, as Premier League coaches go, Mikel Arteta is probably one of the sounder ones (plus, he had the legacy of Arsen’s seemingly neverending reign to contend with). Is he, however, as sound as Ryan Reynolds and yer man from It’s Only Sunny in Philadelphia? There’s only one way to find out... As the third installment of Welcome to Wrexham comes to Disney+ this week, I still can’t decide if this is more Ted Lasso or Sunderland ’Til I Die... Either way, Deadpool’s in it.
Devil in Ohio Netflix, streaming now Landing yesterday, and based on the book of the same name, expect your atypical American horror story, complete with satanic worship, salvation, an overbearing cuckolding scenario in a well-meaning family home, and the inevitable climax involving a cornfield.
You’re Nothing Special Netflix, streaming now Keeping with all things Wiccan (but in a good way), this could be considered a more adult version of that newly released tween offering Ivy + Bean (also based on a book and newly released on Netflix), but with Spanish subtitles.
Untold: The Race of the Century
Untold: The Race of the Century Netflix, Tuesday The third tale in the second volume of Untold chronicles the 1983 America’s Cup. A classic underdog story, it tells the tale of the scrappy group of Australians who band together to dethrone the New York Yacht Club, thus breaking the longest-running win streak (132 years) in history.
Pinocchio Disney+, Thursday As part of Disney+ Day (it’s an annual thing), Academy Award winner Robert Zemeckis directs this live-action retelling of the beloved tale of a wooden puppet who embarks on a thrilling adventure to become a real boy. Tom Hanks stars as Geppetto.
Gutsy AppleTV+, Friday Hillary R Clinton and daughter Chelsea front this eight-part series heralding “gutsy” women — such as Kim K and Megan Thee Stallion...
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