IT doesn’t matter how much is on my watch lists, I’m still looking ahead to what’s still to come. At the same time though, I’m also catching up with series that have been hanging around for varying lengths of time. Blue Lights for example. What a great show.
Set in Belfast, the six episodes in season one follow the police and their probationers who have remarkably close relationships with the citizens of the city. I’m four episodes in, planning to finish it this evening but what did I do? I went onto the Wikipedia page and have just been exposed to the most dreadful spoiler. Oh well. That hasn’t happened for a long time, in this era when I/we usually watch all the episodes in one go. So if you want to know more, click here. I’m not going back, and you have been warned. A second season has aired, and two more commissioned so that’s the good news.
Looking into the future, I’m looking forward to Hacks season three, Mary & George, and A Gentleman In Moscow – all coming to Showmax before the end of the year. Which by the way, is halfway over. Here are your July highlights.
- Bookie S1 | First on Showmax | Binge from Friday, 12 July
From Emmy nominees Chuck Lorre (The Big Bang Theory, The Kominsky Method, and Two and a Half Men) and Nick Bakay (Young Sheldon, Mom), Bookie follows a veteran bookie struggling to survive the looming legalisation of sports gambling, and his increasingly unstable clients, family and co-workers.
Award-winning comedian Sebastian Maniscalco (Green Book) stars as Danny, with Black Reel winner Omar J Dorsey (Power Book III: Raising Kanan) as Ray, with a supporting cast that includes Andrea Anders (Michelle Lasso in Ted Lasso) and guest appearances from the likes of Charlie Sheen and his Two and a Half Men co-star Angus T Jones (as themselves).
With a 90% critics’ rating on Rotten Tomatoes, Max has already booked a second season.
- The Irrational S1 | Binge from Friday, 12 July
Critics Choice nominee Jesse L Martin (Detective Ed Green in Law & Order) stars as Alec Mercer, a renowned behavioural scientist who uses his unconventional approach to human psychology, body language, and emotions to solve illogical puzzles and perplexing mysteries.
Based on bestselling author Dan Ariely’s non-fiction book Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions, the series is written and produced by Humanitas Prize winner Arika Lisanne Mittman (Dexter, Elementary).
The Irrational has already earned Martin a nomination for Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series at this year’s Image Awards, and a second season of the ratings hit.
- The Regime S1 | Binge from Monday, 15 July
Oscar winner Kate Winslet (Mare of Easttown, Titanic) stars in The Regime as Chancellor Elena Vernham, who presides over a fictional modern European autocracy – for now – from within the walls of her luxurious palace.
Directed by Oscar nominee Stephen Frears (The Queen, Dangerous Liaisons) and Emmy winner Jessica Hobbs (The Crown), the six-part limited series is created by six-time Emmy winner Will Tracy (Succession, The Menu).
The Regime is already popping up in Best of the Year So Far lists on the likes of BBC.com, Polygon and Vogue, while Inverse calls the show, “An uncategorizable, oddly surreal political drama that is one of HBO’s grandest experiments yet — and one of its most outlandish successes in years.”
Look out for the likes of Oscar nominee Andrea Riseborough (Alice & Jack, To Leslie), Emmy nominee Hugh Grant (Love Actually), and Emmy winner Martha Plimpton (Mass).
Note: This is not for everyone and is frankly quite weird.
- The Curse S1 | Binge from Monday, 22 July
The Curse explores how an alleged curse disturbs the relationship of a newly married couple as they try to conceive a child while co-starring in their new home-improvement show.
Oscar winner Emma (Emily as she’d rather be known but can’t because the name is already taken by someone else in the Screen Actors Guild) Stone (Poor Things) stars alongside the show’s co-creators: Emmy nominee Nathan Fielder (The Rehearsal) and Critics Choice nominee Benny Safdie (Uncut Gems).
The Curse has a 94% critics’ rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with Best of the Year mentions everywhere from Rolling Stone to Wired. Entertainment Weekly hailed it as “the weirdest, most unforgettable show of 2023” while, The Guardian, in a five-star review, praised it as, “exquisitely cringe-worthy… like nothing else on TV… It is exhilaratingly tense, it ends magnificently and I found it impossible to look away.”
Keep an eye out for the likes of Oscar-nominated Somalian actor Barkhad Abdi (Captain Phillips, Eye in the Sky), Emmy nominee Corbin Bernsen (L.A. Law), and Screen Actors Guild winner Constance Shulman (Yoga Jones in Orange Is the New Black).
Another note: This one is even weirder than The Regime. I actually gave up halfway but it still pops into my mind from time to time. One day when I have nothing better to do…
