PICKS OF THE YEAR: 2024

A look ahead at the new and returning series set to hit screens in 2024.

GLADIATORS

BBC One

Contenders, ready! Gladiators, ready! One of the most exciting and iconic sports entertainment gameshows ever, Gladiators will be returning to TV in its brand new home on the BBC. This 11-part series will be back with a brand new generation of superhuman Gladiators who will compete against a brave set of contenders in the ultimate test of speed and strength.

DANCING ON ICE

ITV1

2024 will see the celebrity contestants and their professional partners skating live each week in a bid to impress both the panel and the viewers who will ultimately decide who wins the show. On hand to offer their critique are Olympic winners and ice skating legends Jayne Torvill and Christoper Dean, choreographer Ashley Banjo MBE, and dancer Oti Mabuse.

WHEEL OF FORTUNE

ITV1

In this thrilling game of skill and luck, the turn of the wheel secures a cash value before they pick a letter to help them solve the puzzle - for every correct letter they reveal in the puzzle, they win multiples of that amount. The pressure is on as they could lose everything at a spin of a wheel which contains ‘bankrupts’ and ‘lose a turn’, and the contestants’ entire winnings could be wiped out

THE MASKED SINGER

ITV1

Hosted by our very own ringmaster Joel Dommett, our super sleuths return as Davina McCall, Rita Ora, Jonathan Ross and Mo Gilligan are back in the detective chairs and the guessing game begins all over again.

PASSWORD

ITV1

A hilarious word association game, hosted by Stephen Mangan, where regular team captains Alan Carr and Daisy May Cooper each pair up with contestants and give one-word clues to help their teammate guess a mystery ‘password’

MICHAEL McINTYRE'S BIG SHOW

BBC One

The hit Saturday night show will be back on screens in 2024 after a hugely successful run earlier this year which saw an average of 6.3m viewers across the series. Made by Hungry McBear Media and filmed in front of a live audience at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, the entertainment extravaganza will be packed with superstar guests, incredible musical performances and a few extra surprises. 

ANT & DEC'S SATURDAY NIGHT TAKEAWAY

ITV1

Earlier this year it was announced that the show would be taking a break after 2024 (the series previously took a pause in 2009, returning four years later in 2013). The upcoming 20th series will have loads of brand-new high octane challenges, hilarious hidden camera set-ups and new studio games and live surprises, but it will also be a momentous magical celebration of all things Takeaway from over the years.

IN WITH A SHOUT

ITV1

Sees two families battle against each other in a thrilling game with a challenging twist. With a mega prize of £20,000, the contestants have to answer questions hidden within a montage of moving images, with the winning family battling it out with just 60 seconds to successfully answer the questions - or walk away with nothing.

ANT & DEC'S LIMITLESS WIN

ITV1

Fronted by Britain’s favourite double act Ant and Dec, the primetime entertainment quiz show returns for a third series. The groundbreaking format with a never-ending money ladder allows contestants to win the world’s first unlimited jackpot.

JEOPARDY!

ITV1

Coming to ITV1 on New Year’s Day is the culturally iconic game show - hosted by broadcaster Stephen Fry, the entertainment show will provide nostalgia for fans of the format while introducing the family-friendly quiz show to a new audience.

THE VOICE UK

ITV1

In the search for the next singing sensation Sir Tom Jones and will.i.am are joined by two new coaches.

STRICTLY COME DANCING

BBC One

Strictly Come Dancing is back on our screens for 2024, marking the 22nd series of the nation’s favourite dancing show. The multi award-winning series promises to entertain the nation once again, with presenters Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman back in the ballroom to oversee proceedings each weekend as a host of brand new celebrity contestants take to the floor in a bid to lift the coveted Glitterball Trophy.

WHO WANTS TO BE A MILLIONAIRE?

ITV1

Each contestant will put their knowledge to the test in front of the nation as they try to answer the 15 questions to win the million-pound prize helped along the way by four lifelines of 50:50, Phone a Friend, Ask the Audience and Ask the Host - expect some massive wins, devasting losses, and even Jeremy answering correctly!

