Quirky crime series Death Valley is back with its unlikely detective duo. Plus: Australian thriller The Family Next Door. Here’s what to watch this evening

The enjoyably quirky murder mystery comedy about retired actor John Chapel (Timothy Spall) and Welsh detective Janie Mallowan (Gwyneth Keyworth) is back – and John has a new goatee and girlfriend. Janie isn’t too happy about him dating her mum, but they are soon reunited as an unlikely detective duo when a man doing community service is found dead at an outdoor rave site. Hollie Richardson

The explorer’s second thrilling series starts at the Kronotsky River, in Russia’s far-east Kamchatka Peninsula, where he and a team of top kayakers attempt a descent – something that’s never been done before. And that’s not all: active volcanoes and brown bears are part of the adventure too. HR

This unrelenting show has been a reminder of the gaslighting and retraumatisation of rape victims as they attempt to seek justice. John Worboys continues his attacks, as the police make glacial progress and we see the ongoing effects on victims such as Sarah, who has given birth to her second child. Priya Elan

After heartstring-tugging public heats in Liverpool, Edinburgh, London and Birmingham, the amateur singing competition hosted by Alison Hammond reaches its climax with a sold-out concert at London’s Hackney Empire. Which of the five finalists will win the night? Supportive mentors Sam Ryder and Paloma Faith must somehow decide. Graeme Virtue

The eternal live music show strides into a 68th series as Jools also turns 68 – but his passion for new sounds that can be decorated with boogie-woogie piano remains undimmed. This opening episode welcomes Niall Horan, Tomora, Aja Monet, Getdown Services and Jools’s old muckers Squeeze to the Ally Pally theatre. Phil Harrison

An aesthetically pleasing Australian thriller about secrets being hidden in an otherwise idyllic suburb. When Isabelle (Teresa Palmer) rents a home on Pleasant Court cul-de-sac in a seaside town, she becomes obsessed with her neighbours – and it becomes clear she has a mystery to solve. HR

God’s Creatures, 10.40pm, BBC Three

How much can a mother’s love forgive? That’s the life-changing question facing Emily Watson’s Aileen after her prodigal son, Brian (Paul Mescal), returns home from Australia to their Irish fishing village. When Sarah (Aisling Franciosi), her young colleague at the seafood processing factory, is raped and accuses Brian, Aileen is quick to give him a false alibi. Saela Davis and Anna Rose Holmer’s claustrophobic drama shows how a tight-knit community’s first instinct when challenged is denial and exclusion – and how it’s the women who invariably lose out. Simon Wardell

Tragedy is baked in to Clement Virgo’s heartfelt sibling drama about the long reach of trauma. We first meet Lamar Johnson’s young Jamaican-Canadian Michael as he ekes out an existence with his grief-numbed single mother, Ruth (Marsha Stephanie Blake), on their urban estate. In a parallel timeline, the teenage Michael is guided to adulthood by his older brother, Francis (Aaron Pierre), a charismatic would-be hip-hop musician who struggles to rise above the police racism, gang violence and homophobia that surround them. SW

Women’s Six Nations Rugby: Wales v Italy, noon, BBC Two France v England is at 4.25pm on BBC One.

Premier League Football: Man United v Nottingham Forest, noon, Sky Sports Main Event Newcastle v West Ham is at 5pm.

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2026/may/17/tv-tonight-timothy-spalls-hit-mystery-comedy-returns