Murder Before Evensong, Acorn TV review - death comes to the picturesque village of Champton

★★★ MURDER BEFORE EVENSONG, ACORN TV Rev Richard Coles's sleuthing cleric hits the screen

The Rev Richard Coles's sleuthing cleric hits the screen

Rockin’ vicar the Rev Richard Coles is not only a C of E priest and former member of Bronski Beat and The Communards, but also a purveyor of crime fiction in the shape of his Canon Clement mysteries. The first of these was Murder Before Evensong, and now it has arrived on Acorn TV, where they do a lot of this sort of thing.

Black Rabbit, Netflix review - grime and punishment in New York City

Jude Law and Jason Bateman tread the thin line between love and hate

They say no good deed goes unpunished, so when New York restaurateur Jake Friedken (Jude Law) allowed his wayward and star-crossed brother Vince (Jason Bateman) back into his life, he might have expected to experience a little turbulence. Instead, he finds himself engulfed in a hair-raising struggle to save his career and even his life.

Slow Horses, Series 5, Apple TV+ review - terror, trauma and impeccable comic timing

★★★★ SLOW HORSES, SERIES 5, APPLE TV+ Terror, trauma and impeccable comic timing

Jackson Lamb's band of MI5 misfits continues to fascinate and amuse

Fifth time around, Slow Horses continues to show the rest of the field a clean pair of heels. Or hooves. The adventures of Jackson Lamb (Gary Oldman) and his peculiar little band of secret service misfits have come to exert a fierce stranglehold on the viewing public. Horses must be perilously close to being officially declared a cult.

Coldwater, ITV1 review - horror and black comedy in the Highlands

Superb cast lights up David Ireland's cunning thriller

Scripted by Belfast-born playwright David Ireland, Coldwater is a smart and addictive thriller, which manages to squeeze some fresh twists out of its murderous narrative. It also benefits hugely from an excellent cast firing on all cylinders, while also reaping the benefits of its Scottish rural locations.

I Fought the Law, ITVX review - how an 800-year-old law was challenged and changed

★★★ I FOUGHT THE LAW, ITVX How an 800-year-old law was challenged and changed

Sheridan Smith's raw performance dominates ITV's new docudrama about injustice

ITV continues its passion for docudramas about injustice, which you can’t blame it for after the rip-roaring success of Mr Bates vs the Post Office. The issue in I Fought the Law is, from one angle, of national (even International) importance, though compared to the persecution of hundreds of innocent postmasters, some of whom committed suicide, its cause is a rarer bird.

The Guest, BBC One review - be careful what you wish for

★★★★★ THE GUEST, BBC ONE A terrific Eve Myles stars in addictive Welsh mystery

A terrific Eve Myles stars in addictive Welsh mystery

Why isn’t Eve Myles a superstar? Though well known for her appearances in the likes of Torchwood, Broadchurch and the brilliant Keeping Faith, you’d imagine that by now she’d have been snapped up for some mega-budget extravaganza on Amazon or Apple TV or be romping around with Tom Cruise.

King & Conqueror, BBC One review - not many kicks in 1066

★★ KING & CONQUEROR, BBC ONE Turgid medieval drama leaves viewers in the dark

Turgid medieval drama leaves viewers in the dark

In this strangely dreary recreation of 11th century history, it’s not just grim oop north, it’s grim everywhere. King & Conqueror purports to be the story of how the Norman monarch William (the titular Conqueror) and England’s King Harold found themselves locked in a battle to the death at Hastings, each having negotiated a fearsome labyrinth of plots, treachery, ambition and murder in order to become top dog on either side of the English Channel.

Hostage, Netflix review - entente not-too-cordiale

★★ HOSTAGE, NETFLIX Suranne Jones and Julie Delpy cross swords in confused political drama

Suranne Jones and Julie Delpy cross swords in confused political drama

Conceived and written by Matt Charman, whose CV includes an Oscar nomination for his work on Steven Spielberg’s film Bridge of Spies, Hostage is a rather puzzling mix of political thriller and domestic drama which can never decide whether it’s serious or not.

In Flight, Channel 4 review - drugs, thugs and Bulgarian gangsters

★★★ IN FLIGHT, CHANNEL 4 Drugs, thugs and Bulgarian gangsters

Katherine Kelly's flight attendant is battling a sea of troubles

What would TV screenwriters do without drugs? In Flight, created by Mike Walden and Adam Randall, is yet another drama depicting the perils and pitfalls of getting sucked into the narcotics trade, though it does deliver a twist or two to distinguish it from earlier specimens.

Alien: Earth, Disney+ review - was this interstellar journey really necessary?

★★★ ALIEN: EARTH, DISNEY+ Was this interstellar journey really necessary?

Noah Hawley's lavish sci-fi series brings Ridley Scott's monster back home

Ridley Scott’s original Alien movie from 1979 was an all-time sci-fi/horror classic, and even an endless stream of sequels and spin-offs – Aliens, Alien 3, Alien Resurrection, Alien vs Predator, Prometheus, Alien: Romulus et al – hasn’t diluted the electrifying impact of the original.