BEAT THE CHASERS

ITV1

Individual celebrities take on all six Chasers - The Governess, The Vixen, The Menace, The Dark Destroyer, The Beast and The Sinnerman - in the hope of winning a huge cash prize for their chosen charities

THE 1% CLUB

ITV1

Imagine a game show where an eight-year-old has as much chance of winning as an 80-year-old or where intelligence isn’t based on how many exams you passed, but is all about how your brain works - The 1% Club is a unique, compelling and funny gameshow that tests the nation’s intelligence, based on a scientific survey.

LATE NIGHT LYCETT

Channel 4

Broadcast live, with fun and inclusivity at heart, Late Night Lycett celebrates the city and its diversity, making stars of the locals. The first series witnessed celebs from Natalie Cassidy to Paul Chuckle running riot in Joe’s local corner shop, created the nation’s new sweetheart in the form of production trainee Linda Biscuits; saw Joe give away his very own car to an audience member; and introduced controversial straight-talking newsreader Richard Yewtree to challenge the woke agenda.

MR BATES VS THE POST OFFICE

ITV1

Hundreds of innocent subpostmasters and postmistresses were wrongly accused of theft, fraud and false accounting due to a defective IT system - many of the wronged workers were prosecuted, some of whom were imprisoned for crimes they never committed, and their lives were irreparably ruined by the scandal.

TRIGGER POINT

ITV1

Lana is just back from secondment training Ukrainian bomb disposal teams but has not returned to active duty - she is giving a routine talk to security officers from major financial institutions about the issues surrounding bomb-centred terrorism when there is a bomb attack in the heart of the city. Lana is closest to the incident, but is she ready to take it on?

THE TOURIST

BBC One

Elliot and Helen travel to Ireland to find answers about Elliot’s past. However, after Elliot is violently kidnapped, they must each continue their dangerous search alone.

THE RESPONDER

BBC One

Series two joins Chris Carson six months later. Chris is attempting to rebuild his life, and his relationships, desperate to avoid the corruption that nearly sucked him under. He is trying to be a better police officer, a better man, and most importantly, a better father to his daughter Tilly. All whilst still dealing with the relentless trauma of being a night response officer.

THE WINTER KING

ITV1

This series is set in the fifth century in a brutal land of warring factions and tribes where lives were often fleeting and follows Arthur Pendragon as he evolves from being an outcast and becomes a legendary warrior and leader

SILENT WITNESS

BBC One

Nikki and Jack investigate a murder bearing all the hallmarks of a notorious serial killer. When Nikki meets Charles Beck, the pathologist who conducted the original post-mortems, she discovers his wife was the suspected fifth victim of the serial killer, but nobody believes him when he claims he knows where to find her body.

BREATHTAKING

ITV1

A searing, thought-provoking and poignant account of an NHS doctor in the eye of the storm during the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic. The drama stars Joanne Froggatt in the role of a frontline hospital consultant, is based on doctor-writer Rachel Clarke’s unflinching personal memoir of the greatest public health crisis in living memory.

VERA

ITV1

DCI Vera Stanhope investigates the suspicious death of a market trader and reveals a web of secrets, lies and betrayal while an enigmatic figure from her past returns - episode two sees Vera delve into the case of a sickly young girl found in a remote railway siding, unearthing twisted family dynamics and raising questions about trust and exploitation in the process.

GRANTCHESTER

ITV1

Will is the happiest he’s ever been, but his world will be rocked by a terrible accident - he’s always preached the word of a compassionate God, but how can he now when his despair leads him on a dangerous downward spiral?

TRUELOVE

Channel 4

Truelove is a unique spin on a cat and mouse thriller, centring on a gang of older friends who make a pact that, if and when the time comes, rather than let each other suffer a dreadful decline they will engineer a more dignified death as a sign of ‘Truelove’. But when an intrepid young police officer discovers that there is more to this group of retirees than meets the eye, events soon take a surprising and dangerous turn…

COMA

Channel 5

Simon (Jason Watkins), a devoted family man, finds himself at a breaking point as his neighbourhood falls victim to the terrorising antics of a group of teenagers, led by the menacing 17-year-old Jordan Franklin, played by rising star Joe Barber, and his questionable companions.

DEATH IN PARADISE

BBC One

Cast regulars and new faces alike descend on Saint Marie, delving into a world of mysterious murders and perplexing puzzles that have gained Death In Paradise its reputation as a shining example of the crime drama genre.

