2019 is set to be a stellar year for TV.
Whether you’re into period dramas like Gentleman Jack and Peaky Blinders or contemporary thrillers such as Line of Duty and Traitors, there’s a scintillating range of series on offer.
In the world of entertainment, there’s also the return of some of Britain’s biggest shiny floor shows – take Strictly and The X Factor for instance – as well as the addition of The Greatest Dancer and a Shipwrecked reboot.
In comedy, Catastrophe is back for a final series and Alan Partridge bumbles back onto our screens with a brand new show.
The biggest movies releases of 2019
And finally there’s a diverse selection of documentaries, from David Attenborough’s new Netflix series to Danny Dyer’s exploration of his family history.
Check out all the series to look out for in 2019, below…
Dramas
Gentleman Jack
Channel:BBC1
Air date: spring 2019
Two of television’s most influential women unite – Suranne Jones on screen and Sally Wainwright behind the camera – to tell the remarkable story of Anne Lister, the Regency landowner. Read more
Good Omens
Channel: Amazon Prime Video
Release date: spring 2019
An all-star cast – including David Tennant, Michael Sheen, Jack Whitehall, Anna Maxwell Martin, John Hamm, Derek Jacobi, Mark Gatiss and many more – brings to life Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman’s epic. Read more
Adult Material
Channel: Channel 4
Air date: TBC
Sheridan Smith stars as a leading British porn star in a drama examining the adult film industry. It promises to be a timely look at how porn’s influence on mainstream culture has affected society’s ideas of consent.
Summer of Rockets
Channel: BBC1
Air date: spring 2019
Stephen Poliakoff’s semi-autobiographical six-part series set in Britain during the Cold War stars Toby Stephens and Keeley Hawes. Read more
A Confession
Channel: ITV
Air date: TBC
The latest drama based on real events from writer Jeff Pope focuses on the disappearance of 22-year-old Sian O’Callaghan in March 2011 and the lengths Detective Supertintendent Steve Fulcher (Martin Freeman) went to in order to catch her killer. Read more
The Crown series 3
Channel: Netflix
Release date: TBC
Olivia Colman inherits the burden of the crown worn so dazzlingly by Claire Foy, who played Queen Elizabeth in series one and two. The saga of the British royal family now moves into a new era covering 1964-76. Read more
Line of Duty series 5
Channel: BBC1
Air date: spring 2019
AC-12 are back in business fighting police corruption. Joining regulars Adrian Dunbar, Vicky McClure and Martin Compston is Stephen Graham. Could he be ‘balaclava man’ and, more importantly, will he make it past the first episode? Read more
Peaky Blinders series 5
Channel: BBC1
Air date: spring 2019
Cillian Murphy returns as Tommy Shelby in Stephen Knight’s Birmingham-based gangster family epic, which is moving to BBC1. Sam Claflin and Emmet J Scanlan (seen most recently in Butterfly) join the fray. Read more
Game of Thrones season 8
Channel: Sky Atlantic
Air date: April
The smash-hit fantasy is back for an eighth and final series, meaning the last battle for Westeros is almost upon us. But what will happen to Jon Snow and Daenerys? And will the White Walkers finally triumph? Read more
Catch 22
Channel: Channel 4
Air date: summer 2019
George Clooney stars in, directs and executive produces the adaptation of Joseph Heller’s tale about Yossarian, a US Air Force bombardier in World War II. Read more
Click ‘next’ for even more shows to come in 2019
Poldark series 5
Channel: BBC1
Air date: summer 2019
The fifth and final series of Poldark moves away from the novels by Winston Graham, as we see the cast cope with the devastating events at the end of the last series. Read more
Stranger Things season 3
Channel: Netflix
Release date: TBC
The sci-fi hit is back for a third series with all of the original cast returning to take us on a whole new set of supernatural adventures in the small town of Hawkins. Read more
Big Little Lies season 2
Channel: Sky Atlantic
Air date: 2019
The mothers of Monterey are coming back for a second series after the shocking climax of the season one finale. Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman, Shailene Woodley and Laura Dern will all be reprising their roles. Read more
Years and Years
Channel: BBC1
Air date: autumn 2019
This family saga from Russell T Davies is led by Emma Thompson, who plays Vivienne Rook, an outspoken celebrity turned political figure whose controversial opinions divide the nation. Read more
Traitors
Channel: Channel 4
Air date: spring 2019
A thriller set in the aftermath of the Second World War, Traitors stars Clique’s Emma Appleton as an ambitious 20-something woman who is tasked with spying on her own government. The starry ensemble cast also includes Keeley Hawes and Luke Treadaway. Read more
MotherFatherSon
Channel: BBC2
Air date: Winter
