What to watch in January 2023: best TV shows on Netflix, Disney+, Amazon Prime Video, Sky, BBC, and Channel 4

Here’s your guide to what’s on TV across January 2023, with a look at all the highlights across both terrestrial channels and the major streaming networks.

We’ve selected our top picks and the best of the rest to give you an idea of what to watch this month.

BBC One

Top Pick

Happy Valley | Sunday 1 January, BBC One

When Catherine Cawood discovers the remains of a gangland murder victim in a drained reservoir, it sparks a chain of events that leads her straight back to Tommy Lee Royce. Sarah Lancashire and James Norton star in the third and final series of Sally Wainwright’s much-loved crime drama.

Waterloo Road | Tuesday 3 January, BBC One

Headteacher Kim Campbell tries to deal with a peaceful protest - only for it to escalate into a full-blown riot. Meanwhile, former pupils Donte and Chlo are excited about daughter Izzy’s first day at school, and while things get off to a bumpy start, events inspire the girl in a way she would never have expected.

Best of the Rest

Silent Witness | Monday 2 January

The Lyell team return to solve more crimes using their forensic skills. Emilia Fox (Dr Nikki Alexander) and David Caves (Jack Hodgson) are joined by new characters Gabriel Folukoya (Aki Omoshaybi) and Cara Connelly (Rhiannon May).

The Apprentice | Thursday 5 January

Eighteen ambitious candidates battle it out for a staggering quarter-of-a-million-pound investment from Lord Alan Sugar. Series 17 sees the return of Lord Sugar’s advisor Claude Littner, who was absent last year due to health reasons.

BBC Two

Top Pick

Our Flag Means Death | Wednesday 4 January, BBC Two

Wealthy aristocrat Stede Bonnet has a midlife crisis and decides to abandon his family to become a pirate. It’s… less than successful. Rhys Darby and Taika Waititi star in the popular pirate sitcom, already much-loved in the US after its HBO debut last year.

Best of the Rest

The US and the Holocaust | Monday 9 January

Ken Burns’ documentary explores America’s response to one of the greatest humanitarian crises of the 20th century. The film examines the rise of Hitler and Nazism in Germany in the context of global antisemitism and racism, the eugenics movement in the United States and race laws in the American south

Robson Green’s Weekend Escapes | Monday 23 January

Set in the North-East, against the backdrop of some of the UK’s most stunning scenery, Robson Green – along with family and some famous friends – take the roads less travelled to try and appreciate a slower pace of life.

BBC Three

Top Pick

Search Party | Monday 2 January, BBC Three

Four self-absorbed twenty-somethings who become entangled in an ominous mystery when a former college acquaintance suddenly disappears. Dark comedy starring Alia Shawkat (Arrested Development).

Best of the Rest

Meet the Khans: Big in Bolton S3 | Monday 9 January

World boxing champion Amir Khan and influencer wife Faryal open the doors to their crazy, fabulous family life in their beloved Bolton. But all is not sunny in the life of the Khans. Amir admits he is feeling a bit lost after retiring from boxing, and Faryal is frustrated by his lack of focus. She’s also keen to finally launch her own make-up brand.

ITV & ITVX

Top Pick

Stonehouse | Monday 2 January

Matthew Macfadyen (Succession) and Keeley Hawes (Line of Duty) star in this three-part drama about the life and faked death of Labour MP John Stonehouse, who disappeared to Australia in 1974 amidst mounting debt and allegations of spying. From the writer of A Very English Scandal.

Vera | Sunday 15 January

DCI Vera Stanhope returns to solve more crimes in and around Northumberland. Brenda Blethyn stars as the iconic detective, now entering her twelfth series in the role.

Best of the Rest

Next Level Chef | Wednesday 11 January

Gordon Ramsay hosts and judges a cooking show with a twist – or, more accurately, a cooking show that works on multiple levels. Three kitchens are stacked atop one another, with chefs randomly assigned a different floor – the higher the kitchen, the more resources they’ll have to make their meal.

Channel 4

Top Pick

The Light in the Hall | Wednesday 4 January

When Sharon’s daughter vanished 18 years ago, a local man was charged with her murder - but the body was never found. Now, journalist Cat Donato examines the cold case from another angle, trying to unearth the truth once and for all. Foreboding Welsh drama starring Joanna Scanlan (The Thick of It), Iwan Rheon (Game of Thrones), and Alexandra Roach (Utopia).

Best of the Rest

Jon & Lucy’s Odd Couples| Friday 13 January

Married comedians Jon Richardson and Lucy Beaumont host a new panel show that tests the relationships of celebrity couples. The first episode sees Rachel Riley & Pasha Kovalev and Richard Herring & Catie Wilkins undertake physical challenges and a lie detector test.

