Ukraine’s Stolen Children
10.45pm, ITV1
Remarkable and harrowing stories in Shahida Tulaganova’s documentary about Ukrainian children who were essentially kidnapped and taken to Russia after the war started in 2022. These youngsters were told their parents had abandoned them and were forced to speak Russian – and this film follows relatives as they make dangerous journeys into Russia to rescue their loved ones. Phil Harrison
Abandoned Engineering
8pm, Yesterday
A return of the series that reveals the secrets of aborted projects and their ruined sites; a psychogeographer’s dream. This episode encompasses a notorious gunslinger’s jailbreak in Indiana; a Caribbean kingpin’s reign of terror in Château Aubéry, Martinique; and an infamous Bolivian shootout in a sprawling silver mine. Ali Catterall
MasterChef: The Professionals
9pm, BBC One
The Michelin-starred arm of MasterChef begins its pre-Christmas run. We begin with a skills test – it’s always fascinating to see professionals floundering under the pressure and here a fillet of brill presents problems for some. Gregg Wallace presents, while Monica Galetti and Marcus Wareing loom imposingly. PH
Union with David Olusoga
9pm, BBC Two
As this fine series concludes, it considers the future. Can the United Kingdom survive? Olusoga looks to the past for illumination – and whether he’s tracking the Welsh language via the census or considering the contrasting fates of two families in Belfast, he finds ways of humanising the information he unearths. PH
Hunting the Catfish Crime Gang
9pm, BBC Three
Boyband-ready business mogul James Blake has such an enviable social media presence his Instagram pictures have been reused by online con artists operating on an industrial scale. In this exposé, he takes on the army of “fake Blakes” with the help of a scam-buster and ends up halfway round the world. Graeme Virtue
Al Murray: Why Does Everyone Hate the British Empire?
9pm, Sky History
Al Murray has always had a good line in embedding serious points about national identity within broad comedy. In this series, he plays the straight(ish) man, visiting former outposts of the empire to explore Britain’s complicated legacy with a comic from each country. He begins in India with standup Anuvab Pal. PH
