On Demand
American Gods (Amazon Prime, from Mon)
The eagerly awaited third season of the fantasy-drama inspired by Neil Gaiman's popular novel is here at last, something the author himself is thrilled about. He claims it's "full of drama and emotion," and "features some of the finest performances the show has yet seen," while a few fan favourite characters will return in "remarkable new ways". Tantalising words indeed. There will be some new gods to get to know too, all wrapped up in a story that is, apparently, more timely than anybody believed possible when work began on it many months ago. But don't worry, there are plenty of old favourites around too, including those played by Ricky Whittle, Emily Browning and Ian McShane.
The Silence (Acorn TV, from Mon)
Moving and disturbing four-part drama, originally shown on BBC One in 2010, follows the story of 18-year-old Amelia Edwards, who has recently been fitted with a cochlear implant. Desperate to escape from her over-protective parents, Amelia goes to stay with her Aunt Maggie, homicide detective uncle Jim, and teenage, free-spirited cousins Tom, Sophie and Joel. While there she witnesses the murder of a policewoman, a case Jim is eventually assigned to - although he initially doesn't realise his niece may have the information he needs to catch the culprit, and when he does, it becomes clear that Amelia's knowledge could put her life at risk. Genevieve Barr, Douglas Henshall, Dervla Kirwan, Hugh Bonneville and Gina McKee head the cast.
Finding Joy (Acorn TV, from Mon)
It's been described as 'Catastrophe meets Fleabag', which is a heady mix indeed, but there's certainly a taste of both of them in Amy Huberman's life-affirming comedy drama - as well as a heap of originality; it's also a lot more fun than the latter. If you haven't caught the first series yet, make sure you stream that before making a date with the second run. For the initiated, Huberman (who also writes the scripts) plays a newly single woman who, after splitting with her long-term love, gets a big break at work when she's asked to fill in for Ireland's favourite blogger. The second run sees her embrace 'the new Joy', or Joy 2.0, as she puts it. Unfortunately, she hasn't quite got everything she needs for success under control.
Miranda (BritBox, from Thu)
It's been a while since Miranda Hart's series aired on regular TV and, despite rumours of a revival every now and then, new episodes have so far failed to arrive. Thankfully, then, every episode is now being made available to stream - that's all three series of the sitcom, plus the two-part special finale. Hart takes the lead role of Miranda, a former public school girl who is socially inept and finds it difficult to fit in with members of her peer group - in particular Tilly, who was her childhood nemesis. Miranda also struggles to connect with members of the opposite sex, in particular her hunky former university pal Gary. Tom Ellis, Patricia Hodge, Sarah Hadland and Sally Phillips co-star.
Outside the Wire (Netflix, from Fri)
It may sound like a spin-off from David Simon's superlative Baltimore-set crime drama The Wire, but this science fiction epic couldn't be further from it. Directed by acclaimed Swedish film-maker Mikael Hafstrom, whose 2003 movie Evil received an Oscar nomination for Best Foreign Language Film, it's set in the future and stars Damson Idris as Leo, a drone pilot sent into a dangerous demilitarised zone. He's assigned to work for a android officer Harp (Anthony Mackie, who is also one of the project's producers), whose job it is to locate a doomsday device before enemy agents can get their hands on it. Emily Beecham, Michael Kelly and Pilou Asbaek are among the supporting cast.
Servant (Apple TV+, from Fri)
When it comes to creating thrillers with a spooky edge, few do it better than M Night Shyamalan. The man who brought the world the blockbusting The Sixth Sense ventured onto the small screen in 2019; his Apple TV+ series became one of the streaming service's first major hits. It focuses on Dorothy and Sean who, following the death of their baby son, hire nanny Leanne to take care of the 'reborn doll' they're raising in his place. But Leanne couldn't be further removed from Mary Poppins, and soon, bizarre and terrifying events begin to occur... Lauren Ambrose, Toby Kebbel, Nell Tiger Free and Rupert Grint return to the cast, and although Shyamalan is keeping mum about the new run's premise, he promises it will be just as disturbing as its predecessor.
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