Easter TV guide: What to watch over the bank holiday weekend from 'Doctor Who' to 'Britain's Got Talent'

Whatever the weather over Easter weekend, at least the TV schedules are chock full of treats to keep you entertained.

Doctor Who is back for a special episode featuring classic monsters on Easter Sunday, Britain's Got Talent makes its long-awaited return on Saturday, and the stranger-than-fiction crime tale about John Darwin's faked death gets a TV adaptation in The Thief, His Wife and The Canoe.

Read more: Chris Chibnall 'almost called it a day' on Doctor Who during pandemic

If you're still looking for more to fill your time, streaming service binge watches abound with Anatomy of a Scandal, The Kardashians and Why Didn't They Ask Evans? among the highlights.

The best TV to watch this Easter weekend, 15 - 18 April, 2022

Good Friday

Dinosaurs: The Final Day with David Attenborough - BBC One - 6.30pm

There are few things that make for better family viewing than a David Attenborough documentary, and this one has the added appeal of dinosaurs.

All the family can enjoy this fascinating insight into the final days of the dinosaurs, ended by an asteroid hitting Earth.

Read more: David Attenborough explains incredible new asteroid evidence

Heavy use of CGI recreates the moment of impact as well as the species that were wiped out, with palaeontologists showing us the fossils they've been studying from the period.

Pilgrimage - BBC Two - 9pm

The celebrity trek from Ireland to Scotland continues as the group thrash out their spiritual differences along the way.

Last week saw Scarlett Moffatt struggling to get her walking mates to see how serious her Christian faith is to her, while Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen offered a Pagan perspective that was often at odds with the Gogglebox star.

Saturday

Britain's Got Talent - ITV - 8pm

It was once a staple of the reality TV calendar, but thanks to the pandemic the last time we saw Britain's Got Talent was in 2020 - and even then, the final returned after a lengthy break.

Now, the whole crew is back together to winkle out the most talented variety performers in the land and judge which one the Queen would most like to watch.

Read more: Britain's Got Talent offers first look at series launch

Expect a triumphant return to dog acts, magic shows and dance crews.

Easter from King's - BBC Two - 6.20pm

If the Christmas carol concert from King's is a highlight of your festive season, you'll be delighted to see this springtime musical celebration.

Music and readings mark Holy Week and Easter from the stunning setting of the Chapel of King's College, Cambridge.

Easter Sunday

Doctor Who: Legend of the Sea Devils - BBC One - 7.10pm

We might have waved goodbye to Jodie Whittaker in her final series as the Doctor, but she did promise us three specials before regeneration - and this is the second of them.

Doctor Who fans are excited to see the return of classic monsters the Sea Devils in a high seas adventure that reunites Whittaker with Mandip Gill and John Bishop.

Read more: Hugh Grant dismisses rumours he will star in Doctor Who

There's also a spin-off podcast, Redacted, launching on BBC Sounds straight after the episode.

The Thief, His Wife and The Canoe - ITV - 9pm

One of the weekend's drama highlights is this adaptation of the bizarre true story of John and Anne Darwin.

Plagued by financial troubles, John hatched a madcap plan to fake his own death while canoeing off the Hartlepool coast, hiding out in the house next door while Anne claimed his life insurance money and he eventually turned up claiming memory loss.

Read more: Liam Neeson makes shock cameo in Derry Girls

However, the whole scheme came crashing down when a now-infamous photo of the couple surfaced on a Panama property website...

Starring Eddie Marsan and Monica Dolan.

Idris Elba's Fight School - BBC Two - 9pm

Beloved actor Idris Elba aims to change the lives of eight young recruits in this new documentary.

He hopes to help them turn things around and learn discipline and resilience from boxing training with a team of pros as he follows events in their lives.

Easter Monday

Springtime on the Farm - Channel 5 - 8pm

Is there anything more spring-themed than a visit to a farm?

Whether you didn't manage a trip out this year or just want to relive a day looking at lambs, Springtime on the Farm has got you covered.

Read more: All you need to know about Freeze the Fear with Wim Hof

Helen Skelton and JB Gill follow lambing season's triumphs and tragedies in a new series of the show.

Stitch, Please! - BBC Three - 8.30pm

Winner of RuPaul's Drag Race: UK vs The World Blu Hydrangea introduces this new challenge show.

Keen costume designers compete over creations inspired by film, TV and theatre to be crowned Stitch Perfect.

Streaming Highlights

Anatomy of a Scandal - Netflix

Sarah Vaughan's thriller novel gets a glossy adaptation in this Netflix series starring Sienna Miller, Michelle Dockery and Rupert Friend.

An MP and his wife's privileged world looks set to come crashing down over a murky scandal, but the barrister they'll be meeting in court has her own axe to grind from a mysterious past connection.

Read more: Everything new streaming on Netflix in April

It begins streaming on Good Friday, just in time for a Bank Holiday Netflix binge.

All The Way Up - Studiocanal Presents

This French hip-hop series has been a huge hit across the Channel where lead actor Hatik has become a music star in his own right, and it's recently become available here in the UK, too.

Clement is a talented young rapper and he and his childhood best friends think they've hit the big time when rap giant Mastar spots his skills, but it soon turns into a bitter rivalry between the established star and the newcomer.

Better Call Saul - Netflix

The final season of the Breaking Bad prequel featuring Bob Odenkirk as Jimmy McGill, and how he came to be known as Saul Goodman, finally arrives.

We've been promised an appearance from Walt and Jesse which is sure to be a huge draw for fans, as will the completion of Jimmy's long-running history.

Read more: Everything new streaming on Disney+ in April

It doesn't actually begin streaming until Tuesday, but viewers might want to familiarise themselves with the complicated tale's previous seasons after a long pandemic-related break.

The Kardashians - Disney+

They might have bowed out of reality TV juggernaut Keeping Up With The Kardashians just a year ago, but it didn't take long for TV's most famous family to get back into fly-on-the-wall documentaries.

Fans of the former show will know what sort of watch they're in for as little seems to have changed, but if you're up for a Kardashians binge, this launches on Thursday making Easter the perfect time to catch up.

Why Didn't They Ask Evans? - BritBox

Who doesn't love a Bank Holiday Agatha Christie adaptation?

This one has a hugely starry cast, featuring Hugh Laurie, Emma Thompson, Jim Broadbent, Will Poulter and Paul Whitehouse and is available as a box set on BritBox from this week.

Bobby Jones (Poulter) finds a dying man near some cliffs whose final words are "Why didn't they ask Evans?", and so begins a hugely entertaining amateur detective tale from the queen of crime fiction.

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