Hot on the heels of deciding on the best three TV shows to watch at Christmas, we're straight into the next exciting decision: What to tune into during January.
The festive period has come to a sad end, the leftovers have been demolished and there will be no more Baileys until next Christmas (because it's definitely an unwritten rule that nobody drinks it at any other time of the year.)
While we're all felling full of cheese and contemplating new year healthy eating and fitness regimes, the most pressing thing to decide on is which TV shows will distract you from the January blues.
I'm happy to report that there are plenty. The TV schedule is so full of new and returning TV shows, that I've narrowed down the ones I'm absolutely hopping with excitement for.
The Top 3 TV shows to watch this January
Can You Keep A Secret?
When is it on TV? All six episodes will be on BBC iPlayer from January 7.
When you hear that Dawn French is going to be back on TV for the first time in a while, and she's going to be joined by Mark Heap and Craig Roberts, not tuning in is simply not an option.
If that outstanding cast piques your interest, finding out the six-part series, Can You Keep A Secret? was written by This Country producer Simon Mayhew-Archer, will cement your need to watch the show Dawn French has described as what happens when "a sitcom has mated with a thriller."
I've seen some previews, and this genre-bending, chaotic comedy is definitely worth your time. Dawn French is Debbie, a woman who knows her own mind and won't be told otherwise.
When her husband William (Mark Heap) is accidentally declared dead, Debbie decides it'll be easy to hide him in the loft until the life insurance pay out arrives, and they can live out a happy and very wealthy retirement.
Of course, it's not as easy as that or there'd be no comedy series. Debbie and William find their secret is far harder to keep than they'd anticipated, and they also have their easily flustered son Harry (Craig Roberts) to contend with.
Craig also happens to be married to a "pathologically pragmatic" woman, who is also a police officer. This quirky show is sure to kick start your January with some much-needed, post-festive period laughs.
A Thousand Blows season 2
When is it on TV? All six episodes of A Thousand Blows season 2 will be released at once on Disney+ (and Hulu in the US) on January 9, 2026. Season 1 is also available to stream in its entirety.
I won't lie, I wasn't sure about tuning in to the first season of this, because, as the name suggests, it's a show about boxing. However, it's also about a lot more than that, and season 1 turned out to be one of the best things I watched last year.
Created by Stephen Knight, A Thousand Blows has the same, stylish, Peaky Blinders vibes - the sets and costumes are visually stunning. The mesmerising characters are also based on real historical figures, and I guarantee they'll take you down a Google rabbit hole as you vie to find out more about them.
If you've seen Netflix's Adolescence, and were blown away by Stephen Graham and Erin Doherty's performance in that, their star turns in this series are equally mind blowing.
Stephen Graham portrays the terrifying Henry "Sugar" Goodson, a boxing champion at the forefront of the real-life murky underworld of late‑Victorian bare-knuckle fighting.
While this is an interesting insight into a little known period of history, it's the female cast and their retelling of the also once real gang of the Forty Elephants, who steal the show.
Darci Shaw as Alice Diamond and Erin Doherty as Mary Carr are not only brilliant fun to watch, but their real-life counterparts have the best stories.
They were the two characters that took up most of my time searching for more information, as I was drawn in by their fierce actions and roles in outlandish money-making heists not usually associated with women of the era.
If you are yet to see this series, you now have the gift of being able to watch both of them back-to-back this month. Consider your January viewing sorted.
Hijack season 2
When is it on TV? The second season of Hijack will premiere globally on January 14 on Apple TV, with the first two episodes landing first. The remaining six episodes will then follow weekly until February 25. All episodes of season 1 are also available to stream.
The first season of Hijack was a very fresh take on the TV hijack genre. It received rave reviews across the board, and Idris Elba was nominated for a Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series.
Finding himself on a hijacked plane, Elba's character Sam, is not your usual action hero. He's an accomplished business negotiator, and not someone you'd normally find using their fists to solve problems.
Sam has no inner demons to battle, and was simply a man using the skills he did possess, to get back to his family. It's no spoiler alert to find out he survived, as the show is back for a second outing.
This time, Sam finds himself on a Berlin underground train that's taken hostage. While season 1 saw very clear perpetrators behind the plane's hijacking, season 2 has authorities questioning whether Sam could be involved in the crime as they scramble to save the lives of those on board.
The first outing was definitely an edge-of-your-seat thrilling ride that gave more than a little dose of vertigo, with audiences taken along for the sudden lurches and dips the hijacked plane took.
Although the action is now on a train, Idris Elba has promised audiences the same level of high-octane thrills. I for one, can't wait for this one.
If you don't have Apple TV, you can sign up for a 7-day free trial, and watch the action while you decide if you want to continue with the streamer. There's loads of brilliant shows on there, and my guide to what to watch there will definitely help you get started.