BEYOND PARADISE

BBC One

The new series features the same joyful escapism, humour and mind-boggling cases fans have come to adore since series one. Shipton Abbott’s new detective inspector will be tasked with solving a shocking crime on a steam train, an arson attack predicted by a medium and the baffling disappearance of the local fishing legend.

THE HARDACRES

Channel 5

A sweeping rags to riches story that follows the lives, loves and fortunes of the working class Hardacre family as they move from a grimy fish dock to a vast country estate in 1890’s Yorkshire. A bold, gutsy ensemble family drama full of heart, The Hardacres places an ordinary family in an extraordinary position and explores the age-old question – can money ever buy true happiness?

PASSENGER

ITVX

A close-knit community in the small Northern village of Chadder Vale is sent spinning on its axis following a series of strange and unnatural crimes. After arriving there five years ago, former Met Police detective Riya Ajunwa (Wunmi Mosaku, Loki, Damilola, Our Loved Boy, Lovecraft Country) has been searching for that ‘one big crime’, that one challenge that will make her feel alive again.

AFTER THE FLOOD

ITV1

When an unidentified man is found dead in a lift in an underground car park and police assume that he became trapped as the waters rose, PC Joanna Marshall (Sophie Rundle) becomes obsessed with discovering what happened.

BIG BOYS

Channel 4

Series two takes the whole gang straight into the second year of Brent University 2014, where alongside dealing with virginity hang-ups, drug experimentation (both legal and otherwise) and Jack’s obsession with Alison Hammond, this time round their degrees actually count!

DOUGLAS IS CANCELLED

ITVX

Comedy-drama starring Hugh Bonneville and Karen Gillan. Introduces us to middle aged, and greying, current affairs news anchor, Douglas Bellowes, a respected broadcaster and raconteur who loves the life he’s created with his newspaper editor wife, Sheila. Speculation is rife and during the on-going hysteria and digital storm, Douglas’s alleged indiscretion is dissected, analysed and blown out of all proportion. Everyone appears to have an opinion and Douglas is struggling to escape the controversy.

SIGNIFICANT OTHER

ITV1

Sam’s (Youssef Kerkour) waiting to die, after swallowing a cabinet full of pills, when he’s interrupted by his neighbour, Anna (Katherine Parkinson) - she’s having a heart attack and needs to wait with him until help arrives.

COUNT ABDULLA

ITV2

Count Abdulla follows Abdulla Khan (Arian Nik) - a mid-twenties British Muslim doctor stuck in an identity crisis, caught between his religious mother Bushra (Nina Wadia) and his secular, hedonistic friends. But when Abdulla is bitten by a vampire (Jaime Winstone) he suddenly becomes the outsider’s outsider. 

G'WED

ITVX

G’wed is an uplifting, heart-warming and hilarious portrayal of teenagers today and how they view the world. It delves into the working class culture of “surviving with a sense of humour”. The distinctive voice of Liverpool and the lived experience of the kids from the city will be at the heart of this comedy, tackling big issues like grief, sex, diversity and class differences with a wicked sense of humour.

BIG MOOD

Channel 4

Best friends Maggie and Eddie played by Nicola Coughlan and Lydia West have lived in each other’s pockets for ten years, through thick, thin, and multiple challenging eyebrow trends. But with the rest of their lives looming, careers hanging in the balance, and Maggie’s bipolar disorder making an unwelcome return to form, Eddie begins to question whether this friendship is really in their best interests.

CHANGING ENDS

ITVX and ITV1

Changing Ends is based on Alan Carr’s own life in Northampton in the 1980’s growing up as the son of a fourth division football manager.

MR BIG STUFF

Sky

Mr Bigstuff tells the story of two estranged brothers; Glen (Sampson) a nervy perfectionist striving to live the suburban ideal and Lee (Dyer) an alpha male with a prescription drug addiction and a biscuit tin full of his Dad’s ashes.

EVERYONE ELSE BURNS

Channel 4

Following a highly successful first outing – and the survival of eternal hell fire - the Lewis family are returning to Channel 4 for a second series in Everyone Else Burns, which will bring our favourite god-fearing Mancunians back for an inferno of family strife, marital chaos and righteous revolution.