What to Watch: Matlock, Citadel: Honey Bunny, The Jury: Death On The Staircase and The Day Of The Jackal

The Day Of The Jackal

Thursday, streaming on Binge

A lot of espionage shows are doing the rounds right now. A sad indictment on the state of the world? Perhaps. Though I’m not complaining: between Slow Horses, The Diplomat and now this fabulous TV incarnation of Frederick Forsyth’s celebrated novel, we’re truly spoilt for choice.

The Day Of The Jackal sees Eddie Redmayne (I know, THE Eddie Redmayne! He’s great in everything) slip into the many faces of the assassin-for-hire at the centre of the series. This mysterious, well-dressed British man (is he British? Or is that one of his many disguises too?) is hired by the world’s elite to take care of their “little issues”. Need a billionaire offed? He’s got your back — for a price.

But The Jackal meets his match when a tenacious British MI6 operative, Bianca (Lashana Lynch), begins piecing things together, threatening to uncover his real identity, bringing down his carefully and painstakingly constructed professional world, and blurring it with his closely guarded personal life.

So begins a cat-and-mouse chase across Europe, as Bianca gets closer to catching up with the elusive lone assassin — it’s heart-stoppingly tense.

Redmayne (also an executive producer) is mesmeric — truly a revelation — and the supporting cast, which includes Charles Dance, Richard Dormer and Ursula Corbero are equally brilliant.

But it’s the story that had me hooked from the start: well written, with tight editing and some perfectly constructed set-ups, it’s from Ronan Bennett, the creator and writer of the critically acclaimed Netflix series Top Boy.

This is some spectacularly gripping television. Start getting excited.

Matlock

Tuesday, streaming on Paramount Plus

Kathy Bates stars as the brilliant 75-year-old retired lawyer Madeline Matlock, who engineers a place for herself within one of New York’s most prestigious law firms. This is quite the coup, considering she’s not practised law in over 30 years! But as she explains, being “invisible” is her superpower — underestimate at your peril. But what’s her real reason for being there? This will keep you guessing, and Bates is absolutely terrific. More, please!

Planet America: US Election Special

Wednesday, 9.30pm, ABC

This is it, election super nerds: the big day. And who better to help wade through the noise than the ABC’s resident US political gurus, Chas Licciardello and John Barron? They’re returning for their fourth presidential election live show, and it’s shaping up to be big. “With America’s last election ending in a flurry of lies, violence and scandal, the stakes couldn’t be higher,” reads an official release — and quite. Sign us up.

The Jury: Death On The Staircase

Wednesday, 8.30pm, SBS

This takes its inspiration from a hugely popular series in the UK, which saw real people step in to play “jurors” on a re-enacted-for-TV manslaughter trial. Actors recite real court transcripts word for word, and in our version, 12 everyday Aussies cast their judgment. It raises a lot of interesting questions about whether our judicial system actually works — will our TV jurors conclude innocence or guilt? And will theirs be the same judgment as was cast in real life? A great concept.

Citadel: Honey Bunny

Thursday, streaming on Prime

Prime’s Citadel series has already spawned two spin-offs. This one is set in India and looks at the story of stuntman Bunny (Varun Dhawan), who recruits his aspiring actor friend Honey (Samantha Ruth Prabhu) for a side-hustle gig. It’s supposed to be a quick in-and-out job — seduce the man, drug him, steal his hard drive — but soon they’re both enmeshed in “a high-stakes world of action, espionage and betrayal”. Audiences will likely lap this one up.