Monday's best TV: Westworld, Blindspot and The Real Camilla: HRH the Duchess of Cornwall

Playing God has never been a good career choice in dystopian science fiction, and the first series of Westworld ended with several bangs, as the robot “hosts” in the Wild West theme park employed their developing consciousness to shoot up a corporate shindig, while the resort’s Dr Frankenstein, Robert Ford (Anthony Hopkins), faced ironic justice at the end of a gun. (Or did he?) Series two follows that robot apocalypse by deepening the conflict.

Westworld, if you haven’t visited, is a theme park where tourists from the real world get to act out their terrible fantasies without fear of the consequences. It’s cowboy paintball with very high production values.

You want to shoot people? Go ahead. Hire prostitutes in the saloon? Why not? But within this false reality, much of it informed by the fantasies of cinematic fiction — there are wrinkles. Ford, the architect of the robot production line, put the seeds of consciousness in some of the hosts. They have flickers of memory. They start to act up. They tire of their pre-programmed narratives.

The action starts with the riddle at the centre of the show. Philosophy scholars will recognise it as being derived from the existential puzzle posited by Freddie Mercury in Bohemian Rhapsody: “Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy?”

The show’s oldest host, the previously docile but now vengeful Dolores (Evan Rachel Wood), is a having a doctor-patient chat with the troubled head of programming, Bernard (Jeffrey Wright). “You were telling me about a dream,” Dolores says. ‘Dreams don’t mean anything, Dolores,” Bernard replies. “They’re just noise. They’re not real.” Dolores, who is, after all, a sophisticated piece of artificial intelligence, does not buy this. “What is real?” she demands.

Yes, the swirls in the metaphorical carpet get pretty florid. Here’s The Man in Black (Ed Harris). He is a cowboy in a black hat but he’s also the most experienced player of the game, always in pursuit of deeper levels. He has woken up, somewhat bloodied, to be confronted by what seems to be the young Robert Ford, or at least a malfunctioning robot version of him.

Ed has realised that the hosts can now kill. “The stakes are real in this place now,” he says. “Real consequences.” In what may be his final act, the robot boy replies: “Everything is code here.”

What else? It’s fair to suggest that Westworld seems to be on the cusp of a robot #MeToo moment. The women — previously programmed to please the whims of perverts — are now seeking revenge. Dolores is good with a gun, and Thandie Newton’s brothel-madam Maeve has turned into a fully fledged terminator.

She is, it’s true, a sexy terminator, prone to teasing with flirtation before torturing her victims, so her liberation has its limits. But, this being a riddle about riddles, the show makes a joke about that. As Maeve threatens the park’s whimpering head writer Lee (Simon Quarterman), he complains: “I wrote that line for you.” Maeve replies: “Bit broad, if you ask me.”

Other things. A sea has appeared, so maybe the environment is rebelling too. There are hints of other fantasy worlds. We’ll be seeing more of those rogue Samurai, presumably. Ford’s real intentions will be examined, and the topical question of what the sinister Delos Destinations corporation is doing with the data of the guests will come into focus.

Stetsons on, it’s going to be a bumpy ride.

Westworld - Sky Atlantic, 9pm

Pick of the day

Blindspot - Sky Living, 10pm

The American drama series has come a long way since it launched in 2015 with a woman — Jane Doe (Jaimie Alexander) — being found naked inside a duffel bag in New York’s Times Square, remembering nothing, and with her skin covered in fresh tattoos.

Those tattoos are central to the action, as the FBI team, led by agent Kurt Weller (Sullivan Stapleton) determine that each inkblot is a clue, though the journey towards the solution of the riddle is far from simple.

The tattoos appear to offer insights into crimes the FBI is trying to solve, and Jane is troubled by occasional flashbacks which reveal her to be quite handy in a fight.

Now deep into its third season, Weller and Doe are a couple, and though their relationship isn’t without its kinks, it’s comforting that they can go home after a hard day of saving the world and relax together.

Lately, the action has been centring on Jane’s vengeful brother Roman (Luke Mitchell), a sympathetic sociopath who is working with the enemy. Tonight his allegiances are tested, while the team faces a deadly threat on their lives.

Screen time

The Real Camilla: HRH the Duchess of Cornwall - ITV, 9pm

Expect the revelations in this royal-watching documentary to be modest but Jane Treays — who also made the Queen’s Green Planet and the 2012 series Inside Claridge’s — is an expert in understated, unjudgmental observation.

She follows Camilla for a year, and along the intimate moments captured on screen are the decorating of the Christmas tree at Clarence House, a dog walk in Scotland and a glimpse of Camilla’s charity work in the UK.

There is also an official visit to Italy, and contributions from Camilla’s inner circle, including a besotted Prince Charles, Joanna Lumley and Gyles Brandreth. Charles makes the observation that his wife is “the best listener in town”.

Millionaire Boy Racers - Tomorrow, London Live, 10pm

The signs of summer are obvious – it’s raining a bit less, the low ceiling of grey sky is a shade brighter, and convoys of supercars grunt through London’s streets.

Not everyone is so pleased to see the sun and this new documentary rides on the car spoilers to peer at the clash between the wealthy drivers and disgruntled residents.

Richmond Park: National Nature Reserve - London Live, 8.30pm

Sir David Attenborough has seen things people wouldn’t believe: mountain gorillas frolicking on Rwandan mountains, meerkats amassing and not selling insurance, and C-beams glittering in the dark near the Tannhäuser Gate. And yet, he’s as thrilled by a stag beetle as he is a Sumatran rhinoceros.

Richmond Park is a hefty set of lungs for the city and is also a nature reserve, home to thousands of species and in this film Sir David takes a roam to meet some of those creatures, which include the mighty stag beetle.

However, the peace within the park has placed a strain on the wildlife and the park itself; with 5.5 million people visiting every year seeking solace, popularity has a price.

Weekend catch up

The Woman in White - BBC iPlayer

This five-part adaptation of the classic Wilkie Collins by writer Fiona Seres (who wrote the 2010 crime drama The Silence) takes a few liberties with the text, and fans of the Gothic mystery may have been surprised to hear star Ben Hardy, pictured, comparing it to True Detective. Hardy plays Walter Hartright, who has an odd encounter on Hampstead Heath (as you do).

Habaneros: You Say You Want A Revolution? - BBC iPlayer

This two-part documentary about Cuba finds the island at a crossroads, with Raúl Castro stepping down as president. Director Julien Temple has his own style so his film is an explosion of sound and images, some of it shot over the past three years, some dredged from the archives, aiming to capture the spirit of the communist outpost.