Your ultimate TV guide for Easter weekend

Life


Your ultimate TV guide for Easter weekend

By Kayleigh Dray

7 years ago

There’s some truly brilliant TV shows to choose from this long Easter weekend. Here’s our ultimate edit to help you narrow it down…

From everyone’s favourite baking show to the long-anticipated adaptation of Agatha Christie’s Ordeal by Innocence, behold our round-up of the best TV offerings to hunker down in front of over the long (and rainy) Easter weekend. You’re welcome. 

Now all you need is a stash of Easter eggs, a cosy spot on the sofa and a remote control within easy reaching distance…


Good Friday

A Series of Unfortunate Events (Season 2) – Netflix

The second series of the critically-acclaimed A Series of Unfortunate Events will be available to watch in the UK from 8am on 30 March and, as per all Netflix Originals, it will drop in its entirety for fans of Lemony Snicket to binge watch in one go.

Based on the internationally best-selling books of the same name, season two will pick up the tragic tale of the Baudelaire orphans – Violet, Klaus, and Sunny – and their extraordinary encounters with the devious Count Olaf, who will stop at nothing to get his hands on their inheritance. Expect nothing but extremely dark comedy from the get go.


The Silent Child – BBC One, 7.40pm

This year’s Oscar-winning short film – the moving account of a deaf girl freed from isolation – airs on BBC One.


First Match – Netflix 

In Netflix’s new movie, First Match, a high schooler (Elvire Emanuelle) growing up in Brooklyn’s Brownsville projects discovers a passion for wrestling — and so she joins the boys’ team, much to the surprise, scepticism and disgust of her peers.

Unsurprisingly, this journey of self-discovery is incredibly powerful – and not just because we get to see a woman kicking men’s asses in the ring. Instead, writer and director Olivia Newton carefully reminds us that a person’s gender isn’t the only factor that can create challenges: Monique grew up within the foster care system, is frequently subjected to systemic racism and has suffered through a lifetime of hardships, such as incarceration and sexual abuse. 

Trust us when we say you will need a stash of tissues to hand…


Bridesmaids – ITV2, 9pm

This fiercely funny film needs no introduction by this point. Just settle back and prepare to laugh until your face hurts over Kristen Wiig’s struggles through the strange and expensive rituals associated with being a bride’s go-to-gal. And, if you’re due to perform the sacred duty of bridesmaid this year, maybe make a mental note to never hit up a dodgy restaurant (and eat a lot of grey chicken) before heading to your dress fitting…


Rapture (Season 1) – Netflix 

This exciting new documentary sees groundbreaking hip-hop stars describe, in their own words, what defines them as artists and the effect they’ve had on global culture. Think G-Eazy, Nas and Dave East, T.I., Rapsody, Logic, A Boogie wit da Hoodie, 2 Chainz and Just Blaze, to name just a few.


Saturday


The Great British Bake Off (Seasons 1-7) – Netflix

Grab your hot cross buns and settle down for the long-haul, because all SEVEN seasons of the BBC’s Great British Bake Off will be hitting Netflix this Saturday. Which means that, yes, there will be Mary Berry, soggy bottoms, puns aplenty, Mel and Sue, and no more adverts. Hurrah! We won’t blame you if you cancel all your Easter plans to binge-watch the entire thing (we’ll be doing the same, to be quite honest).


David Attenborough’s Natural World – BBC Two, 8pm

If you’ve wondered why eggs are oval or which end comes out of a chicken first, you’ll find out in Sir David Attenborough’s Natural World. Focused entirely on (you guessed it), eggs, this is perfect for those who fancy something that is both seasonal and scientific.


Hamlet – BBC Two, 9pm

This Easter weekend, a fresh adaptation of Hamlet – which enjoyed sell-out runs at the Almeida Theatre and the Harold Pinter Theatre in the West End last year – comes to BBC Two, complete with an all-star cast. Pour yourself a glass of wine, adopt an air of superior smugness and watch as Andrew Scott, Jessica Brown Findlay, Juliet Stevenson, Madeline Appiah and more bring the Bard’s classic tale of vengeance to life in this lavish small-screen adaptation.


