On TV tonight, the countdown to Eurovision 2023 continues with Eurovision Calling, Clive Myrie's Italian Road Trip sees the presenter tucking into the best pizza he's ever had, BBC Four marks David Attenborough's birthday, and Malory Towers returns to CBBC. Here's what you shouldn't miss on TV Tonight.
- Our hand-selected recommendations for what's on TV tonight include TV shows, a film, live sport and the latest trending need-to-binge-on-now box set
- Keep up to date with the latest soap spoiler storylines on TV tonight with our daily soap synopsis
- For more information about what’s on TV tonight see our TV Guide
What's on TV tonight
Our expert TV journalists have picked the best things on TV tonight...
Best TV shows on TV tonight
Eurovision Calling, 9 pm, BBC One
The countdown to Eurovision reaches fever pitch, as Sam Ryder, last year’s runner-up, Katrina Leskanich from Katrina and the Waves, the UK’s last winner in 1997, and Mae Muller, this year’s UK entrant, join comedian Jason Manford and singer-songwriter Chelcee Grimes for an hour-long celebration. Enjoy a visit to Eurovision-obsessed Sweden, footage charting past winners and some pub-quiz facts about the show! Earlier, in Eurovision Welcomes the World (6.30pm), the build-up kicks off with a Turquoise Carpet Opening Ceremony, which welcomes all 37 acts to Liverpool with an outdoor extravaganza packed with performances. Rylan Clark and Sunetra Sarker are getting all the backstage goss.
★★★ HD
Clive Myrie's Italian Road Trip, 6.30 pm, BBC Two/ iPlayer (box set)
Clive’s quest to winkle out the lesser known treasures of Italy takes him to Naples tonight, where he tracks down the best pizza he’s ever eaten – thin crust and no pineapple! – before learning how to make one himself. He’s a great guide, warm and enthusiastic, and throws himself into whatever comes his way – a hotel where guests who like the artwork on display can take it home (for a price), the oldest working opera house in the world and a studio where craftspeople make figurines of saints, Nativity scenes and historical characters. And, of course, he has a go at that, too. Continues all week.
★★★ SM
David Attenborough Night, from 8.30 pm, BBC Four
Today is Sir David Attenborough’s 97th birthday and to celebrate, a pair of programmes from the archives. The first one is particularly cute as it’s a chance to see David still wet behind the ears as a young TV presenter making his way in Zoo Quest. Unusually, the footage is in colour. After that (10pm), another opportunity to see Life on Air, a show from 2002 that celebrated David’s extraordinary run of 50 years in front of and behind the camera (as the controller of BBC2, among other things). There are, of course, plenty of his other series available to watch on iPlayer, including Frozen Planet, Planet Earth and The Blue Planet.
★★★ SM
Malory Towers series 4, 6 pm, CBBC/ iPlayer (box set)
It’s a nostalgia-tinted welcome return for a fourth series of the Enid Blyton adaptation. Following the Christmas special, the fearless Darrell (Ella Bright) and her chums are now fourth-formers, back at their beloved boarding school for more righting wrongs. But there is trouble in store when Darrell’s younger sister Felicity (Gangs of London’s April V. Woods) arrives and falls in with a mischief-maker. Continues tomorrow.
★★★★ NT
Best box set on TV tonight
Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story, Netflix
We’ve all fallen in love with the scurrilous court gossip of Bridgerton in recent years, and now we get a chance to find out how the colourful and competitive world of ‘the Ton’ came to be in this six-part spin-off. Set decades before the main drama, this prequel tells the story of the 17-year-old Queen Charlotte (India Amarteifio) and her bittersweet romance with husband King George III (Corey Mylchreest). It’s an intimate glimpse into a lavish world and unmissable viewing for Bridgerton fans.
SMA
Best film on TV tonight
In the Heights, Prime Video
The music of Lin-Manuel Miranda is about to feature in a brand-new release – he has co-written songs for the upcoming The Little Mermaid remake (out in cinemas on 26 May) – but In the Heights takes us back to where he started. This was his first stage musical, but it took the success of Hamilton to convince the suits that this also needed the big-screen treatment. It’s a fizzing, high-energy boy-meets-girl story set against the backdrop of the immigrant experience in Washington Heights, New York. Anthony Ramos and Melissa Barrera lead a talented cast of singers and dancers in what could be described as an updated West Side Story.
★★★ SM
Soaps
- EastEnders, 7.30 pm, BBC One
- Emmerdale, 7.30 pm, ITV1
- Coronation Street, 8 pm, ITV1
- Hollyoaks, 6.30 pm, Channel 4
- Home and Away, 6 pm, 5Star
Live Sport
- Premier League: Brighton & Hove vs Everton, 5 pm, (k-o 5.30 pm), BT Sport 1
- Premier League: Nottingham Forest vs Southampton, 7 pm (k-o 8 pm), Sky Sports Main Event
If you watch just one thing on TV tonight…
Don't miss Eurovision Calling on TV tonight.
Not found anything you want to watch on TV tonight? Check out our TV Guide.
Happy viewing!
