Pick of the day: The Dropout
10.40pm, BBC One
Elizabeth Holmes is the biotech entrepreneur convicted in 2022 of fraud in connection with her billion-dollar blood-testing company Theranos – the name “a mixture between therapy and diagnosis”, explains Holmes (a terrific Amanda Seyfried) in this superior drama that was first shown on Disney+. In the opening episode (of eight), Holmes is a fiercely ambitious teenager who hero-worships Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, while her father has just been made redundant after the collapse of Enron. The year is 2002 and Holmes enrols at Stanford University, determined to make amends for this humiliation and to become a billionaire.
The Hairy Bikers Go West
7pm, BBC Two
Dave Myers and Si King travel to Dorset and Devon, for what viewers now know will sadly be their final adventure. They kick things off by learning about the importance of fresh spring water in the production of watercress before visiting a blacksmith who creates a chef’s knife for them. The bikers then travel to Devon in search of one of their favourite snacks – biltong.
Interior Design Masters with Alan Carr
8pm, BBC One
It’s off to Chester Zoo for the first team task of the series as the novice designers are divided into three groups to jazz up activity centres for schoolchildren. Intended to appeal to pupils aged between five and 16, each centre is themed with a different wildlife-rich country: India, Madagascar and Brazil. Sophie Robinson is the guest judge.
The Real Serpent: Investigating a Serial Killer
9pm, Channel 4
The life and crimes of Charles Sobhraj will be familiar from the 2021 BBC drama The Serpent, in which Jenna Coleman played the serial killer’s girlfriend and accomplice. Sobhraj was released from prison in 2022 after spending 20 years behind bars for killing young Western backpackers in southern Asia in the 1970s. He has now agreed to a series of interrogations about those murders he has never been tried for. Experts try to get to the truth of the horrific crimes, bring about some accountability for the victims, and assess whether Sobhraj remains a dangerous man.
Ricky, Sue and a Trip Or Two
9pm, More4
Ricky Tomlinson and Sue Johnston celebrate 40 years of playing a married couple by going on a road trip down memory lane. Naturally enough, the pair begin in Liverpool, Johnston with personal memories of The Beatles (she remains good friends with Sir Paul McCartney). But the first stop is Brookside Close, the very real cul-de-sac where the groundbreaking Channel 4 soap was filmed. Sadly, the current owners of the Grants’ home at No 5 don’t seem to be around to invite them in, but there’s better luck at Anfield, where John Barnes is there to greet them.
Royal Kill List
10pm, Sky Showcase
The drama-documentary about a particularly bloody period of British history now finds Charles II (played by Joseph Fiennes) facing a backlash for his treatment of the regicides who beheaded his father – so he cracks down on dissenters while simultaneously organising a lavish coronation he hopes will cement his rule. But as the day of his crowning approaches, the king learns some worrying news…