Detroit – Amazon Prime 

Kathryn Bigelow’s fact-based drama takes us back to the summer of 1967, when rioting and civil unrest starts to tear apart the city of Detroit. Two days later, a report of gunshots prompts the Detroit Police Department, the Michigan State Police and the Michigan Army National Guard to search and seize an annex of the nearby Algiers Motel. It isn’t long before some police officers begin to forcefully and viciously interrogating guests to get a confession, and, by the end of the night, three unarmed men are gunned down. A gruelling and nightmarish examination into the horror of institutional racism.


Easter Sunday


The Great Celebrity Bake Off for Stand Up To Cancer – Channel 4, 5.15pm

Bake Off fans were nervous when the show moved to Channel 4 last year, but the 2018 series proved to be a hit, with many praising the “more surreal, comedic take” on all of that baking action.

Now, it seems Channel 4 bosses are taking things one step further with a series of special celebrity specials for Stand Up To Cancer.

This week’s episode sees Lee Mack, Griff Rhys Jones, Melanie Sykes and Joe Lycett battle it out over three rounds (the usual signature, technical and showstopper challenges) in a bid to impress Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith – and be crowned Star Baker.

Find out more here.


The Big Painting Challenge – BBC One, 6pm

Mariella Frostrup and Reverend Richard Coles will be returning for the third series of The Big Painting Challenge, which, as art lovers will know, sees ten amateur artists face two painting challenges each week before the judges decide who leaves the competition. Easy, guilty-pleasure telly at its finest.


The Generation Game – BBC One, 8pm

The Generation Game is back with Mel and Sue at the helm – and trust us when we say this long-overdue trip down memory lane boasts just the right mix of nostalgia, silliness and cuddly toys to keep everyone happy on Easter Sunday.


Ordeal by Innocence – BBC One, 9pm

In Agatha Christie’s 1958 hit, Ordeal By Innocence, the murder (because there is, of course, a murder) is that of family matriarch Rachel Argyle – and it isn’t long before her adopted son Jack is jailed for the crime. However, as one may expect, the case is not quite closed there.

This three-part adaptation was set to be the BBC’s big offering over Christmas. After allegations of sexual assault were made against one of its stars, Ed Westwick, it was pulled from the schedule, and all 35 scenes were reshot in 12 days with a replacement actor, Christian Cooke.

Ordeal By Innocence, which stars Bill Nighy and Alice Eve, will now be broadcast on BBC One on Easter Sunday.


Easter Monday


Celebrity Mastermind – BBC One, 6.30pm

Fancy putting your grey matter to the test after a long weekend off? This episode of Celebrity Mastermind should do just that. Play along at home as John Humphrys tests comedian Shappi Khorsandi on Charlie Chaplin, Radio One’s Chris Stark on Scott Mills, TV presenter Piers Taylor on Bob Dylan, and the Paralympian gold medallist Lee Pearson on British birds. Good luck…


The Missing (Season 2) – Amazon Prime

Told over multiple timelines, this critically-acclaimed crime drama (it boasts a cool 93% on Rotten Tomatoes) sees a young woman named Alice walk back into the town she was abducted from 11 years previously, throwing her family’s lives into turmoil. Detective Julien Baptiste soon realises that she holds vital clues about another case – and that, if he can find Alice’s abductor, he may just be able to save a missing girl.


Lenny Henry: The Commonwealth Kid – BBC One, 9pm

This thoughtful (and funny) documentary sees Lenny Henry set off on a tour of the Caribbean (including his parents’ homeland of Jamaica) to hear what the Commonwealth means to the people who live there, and learn more about the legacy of the British empire and slavery.


Kiss Me First – Channel 4, 10pm

Fans of Black Mirror will love Kiss Me First, the new Channel 4 drama from Skins creator Bryan Elsley. The six-episode series follows Leila, an incredibly isolated young woman who is desperate to find solace after the death of her mother. So, in a bid to remove herself from the crushing realities of real life, she begins playing a virtual reality videogame called Azana and, within its virtual world, meets extroverted party girl Tess. The pair soon hit it off within the private sanctuary, prompting Tess to introduce Leila to a mysterious inner society called Red Pill, who promise a deeper, more intense experience. But what secrets are they really hiding? And who exactly is the mysterious Adrian?

Image: Getty

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