This week we have the return of Lost-esque mystery Paradise and a story of class, as well as murder and royalty, in The Lady. There’s also a new US civil war drama produced by Kevin Costner and Morgan Freeman called The Gray House, a new thriller with Kaley Cuoco, Vanished, and a return to TV for the cult comedy Scrubs.
Paradise (Disney+)
Despite its being nominated for four Emmys and a Golden Globe, you may have missed the first season of Paradise. The postapocalyptic thriller stars Sterling K Brown as a Secret Service agent in an underground city tasked with protecting the president (James Marsden) after a doomsday event. In season two, Shailene Woodley joins the cast as a Graceland tour guide and one of the survivors stuck outside the bunker. The first episode takes time to get to know her lonely life before the arrival of a band of scavengers spoils that serenity. This is a brilliant drama worth catching up on before you see any spoilers.
The Gray House (Prime Video)
This eight-part Civil War epic, produced by Kevin Costner and Morgan Freeman, centres on a southern socialite mother-and-daughter couple, a formerly enslaved black woman and a high-end prostitute who use the underground railroad network to spy for the Union army, risking everything and altering the course of history. With a cast that includes Mary-Louise Parker, Amethyst Davis, Daisy Head and Ben Vereen, this promises to be a fascinating drama about an untold true story.
The Lady (ITVX)
Available to watch on Britbox from March 18 in US
Fans of The Crown will want to watch this drama about class, royalty and murder. Mia McKenna-Bruce, one of Britain’s most exciting rising stars, plays a character based on Jane Andrews, an ambitious young woman who was determined to escape her life in Grimsby and take a dream posting in Buckingham Palace as an assistant dresser to the Duchess of York (Natalie Dormer). It seems like the ultimate fairytale, but threaded throughout this story is the police investigation into the brutal murder in September 2000 of Jane’s businessman boyfriend, Thomas Cressman, who reportedly refused to marry her.
Vanished (Prime Video)
Available on MGM+ in the US
Kaley Cuoco has certainly found her post-Big Bang Theory calling: starring in glossy thrillers as a woman who becomes caught in a conspiracy that’s way above her head (see the excellent Flight Attendant). The actress carries on the form with this new thriller about a woman who gets embroiled in a scandal when her long-term boyfriend (Sam Claflin) disappears on a train to Arles, France, forcing her to uncover his past. This promises to be a show that knows exactly what it wants to be: pure, watchable fun.
Scrubs (Disney+)
Available on ABC/Hulu in the US
More than 15 years after its last episode aired, the medical drama is back with nine new episodes. When the show debuted in 2001, JD (Zach Braff), his best buddy Turk (Donald Faison) and on-off love interest Elliot (Sarah Clarke) were interns at Sacred Heart Hospital. Now, there’s a whole new group of interns, JD is a concierge doctor, and Turk and Elliot are in leadership roles. Expect plenty of witty banter and more daydreams.
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