What to watch on TV this week: Bridgerton, Memory Of A Killer, Shrinking and The Wrecking Crew

Bridgerton

Thursday, streaming on Netflix

Dearest gentle reader, it’s time to return to The Ton! Yes, Bridgerton is back, and this time it’s the black sheep second son Benedict’s (Luke Thompson) turn to step into the marriage market — you KNOW it’s going to be a wild ride.

Up until now our party-loving, swings-both-ways cad-about-Ton has remained determinedly OFF the market. But this is starting to wear thin with his mother, the irrepressible Violet Bridgerton (Ruth Gemmell), who will be damned if she doesn’t see her bachelor son married off and the family’s name kept afloat by the successful union of her “spare” heir.

The first of a series of trailers has dropped, with fans getting to witness Benedict’s first moments catching sight of his love interest for this season, the delightfully enigmatic Sophie (played by Aussie actor Yerin Ha). Their eyes meet across a crowded masquerade ball and, well, it’s the stuff of Cinderella-esque fairytales as we discover the magnetic “Lady In Silver” is nothing but a scullery maid.

If you’ve read the books, you’ll know what’s ahead for this star-crossed pair. The rest of you: get ready to follow the couple’s unlikely story from their enchanted first meet-cute at Bridgerton’s masquerade ball through to its inevitable (happy?) ending.

I can’t tell you too much more yet, but fans of the books: it looks as though you won’t be disappointed if that trailer’s anything to go by.

Most of our favourites are back from previous seasons, and we’ll get to check back in with Pen (aka Lady Whistledown, aka Nicola Coughlan) and new hubbie Colin (Luke Newton), last seen engaging in a back-of-the-carriage knee-trembler, now delightfully married and in possession of a cherubic red-haired bub — the cuteness of it all!

Part one drops this week, with part two due on February 26.

Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere

Streaming now on Disney Plus

The Bear’s Jeremy Allen White steps in to play Bruce Springsteen in this biopic, which takes an up-close look at The Boss at a very specific, not altogether harmonious time in his life. Directed by Scott Cooper, it’s been described as an “intimate, moody character study”, which looks at Springsteen’s mental health challenges during the recording of his 1982 album, Nebraska. This got mixed reviews, but if you’re a fan of White’s, you’ll want to take a look.

Memory Of A Killer

Monday, streaming on Stan

If there’s been a big McDreamy-sized hole in your life, then rejoice! Patrick Dempsey is back with a new TV series, based on the 2003 Belgian film De Zaak Alzheimer which inspired the 2022 Liam Neeson film Memory. It sees Dempsey play an assassin leading a double life who is diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s and must fight to solve his wife’s murder before his memory fails him — an intriguing premise. This is getting lots of buzz.

The Wrecking Crew

Wednesday, streaming on Prime Video

Jason Momoa and Dave Bautista are front and centre in this action flick, which is sure to appeal to those who like their explosions loud and their action packed — if you’ve peeped the trailer, you’ll know what we’re on about. We lost count of how many times something got blown up! They play estranged brothers (one’s a cop, one’s a Navy SEAL — you get the drift) who reunite in Hawaii to solve the mysterious murder of their father.

Shrinking S3

Wednesday, streaming on Apple TV Plus

When you’re on to a good thing . . . keep churning out the episodes! This isn’t always a great thing for a TV series, but Shrinking seems to be maintaining its momentum, with this latest series looking like delivering more of everything fans love about the heartwarming show. We’re stealing ourselves as Paul (Harrison Ford) returns to work — here’s hoping he’s got some time left. Keep an eye out for Michael J. Fox, who joins the cast in a guest role.