Richard Gere stars as a media tycoon and Helen McCrory as his estranged wife in this starry new series from the writer of The Assassination of Gianni Versace. Billy Howle also features as their son Caden who threatens to topple the family’s empire. Read more
Happy Valley series 3
Channel: BBC1
Air date: TBC
The long-awaited third series of Sally Wainwright’s Bafta-winning crime drama had previously been expected to finally air in 2019, however it’s looking more likely to hit screens in 2020, with Sarah Lancashire reprising her role as no-nonsense copper Catherine Cawood. Read more
Killing Eve season 2
Channel: BBC
Release date: TBC
The smash-hit, female-fronted spy thriller is back for a hotly anticipated second series. Sandra Oh will return as Eve and Jodie Comer will reprise the role of deadly assassin Villanelle. Read more
Mindhunter season 2
Channel: Netflix
Release date: TBC
The dark and complex drama that looks into the motives of killers achieved critical acclaim when it debuted on Netflix, and it’s coming back for a second series starring Jonathan Groff. Read more
His Dark Materials
Channel: BBC1
Air date: TBC
The long-awaited small screen adaptation of Phillip Pullman’s Dark Materials trilogy stars James McAvoy, Ruth Wilson and Lin Manuel Miranda and is written by Harry Potter and The Cursed Child writer Jack Thorne. Despite originally being expected to land in 2019, it’s looking more likely that it will have a 2020 release date. Read more
Click ‘next’ for even more shows to come in 2019
Homeland season 8
Channel: Channel 4
Air date: early 2019
The eighth and final season of Homeland, starring Claire Danes and Mandy Patinkin, will bring an end to the ever-twisting political thriller. Read more
Liar series 2
Channel: ITV
Air date: TBC
Joanne Froggatt and Ioan Gruffudd will both return for the second series of Liar to answer the many questions we had after the shock series one ending.
Black Mirror season 5
Channel: Netflix
Release date: 2019
The future will be brighter than ever. pic.twitter.com/slVeg3VPd7
— Black Mirror (@blackmirror) March 5, 2018
Charlie Brooker is back with another dose of his dystopian anthology series and, according to the writer, it is set to feature “the most complicated thing we’ve ever done”. But could there be a surprise early release in store? Read more
Victoria series 3
Channel: ITV
Air date: early 2019
A third series of this royal period drama starring Jenna Coleman will rejoin the young Queen in 1848, a “turbulent and uncertain time” for monarchs and subjects alike. Read more
Nightflyers
Channel: Netflix
Release date: TBC
This new horror sci-fi series is based on Game of Thrones writer George RR Martin’s novella and is set in 2093 on the eve of Earth’s destruction. Boardwalk Empire actor Gretchen Mol is in the cast alongside Eoin Macken and David Ajala. Read more
The Durrells series 4
Channel: ITV
Air date: spring 2019
Keeley Hawes is back for the fourth and final series of this drama based on the real-life British Durrell family, who moved to the Greek island of Corfu in the years leading up to World War II. Read more
Ozark season 3
Channel: Netflix
Release date: TBC
Ten new episodes of Ozark will land on Netflix this year for the show’s third series, which will reunite us with the Byrde family once again. Jason Bateman directs and leads the cast. Read more
Cheat
Channel: ITV
Air date: Spring
This psychological thriller stars Katherine Kelly as university professor Leah, who starts a dangerous relationship with her student Rose (Molly Windsor) and is thrust into a case of academic deception which has fatal consequences. Read more
13 Reasons Why season 3
Channel: Netflix
Release date: TBC
Netflix will release 13 more episodes for series three of its hard-hitting – and controversial – teen drama. Read more
Chilling Adventures of Sabrina season 2
Channel: Netflix
Release date: 5th April 2019
Kiernan Shipka will reprise her role as the teenage witch for a second series of the Sabrina fantasy. Netflix has already confirmed the series will run for at least four seasons. Read more
Chernobyl
Channel: Sky Atlantic
Air date: TBC
This five-part drama will tell the human story of the catastrophic nuclear accident at Chernobyl in 1986, and stars Emily Watson, Stellan Skarsgård and Jared Harris.
Click ‘next’ for even more shows to come in 2019
Comedy
This Time with Alan Partridge
Channel: BBC1
Air date: early 2019
The bumbling broadcaster is set to return to the BBC with a new six-part series after a spell at Sky. Alan will be fronting a live programme with “a heady mix of consumer affairs, current affairs, viewer interaction, highbrow interview and lightweight froth”. Read more
Kaos
Channel: Netflix
Release date: TBC
The creator of The End of the F***ing World – returning to Channel 4 in the autumn – has written a new, darkly comic Netflix series, Kaos, which is a modern reimagining of Greek mythology.
