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The Wheel of Time
From Sept 1st, Prime Video
We know you’re waiting with fevered anticipation for the next instalment of Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power (stop yawning at the back) but, to while away the time, here is series two of The Wheel of Time, which is shaping up to be a favourite among fans of “high fantasy”. Rosamund Pike returns as Moraine, the leader of a magical coven who is tasked with helping the Dragon Reborn fulfil his destiny, whether that’s saving the world or laying it to waste. In series one, humble peasant Rand learnt that he was the DR, but now the fellowship has been broken, and though Rand thought the Dark One had been destroyed, the threat of evil is ever clear and present. Can the scattered friends find new sources of strength as the Last Battle looms? The series also features Cork actor Dónal Finn.
Top Boy
From Sept 7th, Netflix
There’s good news for Irish fans of the acclaimed crime series set in East London’s gangland: our own Barry Keoghan and Brian Gleeson are set to join the cast for this third and final series. The show’s creator and writer, Ronan Bennett, had written parts for two new Irish characters, and was delighted when Keoghan – a huge fan of the series – came looking for a role. Ashley Walters returns as Dushane and Kane Robinson is back as Sully, and tensions are ratcheting up in the Summerhouse estate, as Dushane and Sully’s drug empire comes under new threats, and their business alliance is put under serious pressure. Can they hold their grip on power, or will it come down to a final battle to see who becomes top boy?
The Changeling
From Sept 8th, Apple TV+
Get Out star LaKeith Stanfield stars in this horror series about a young couple who meet, fall in love, marry and have their first child. But the perils of parenthood are nothing compared to what lies ahead. Stanfield plays new dad Apollo, with Clark Backo as his wife Emma. Their first mistake? Cutting off a lucky string bracelet given to Emma by a strange, cackling old woman in Brazil, who warned her against removing it. Before the string hits the floor, the ground has shifted, and a portal opens into a nightmarish fairy-tale version of New York City. When Emma mysteriously disappears, Apollo must embark on a freaky odyssey through a twisted cityscape dotted with faceless figures and strange people breathing out blue smoke.
Welcome to Wrexham
From Sept 13th, Disney+
What happened when two Hollywood stars descended on the Welsh town of Wrexham, with the intention of snapping up their football team? Series two of Welcome to Wrexham tracks the continued adventures of Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds as they try to turn one of the world’s oldest professional football clubs in to one of the world’s most celebrated. But McElhenney and Reynolds soon learn that the road to Premier League immortality is not so smooth, and running a real-life football club is not quite like an episode of Ted Lasso. As series two begins, the Red Dragons are battling to return to the English Football League after an ignoble relegation to the National League, and Rob and Ryan are working hard to prove they can lead this working-class town’s totemic club to greater glory.
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Wilderness
From Sept 15th, Prime Video
Jenna Coleman and Oliver Jackson-Cohen play a British couple living the American dream in this psychological thriller set in the great outdoors and based on the novel by BE Jones. Liv and Will seem to have a rock-solid marriage, that is until Liv finds out Will has been having an affair. So she does what any reasonable person would do: organises a trip of a lifetime around the US, visiting such vertiginous landmarks as the Grand Canyon, where there are lots of opportunities to push her cheating partner off great height and make it look like and accident. But her road trip to revenge hits an obstacle when the couple bump in to Will’s work colleague Cara (Ashley Benson) and her lovestruck boyfriend Garth (Eric Balfour), who join them on a hiking trip and get caught up in the unfolding psychodrama.
Neighbours: A New Chapter
From Sept 18th, Prime Video
In a galaxy far, far away – Erinsborough in Melbourne, to be precise – a new force reawakens as the iconic Aussie soap is resurrected just a year after being frozen in carbonite by the terrestrial TV storm troopers. It’s back to business as usual in the neighbourhood as we rejoin the lives of the folks on Ramsay Street after bidding them farewell in a star-studded finale episode that was watched by millions down under – and everywhere else. Regular cast members including Jackie Woodburne, Alan Fletcher, Stefan Dennis and Annie Jones will return to their familiar roles, and there will be guest appearances from the likes of April Rose Pengilly, Guy Pearce, Mischa Barton and Trevor the Dog. Prime Video will be releasing new episodes from Monday to Thursday at 7am, and if you want to really binge out on Neighbours, previous seasons of the soap are available to stream right now.
[ Laura Slattery: Neighbours 2.0 is the good vibe television needs right now ]
The Super Models
From Sept 20th, Apple TV+
The 1990s was the era of the supermodel, a new generation of catwalk queens who had that extra dash of je né sais quoi, and who wouldn’t get out of bed for less than €10,000 (a lot of money in those days). The world fell at their feet, and this documentary series focuses on four of the most famous supermodels of all time: Naomi Campbell, Cindy Crawford, Linda Evangelista and Christy Turlington. The series delves into the foursome’s origins as they came together in New York in the 1980s with the common goal of conquering the world of glamour, and shows how they teamed up to take their modelling careers to new heights and change the power dynamic in the fashion industry, putting them on an equal footing with the designers who lined up to style them. The series also follows their busy lives today as they get involved in activism and philanthropy, and also run their own lucrative businesses.
The Continental: From the World of John Wick
From Sept 22, Prime Video
If you’re not familiar with the world of John Wick, you might find this series a bit baffling; but if you’ve watched all the JW flicks starring Keanu Reeves as the kick-ass anti-hero, then you’ll have no problem following this convoluted fantasy ode to 1970s New York, complete with Studio 54-style debauchery and disco soundtrack featuring the likes of Donna Summer. Keanu aka John Wick is conspicuously absent from this retro party, but this prequel series does offer Mel Gibson as a ruthless kingpin named Cormac, and Colin Woodell as a young Winston Scott, the character played by Ian McShane in the movie franchise. And Wick-heads (is that what fans of the films are called?) will also know that The Continental refers to the fictional hotel chain started up by Scott to provide safe haven for assassins and other shadowy figures.
The Kardashians
From Sept 28th, Disney+
Welcome back to the never-ending saga of the rich-but-relatable Kardashian-Jenner extended family as they struggle to remain relevant and meme-worthy in a world that’s easily distracted by the next big social media phenomenon. Kris, Kourtney, Kim, Khloé, Kendall and Kylie are back with a bling, and in series four, they promise to “give truth to their stories” as they run their multimillion-dollar businesses, fall in and out of love, and of course shop till they drop. Will Kim and Kourtney’s feud ratchet up? Will Kanye West send more toxic tweets about his ex-wife Kim? We’re promised more family bonding and bickering as America’s most glam-tastic clan go for anything but broke.
Gen V
From Sept 29th, Prime Video
Save us please from teenagers with superpowers – it seems that every new series on streaming channels features another bunch of adolescents with awesome powers such as shooting lasers from their zits. This series is a spin-off from Prime’s hit series The Boys, in which the superheroes are kinda assholes, prompting a bunch of ordinary mortals to band together to take them down.
In this series, the teenage mutants are attending superhero college, where hopefully they’ll learn to harness their powers and use them to do good rather than evil. The pupils are all in on a secret: their superpowers are not God-given, but are the result of being injected with a substance called Compound V. Approach with caution: this may be a teen take on The Boys, but it looks like the violence, gore, severed limbs and exploding heads are up to cookie-tossing levels.
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