Travel Man: 48 Hours in… | Friday 13 January

Joe Lycett returns for another series of comic mini-breaks around Europe, this time bringing Bill Bailey to Iceland, Sarah Millican to Lithuania, and more.

Channel 5

Top Pick

The Madame Blanc Mysteries S2 | Thursday 5 January

Sally Lindsay returns for a second series of the Sainte Victoire-set cosy crime drama. When a woman is murdered, the only clue to her identity is a Victorian comb in her pocket – a cake comb…

Sky & NOW TV

Top Pick

The Last of Us | Monday 16 January

The popular video game series has been adapted for television, with a cast that includes The Mandalorian’s Pedro Pascal and Game of Thrones’ Bella Ramsey. It’s a travelogue through a post-apocalyptic America, following a smuggler trying to get a teenager from one side of the country to another – without getting killed by zombies.

Best of the Rest

Hold the Front Page | Wednesday 4 January

Comedians Nish Kumar and Josh Widdicombe tour a series of local papers around the UK, learning what it’s like to be a journalist.

Netflix

Top Pick

That 90s Show | Thursday 19 January

It’s 1995 and Leia Forman, daughter of Eric and Donna, is visiting her grandparents for the summer, where she bonds with a new generation of Point Place kids under the watchful eye of Kitty and the stern glare of Red. Sex, drugs, and rock ’n roll never dies: it just changes clothes.

Best of the Rest

Break Point | Friday 13 January

This ten-part series from the team behind F1: Drive to Survive follows a select group of top tennis players on and off the court as they compete in gruelling Grand Slams and tournaments all over the world. Their dream: lifting a trophy and becoming number one. As some of tennis’ legends reach the twilight of their careers, this is the chance for a new generation to claim the spotlight.

Lockwood & Co | Friday 27 January

In a world plagued by ghosts, where giant corporations employ psychic teens to battle the supernatural, only one company operates without adult supervision, and its name is Lockwood & Co. From Joe Cornish (Attack the Block, The Kid Who Would Be King).

Amazon Prime Video

Top Pick

The Rig | Friday 6 January

The workers of Kinloch Bravo oil rig are stranded, and forces beyond their imagination are closing in. An evocative, almost Lovecraftian, supernatural thriller, starring more or less every acclaimed Scottish actor working.

Best of the Rest

KSI: In Real Life | Thursday 26 January

An access-all-areas behind the scenes look at KSI’s life as he prepares for the biggest moment of his career so far. Produced by Louis Theroux.

Disney+

Top Pick

Extraordinary | Wednesday 25 January

Extraordinary is set in a world where everyone develops a power on their 18th birthday… everyone, that is, except for Jen. She’s turning 25 and is still waiting to get hers. Adrift in a big, confusing world and armed with nothing but a bit of hope and a lot of desperation, Jen begins her journey to find her maybe-superpower. But in doing so, she might discover the joy of being just kind of okay.

Best of the Rest

Welcome to Chippendales | Wednesday 11 January

The big true crime drama of the month, with Kumail Nanjiani and Murray Bartlett starring in a story of murder at the heart of the male stripping empire. One to watch for anyone who’s a fan of true crime – especially so if you liked last year’s Pam & Tommy, with this production coming from some of the same creative team.

Apple TV+

Top Pick

Servant S4 | Friday 13 January

While the Turner family brownstone continues to crumble, questions are finally answered: who is Leanne Grayson and who is the child in their home? Lauren Ambrose, Toby Kebbell, Nell Tiger Free, and Rupert Grint star in a gothic horror drama from M. Night Shyamalan.

Best of the Rest

Truth Be Told S3 | Friday 20 January

Octavia Spencer stars in a psychological thriller about the host of a true crime podcast who reignites suspicion around a long-thought-solved murder case.

Paramount+

Top Pick

Wolf Pack | Friday 27 January

Completely Teen Wolf, Wolf Pack follows a pair of California teens who are thrust into a dangerous new world when an arson attack awakens a supernatural element that had long lain dormant. Sarah Michelle Gellar (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) makes her return to supernatural teen television.

Best of the Rest

Mayor of Kingstown S2 | Monday 16 January

Jeremy Renner stars as a power broker and political fixer, stood at the intersection the police, the lawmakers, the crime families, and the carceral state. In the wake of the prison riot at the end of Season 1, Mike ‘The Mayor’ McLuskey is ready to take the law into his own hands.

And keep an eye out for…

Rian Johnson’s Colombo-inspired crime drama Poker Face is coming to Peacock in the US on Thursday 26 January, though it’s yet to pick up an official UK release date. Meanwhile, The Price of Glee, a new documentary about the lives and careers of former stars of Glee, is coming to Discovery on Monday 16 January.

Finally, The Daily Show returns after winter hiatus on Tuesday 17 January, though without host Trevor Noah – instead, a series of guest hosts like Leslie Jones and Hasan Minhaj will stand in until a new permanent host is found.