TV tonight: Lenny Henry’s fond, soulful Windrush drama


Three Little Birds

Sunday, 8pm, ITV1

It is sometimes hard to understand what prompted a generation of young people to swap the Caribbean for the delights of Dudley, Brixton and St Paul’s. Lenny Henry’s new drama series – apparently loosely based on the experiences of his mother – suggests a blend of bleak and optimistic answers. It’s a spirited, spiky affair focusing on a trio of women – Leah (Rochelle Neil), Hosanna (Yazmin Belo) and Chantrelle (Saffron Coomber) – who arrive expecting quaint, picture-book Englishness but find something a touch grimier. Henry does a good job of capturing the mixture of hope and trepidation animating the trio as they begin to understand the reality of their new lives. Phil Harrison

Planet Earth III

6.15pm, BBC One

With every passing year – and as the environmental crisis deepens – these blockbuster nature epics feel less like celebrations and more like elegies, as the venerable Sir David Attenborough explains humanity’s poisonous effect on the natural world. But there’s beauty and wonder, too: in the seals teaming up to see off a whale attack, the tiny but deadly sea angel and the hunting skills of the archerfish. PH

Mamma Mia! I Have a Dream

6pm, ITV1

A new competition show doubling as a pleasant holiday for everyone involved: this series sees 14 hopefuls head to Greece to compete for the roles of Sophie and Sky in the West End production of the musical. Alan Carr and Jessie Ware are among the judges of their singing, dancing and acting chops while Zoe Ball hosts. PH

Boiling Point

9pm, BBC One

They’re not “caterers”. They don’t do weddings. But Carly (Vinette Robinson) and the Point North team are giving their all to this one anyway, in pursuit of much-needed cash. Would you expect anything less? Romance is the key ingredient in the finale of Philip Barantini’s TV adaptation, and another helping is surely due. Ellen E Jones

The Devil’s Confession: The Lost Eichmann Tapes

9pm, BBC Two

A chilling, fascinating series exploring the prosecution of the logistical architect of the “final solution”. Adolf Eichmann fled to Argentina after the second world war and in 1957 he spoke, on tape, to fellow fugitive Willem Sassen about his part in the Holocaust. Gideon Hausner’s determination to obtain these recordings led to Eichmann’s conviction. PH

Six Four

9pm, ITV1

Kevin McKidd and Vinette Robinson in Six Four.

An intense drama about a pair of police officers (one current and one former) whose daughter goes missing. While Michelle (Vinette Robinson) disappears to London to search for her, Chris (Kevin McKidd) holds the fort back home. And guess what lands in his in-tray? A cold case involving a missing child, of course. Not wildly plausible but still gripping. PH

Live sport

Cricket World Cup: India v New Zealand, 9am, Sky Sports Main Event From Dharamsala.

International Rugby League: England v Tonga,, 2.05pm, BBC One From the Totally Wicked Stadium in St Helens.


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