PICKS OF THE WEEK: 03-09 AUGUST 2026, WHAT TO WATCH THIS WEEK

Our picks of what to watch during the week ahead.

THE ANSWER RUN

Monday, BBC One

Three pairs of contestants will compete in each episode swiping their way through the fast-paced, general knowledge questions hoping to bank a cash prize.

Two answers are provided with the question fitting into one of them. Answer categories will range from ‘Dolly Parton or Barbie’ to ‘Venus or Saturn’ through to ‘Eastenders or Coronation Street’ and everything in between.

 LONG LOST FAMILY: BORN WITHOUT TRACE

Monday, ITV1

Using the latest DNA technology, genealogy, and decades of experience, lead social worker Ariel Bruce and her team find answers to the seemingly impossible questions foundlings have about their identity. Presenters Davina McCall and Nicky Campbell continue to negotiate the complexities of these stories with warmth and compassion, supporting families as they make life-changing discoveries.

CELEBRITY HUNTED

Monday, Channel 4

Each pair of celebrities must go on the run and vanish into mainland Britain, cutting themselves off from the lives - and the fame - they've always relied upon. For 14 relentless days they must stay hidden, think fast and trust no one because the moment they leave a trail, the hunt is on.

Pursuing them is Ray Howard and his elite team of Hunters drawn from policing, military and intelligence backgrounds. They have the full arsenal of the modern state at their disposal including CCTV, ANPR, Facial Recognition, helicopters, drones, search dogs, cyber investigations and media appeals. Every clue, every sighting and every mistake can mean a capture.

 JOE AND DAVID'S MAGICIAL SITCOM TOUR

Tuesday, U&Gold

Brand-New part travelogue, part buddy comedy and part retrospective, following Joe Wilkinson and David Earl explore their love of classic British sitcoms, with an episode each devoted to The Office, Porridge and Fawlty Towers. In each episode one of the pair will plan a specially themed and surprising day out for the other, with each taking it in turns. Basing each leg of their Magical Sitcom Tour on The Office, Porridge and Fawlty Towers, they’ll visit filming locations, reenact their favourite iconic moments and hear amazing behind the scenes tales from cast, crew and very special guests.

 TED LASSO

Wednesday, Apple TV

Ted returns to Richmond, taking on his biggest challenge yet: coaching a second division women’s football team. Throughout the course of the season, Ted and the team learn to leap before they look, taking chances they never thought they would.

 POSSESSION

Thursday, Sky Atlantic

Claudia (Gugu Mbatha-Raw), an ambitious young mixed-race lawyer, travels to Jamaica to challenge an inheritance claim made by a local man, Cudjoe East (Sheldon Shepherd), against Oliver Connaught (Jonny Lee Miller), a wealthy white aristocrat. But the case takes an unsettling turn when Claudia discovers that the disputed estate is the very place that has haunted her nightmares: Hope Hill, the Connaught family’s former plantation. As Claudia and Oliver dig deeper, they uncover a disturbing link between the plantation’s brutal past and the injustices still shaping the present. 

 ALLEY CATS

Friday, Netflix

Alley Cats is an adult animated sitcom created by and starring the multi award-winning Ricky Gervais. The series follows the trials and tribulations of a group of feral British cats from all walks of society, who seek companionship while ruminating on everyday life. From the funny to the absurd, the series is packed with Gervais’ signature style of heart and social commentary that audiences have come to expect.