TVGuide.co.uk's picks of the best TV to watch this week includes a glossy US thriller for those who loved Big Little Lies, a quirky new detective drama, and the return of Channel 4's flagship baking show...

After a summer of mostly mediocre TV, the exciting cold-weather schedules continue with a cracking week of TV. Here are TVGuide.co.uk's top picks for the week, and there's plenty to choose from!

Best TV to watch this week: Strictly Come Dancing

(Saturday, September 21, 2024 at 7pm on BBC and BBC iPlayer)

It's the moment of truth in the first live show of Strictly Come Dancing 2024.

Last week, the celebrity contestants were partnered with the professional dancers in a pre-recorded first episode. The opening minutes were some of the cheesiest we've ever seen on the show in 20 years (and that is saying something). The rictus smiles screamed 'nothing to see here'. Of course, the recent scandals and aftermath won't stop most people from watching.

This week, Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman present the first live show. And it's our first chance to see who really has the moves and who is the turkey (aka Ann Widdecombe) of the series.

The funniest, most popular contestants like Chris McCausland aren't always the best. But luckily, no one is being voted off this week.

Apples Never Fall

(Saturday, September 21, 2024 at 9.25pm on BBC and BBC iPlayer)

If you've already binged The Perfect Couple on Netflix and loved it, then this is one for you.

A "deliciously dark" thriller with an A-List cast, Apples Never Fall is an adaptation of Liane Moriarty's novel of the same name. Fans will know her previous books Nine Perfect Strangers, and Big Little Lies have also been adapted to critical acclaim.

In this seven-parter, which first aired on Peacock earlier this year, we are introduced to the seemingly-perfect Delaney family...

They are described as "a prominent, well-respected family on Florida's sun-drenched West Palm Beach social scene".

Mum and dad Joy and Stan Delaney run a famed local tennis academy, have four grown-up children, and their golden years ahead of them. Then Joy vanishes.

When the Delaney matriarch suddenly goes missing, her four children are left to piece together everything they thought they knew about their parents. The mystery opens a floodgate of revelations as this perfect family is unveiled as being anything but...

Best TV to watch this week: Grace

It's the final episode of Grace series 4 entitled Love You Dead, and John Simm's DS Roy Grace investigates when an ex-offender is found dead in gruesome circumstances.

While his wife claims he had turned over a new leaf, all the evidence points to him still being up to his old tricks... But Grace soon realises there's a dangerous killer on the loose in Brighton.

In this series finale, viewers finally get the scene they've been waiting for - the reunion of Roy and Sandy. But it might not be the bombshell-filled encounter you'd been hoping for. In fact, it's arguably lacklustre.

Best TV to watch this week: Nightsleeper

(Sunday, September 22, and Monday, 23, 2024 at 9pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer)

Real-time thriller Nightsleeper continues with episodes three and four. Yes, it's silly and mostly preposterous. But we're totally invested in Joe Cole's anti-hero Joe Roag.

In Sunday's episode, the train judders to a halt leaving the passengers hoping the ordeal is finally over. But, of course, it's not (three more episodes to go, after all!).

The mysterious Driver is on board, but who is he? And what does he want? All episodes are available to watch on BBC iPlayer if you can't wait to find out.

Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins: Discomfort

(Sunday, September 22, 2024 and Monday, 23, at 9pm on Channel 4)

Like seeing celebrities suffer and pushed to their limit? Then you're in good company!

Celebrity SAS returns with 15 new recruits from the worlds of entertainment, sport and journalism. They face an elite team of ex-special forces operators, led by chief instructor Billy, who take them to New Zealand's South Island (beautiful) to undergo winter war training (terrifying).

For their first task, the celebs must travel across the Trainasium - parallel metal bars suspended 335ft in the air. Then, the recruits are tested mentally under extreme pressure when they stage an intense hostage rescue mission.

One thing is for sure, we certainly wouldn't do it. This is the stuff of nightmares. But famous people are clearly a different species. Contestants include athletes Chris Robshaw and Anthony Ogogo, comedians Shazia Mirza and Tez Ilyas, reality-show stars Bobby Norris and Georgia Harrison, actor John Barrowman, and public figure Rachel Johnson.

Best TV to watch this week: The Great British Bake Off

(Tuesday, September 24, 2024 at 8pm on Channel 4)

We're not at all surprised that this series has been running for 15 years, even if it has changed channels, and had several face lifts.

GBBO continues to be one of our favourite, cosy, comforting TV series of all time. It's like a warm hug, with cake thrown in. What's not to love?

Presenters Noel Fielding and Alison Hammond welcome more amateur bakers in the first of 10 episodes, while judges Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith look on.

First up is cake week, in which the hopefuls must elevate a loaf cake to new heights, before creating a hyper-realistic illusion cake. Anybody else feeling hungry?

Ludwig

(Wednesday, September 25, 2024 at 9pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer)

New six-part detective drama Ludwig is pretty special. Not only does it solve a mystery every week (tick), it's funny (tick), and has a brilliant cast of TV actors we love (tick). Not least Motherland legend Anna Maxwell Martin.

Peep Show's David Mitchell plays John 'Ludwig' Taylor whose isolated, organised life is thrown into chaos when his identical twin brother James goes missing. A puzzle-maker, John poses as his detective brother in a bid to crack the biggest puzzle of his life - finding his missing brother...

We guarantee you won't have seen anything quite like this before. And that's a rare thing these days.

And don't miss these either!

Also worth a watch is the 24th series of Grand Designs, which starts on Wednesday, September 25, 2024 at 9pm on Channel 4.

In East Yorkshire, Kevin McCloud follows the progress of Zahid and Ferzana from Leeds. They set out to transform an coastguard station in East Yorkshire into a three-storey home made of steel and glass.

Meanwhile, on Channel 5, The Wives comes to a climax on Wesnesday at 9pm. You'll find no spoilers here, but we will say that Sylvie and Natasha hunt for Luca, while Sean goes to meet his brothers and, desperate to avoid arrest, Charlie heads to the port with Sky and Jade.

True crime fans will be gripped by Who Killed JonBenet Ramsey? A Suburban Nightmare airs at 10pm on Channel 5 (Thursday, September 26, 2024).

This revisits the murder of young beauty queen JonBenet Ramsey, who was found dead in her home more than 25 years ago. The perpetrator was never found.

Brassic season 6 starts on Sky Max and streaming service NOW with seven brand-new episodes on Thursday, September 26, 2024 at 9pm.

There's also the My Mum, Your Dad finale on Friday, September 27, 2024 at 9pm, and the continuing drama Slow Horses on Wednesdays on Apple TV+. It's one of the best things on TV right now. Fact.