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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Entertainment
Graeme Virtue, Sammy Gecsoyler, Hannah Verdier, Danielle De Wolfe, Phil Harrison and Simon Wardell

TV tonight: Steven Knight’s rollicking new SAS drama ticks all the boxes

SAS Rogue Heroes on BBC One.
SAS Rogue Heroes on BBC One. Photograph: Robert Viglasky/BBC/Kudos

SAS Rogue Heroes

9pm, BBC One

Ben Macintyre’s 2016 bestseller about the formation of the SAS amid the north African theatre of 1941 gets a properly rollicking adaptation from Steven Knight, who repeats his rousing Peaky Blinders formula. That means a hardnut gang of non-conformists delivering cynical but poetic monologues, lavish period production design and lots of anachronistic soundtrack drops. Submit to the macho tempo and it is terrific. Graeme Virtue

Top Gear

8pm, BBC One

Back for a whopping 33rd series, Freddie Flintoff, Chris Harris and Paddy McGuinness head to Thailand on a road trip in old pickups. Then, Chris goes for a spin in the Rimac Nevera, an electric two-seater that might be the fastest electric car on the planet. Sammy Gescoyler

Tutankhamun’s Secrets: Raiders of the Lost Past With Janina Ramirez

9pm, BBC Two

In this one-off documentary, Dr Janina Ramirez heads to Egypt to uncover the real story of how Tutankhamun’s treasure-packed tomb was found in 1922. She inspects clues and explores the history of “tomb robbers”, while talking to historians and archaeologists from the regions. SG

The Handmaid’s Tale

9pm, Channel 4

As the dystopian drama rumbles on, June has the freedom to go to the ballet in Toronto and the love of Luke, the only good man in the Tale – but she’s still coming up against painful reminders of the past. Meanwhile, Janine is back and she and Aunt Lydia are getting Esther ready for her Handmaid debut. Hannah Verdier

Kingdom of Dreams

9pm, Sky Documentaries

“What’s interesting is to make people dream,” smiles French couture entrepreneur Bernard Arnault. Chronicling the visionary fashion disruptors’ journey opposite bitter rival François Pinault, this new series reveals the industry’s competitive underbelly. Tonight, we see how the rise and rise of John Galliano intersects the pair’s plans for world domination. Danielle De Wolfe

The Ranganation

10pm, BBC Two

Romesh Ranganathan, his studio guests, his feisty focus groups and, most importantly, his mum get together to discuss the increasingly bewildering state of modern Britain. The vibe is mild bafflement rather than searching inquiry but in the context of the chaos of autumn 2022, it’s none the worse for its levity. Phil Harrison

Film choice

Rocks, 10.15pm, Channel 4

Rocks on Channel 4.
Rocks on Channel 4. Photograph: BFA/Alamy

Directed by Sarah Gavron, but grounded in months of workshops with its non-professional teenage cast, this London-set drama has the smack of authenticity. Bukky Bakray is its focal point as Shola, AKA Rocks, a British-Nigerian girl who finds herself looking after her young brother Emmanuel (a heart-tugging D’angelou Osei Kissiedu) alone after their mother walks out. She tries to hide this from her tight-knit group of schoolmates, and the authorities, but her outlook becomes more and more desperate. A terrifically engaging film about female friendship, it lights up whenever Rocks and her pals are together, with her BFF, British-Somali Sumaya (Kosar Ali), a vital presence. Simon Wardell

Red Rocket, 10pm, 2am, Sky Cinema Premiere

The Florida Project’s Sean Baker again digs down into the lives of folk on the breadline in this astute comedy-drama. Mikey Saber (a wonderfully narcissistic turn from Simon Rex) is a has-been porn actor who returns to his Texas home town and inveigles his way back into his estranged wife’s house and life. Then he meets teenage shopworker Strawberry (Suzanna Son) and plots a way back into the sex industry via her. Shot in Baker’s loose-limbed style, it’s very funny while also treating the lives of its working-class characters with respect. SW


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