Happy AF
Channel: Channel 4
Air date: TBC
Comedian Aisling Bea is the creator and star of this new off-beat comedy which follows Aine, a woman who is trying to piece her life back together after a “teeny little nervous breakdown”. Read more
Warren
Channel: BBC1
Air date: early 2019
Martin Clunes plays a fastidious driving instructor who moves from the South of England to Preston when his partner’s father falls ill. A born pedant, he always thinks he knows best and causes chaos and disaster as he tries to adjust to his new life. Read more
Don’t Forget the Driver
Channel: BBC2
Air date: Spring
Written by and starring Toby Jones, this new comedy follows a coach driver and single dad whose soul is thrown into disarray upon discovering a dead body on the serene Bognor Regis shoreline. Read more
Fleabag series 2
Channel: BBC3
Air date: Winter
Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s anti-heroine is back for a hotly anticipated second series. Olivia Colman will also return as the evil godmother and Sherlock actor Andrew Scott joins the cast. Read more
Derry Girls series 2
Channel: Channel 4
Air date: spring 2019
Lisa McGee’s coming-of-age comedy set during the Irish troubles will be back for a second series. The show’s creator said she’s “toying” with covering the ceasefire and how it “actually unsettled people” in series two, as well as Bill Clinton’s 1995 visit to Derry. Read more
Catastrophe series 4
Channel: Channel 4
Air date: Monday 7th January 2019
Sharon Horgan and Rob Delaney’s comedy-drama is back for a fourth and final series. The new episodes promise to be as brutally honest as ever and explore the reality of sex in long-term relationships. Read more
Click ‘next’ for even more shows to come in 2019
Entertainment
Comic Relief’s Four Weddings and a Funeral
Channel: BBC1
Air date: March 2019
Hugh Grant and the Four Weddings and a Funeral cast are reuniting after 25 years for a Red Nose Day sequel to the beloved rom-com. Richard Curtis has written the script and the sequel will be directed by original director, Mike Newell. Read more
Ru Paul’s Drag Race UK
Channel: BBC3
Air date: TBC
A UK version of the internationally beloved, flamboyant US show is on its way, featuring ten British drag queens competing for the crown. Drag icon Ru Paul has already said he’d be thrilled to have the Duchess of Sussex as a guest judge… Read more
Shipwrecked
Channel: E4
Air date: early 2019
A reboot of the desert island dating show Shipwrecked, helmed by Strictly’s Vick Hope, is on its way to our screens after a seven year hiatus. Read more
Dancing on Ice
Channel: ITV
Air date: Sunday 6th January 2019
TOWIE legend Gemma Collins, Love Island’s Wes Nelson and Westlife’s Brian McFadden are among the celebrity contestants who have been confirmed to take to the rink for the 11th series of the talent competition. Read more
The Greatest Dancer
Channel: BBC1
Air date: Saturday 5th January 2019
Former X Factor judge Cheryl, Glee star Matthew Morrison and Strictly pro Oti Mabuse will be judging this brand new dancing competition masterminded by Simon Cowell. Read more
The Voice UK
Channel: ITV
Air date: Saturday 5th January 2019
The ITV singing show is coming back for an eighth series, launching at the same time and date as BBC1’s The Greatest Dancer. Olly Murs, Tom Jones, will.i.am and Jennifer Hudson are returning to the judging panel. Read more
Strictly Come Dancing
Channel: BBC1
Air date: Autumn 2019
A whole new set of celebrity contestants and their pro partners will be taking to the Strictly dance floor to compete for the chance to win the coveted Glitterball Trophy. Read more
Love Island
Channel: ITV2
Air date: summer 2019
The nation’s guilty pleasure will return once again, and a whole new raft of impossibly fit singletons will be heading into the villa to find love.
The X Factor
Channel: ITV
Air date: Autumn 2019
Simon Cowell may have a new entertainment show on the BBC, but ITV’s once-all conquering talent show isn’t giving up the ghost any time soon.
The Great British Bake Off
Channel: Channel 4
Air date: summer 2019
Another summer in the beloved GBBO tent awaits, and we’ll be meeting a whole new set of bakers keen to impress judges Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith with their culinary creations.
The Apprentice
Channel: BBC1
Air date: autumn 2019
Lord Sugar will invite a new roster of budding entrepreneurs into his boardroom in 2019 in a bid to find his next business partner.
I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!
Channel: ITV
Air date: autumn 2019
We’ll certainly be returning to the jungle to watch celebrities tackle critters, snakes and vermin – but which contestants will be rising to the challenge this year? Sadly Holly Willoughby won’t be joining them, after she confirmed that her stint hosting in 2018 was just a “one-off”.
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
Channel: ITV
Air date: New Year’s Day 2019
Following the success of the ITV revival under The Grand Tour presenter Jeremy Clarkson, the game show will be back with a longer series in 2019. Read more
Documentaries
Danny Dyer’s Right Royal History
Channel: BBC1
Air date: January
EastEnders star Danny Dyer will dig deeper into his family tree after discovering his royal roots on Who Do You Think You Are? From the Vikings to the Tudors, we can expect Dyer to dress, eat and live his way through his family’s history. Read more
Our Planet
Channel: Netflix
Release date: 5th April 2019
David Attenborough will narrate an epic new natural history series on Netflix, which was filmed over four years in 50 different countries and comes from the team behind Blue Planet and Planet Earth. Read more
from Radio Times http://bit.ly/2FC4A42
