After starring in The Night Manager, Tom Hollander plays another villainous character with shady motives in The Iris Affair, sharing the spotlight with a Malpractice star.
Niamh Algar and Tom Hollander share the spotlight in The Iris Affair
Niamh Algar is no stranger to shaking things up. After gripping viewers as Dr Lucinda Edwards in Malpractice, she’s stepping into even higher-octane territory as Iris Nixon in Sky Atlantic’s new thriller, The Iris Affair.
“I’ve loved playing Iris – she’s so many characters in one,” Niamh Algar says. “Then there’s the adrenaline side: gunfights, jumping off boats, leaping from buildings, blowing up things. Racing a Ferrari at high speed was the absolute highlight.”
Created by Neil Cross and filmed in Italy, the eight-part series sees Iris as a brilliant codebreaker, living life on the run with a bounty on her head.
“She is obsessive, manipulative and unpredictable,” Niamh says. “She’s not motivated by romance or defined by trauma, but shaped by her intelligence and curiosity.”
She’s recruited by Cameron Beck (Tom Hollander), a charismatic tech billionaire who believes he needs her to relaunch a quantum computer nicknamed Charlie Big Potatoes. Cameron believes the machine could change – even save – the world, but Iris is convinced it could destroy it.
The quantum computer was originally launched by Jensen Lind, a Norwegian scientist played by Game Of Thrones alumni Kristofer Hivju. Jensen and Cameron once worked together on the project, until Jensen stopped it.
“Something makes Jensen try to destroy 10-15 years of working in this compound making the biggest revolutionary device in history,” Kristofer says. “That’s the mystery – why?”
Kristofer admits the science was a challenge, saying, “My Chat GPT has overheated. I have had to go into Hindu cosmology and quantum physics just to understand my lines.”
Meanwhile, Tom Hollander insists his character isn’t the villain audiences might expect. “He’s not a bad guy. He wants good outcomes,” Tom says. “He thinks it’s capable of curing climate change.
What’s really motivating Cameron is he’s in fear for his own life. He’s a rich man who has over-borrowed, so effectively he actually doesn’t have anything.”
Cameron faces a shadowy organisation called The Money, with Harry Lloyd joining the cast as the cryptic Hugo Pym. “He is this guy who is somewhat psychotic and deranged,” Harry says.
“The Money are this ‘Intra Group Committee’ and Hugo is someone who has recently been made head of it.” Caught up in the middle is Joy Baxter, played by Meréana Tomlinson, with whom Iris forms a connection.
“Iris sees something of herself in Joy,” Niamh says. “Joy is essentially a token child in a wealthy household that doesn’t really notice her, and Iris has always felt like she didn’t belong in any system or structure.”
When Cameron kidnaps Joy to pressure Iris into working for him, the stakes become terrifyingly personal. “It becomes a real test for her,” Niamh says. “It also highlights how much she cares for Joy.”
Joy is loyal to Iris but this is tested when she meets Cameron. “Cameron is more alike with her in terms of her emotional wellbeing and her emotional state,” says Meréana. “She latches on to him for survival and then that turns into companionship.”
Meréana bonded quickly with the team, saying, “I have a quote book in my Notes app. It’s just funny things that people have said.” And Neil Cross’s reaction to the book was priceless, she adds. “He sat there giggling at it for five minutes.”
The Iris Affair airs on Thursday, October 16th on Sky Atlantic and NOW.
Stranger Things season five is slowly but surely edging closer and TV writer Jake Hackney has found a way to secure a Netflix and Sky TV subscription for 50p per day ahead of its launch.
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Netflix fans can watch Stranger Things, Squid Game, Bridgerton and more with this method.
It’s been a big week for Netflix as the streamer finally dropped the first trailer for Stranger Things season five. On Wednesday, exactly nine years and one day after the sci-fi series first aired, Netflix gave fans their first-look at its final chapter.
The footage shows Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) and the gang returning for ‘one last adventure’, each united by a single goal: to find and kill Vecna. Season five is set to premiere in three parts, with volume one (episodes one to four) on November 27, followed by volume two (episodes five to seven) on Boxing Day, and the finale on New Year’s Day.
It feels like an age since season four, so I’m sure I’m not the only one who’s felt their interest waning in the interim. However, after seeing the new trailer this week I’m happy to say Netflix has well and truly pulled me back in.
It’s fair to say the hype around the new season is building, and it’s sure to keep going throughout the rest of the year. With that, many fans are likely scrambling for different ways to find a cheap Netflix subscription.
Earlier this year, the streamer raised its subscription fees yet again, with its entry-level Standard with Ads tier now costing £5.99 per month. However, as a TV and tech writer, it’s my job to find ways to watch all the latest series while keeping costs down, and I know how to get Netflix and Sky TV for 50p per day.
Sky is giving away a free Netflix subscription with its new Sky Stream TV bundles, including the £15 Essential TV plan.
This lets members watch live and on-demand TV content without a satellite dish or aerial and includes hit shows like Stranger Things and The Last of Us.
The deal comes directly from Sky, which includes a free Netflix subscription with TV packages like the Essential TV bundle. For £15 per month, this provides free Netflix access, more than 100 channels including Sky Atlantic and a Discovery+ subscription. When breaking it down, this works out at 50p per day over a 30-day period.
The bundle comes on a 24-month term, meaning those signing up can secure a Netflix subscription for two years. It typically comes with Netflix Standard with Adverts, which usually costs £5.99 when joining direct, meaning members essentially pay £9.01 for 100 TV channels and Discovery+.
Millie Bobby Brown returns as Eleven for one final fight.
There is the option to upgrade to Netflix Standard or Premium for those who prefer ad-free viewing, priced at an extra £6 or £11 respectively. Sky also lets those with an existing subscription keep the same account, so they don’t pay twice.
Sky isn’t the only provider to tempt customers with free Netflix access, as Virgin Media also includes a free subscription with its own TV packages. However, although they include much more, they also come with a higher price tag.
The cheapest package that comes with Netflix is the £64.99 Biggest Combo bundle; usually priced at £78.99, this also comes with more than 200 TV channels, Sky Sports, Sky Cinema and 516Mbps fibre broadband. However, one downside to both Sky and Virgin’s plans is that they both increase their prices every April in an inflation-linked rise.
Stranger Things fans can secure a 50p-per-day Netflix and Sky subscription ahead of season five.
This means the price paid is likely to go up twice in the next 24 months. Sky is yet to confirm how much its prices will go up in April 2026, but this year it introduced a 6.2% rise, so we may see something similar next year.
Virgin has already set out its planned changes, with the £64.99 plan rising to £68.49 from April 2026. Despite this, both Sky and Virgin customers can enjoy every season of Stranger Things, as well as Squid Game, Bridgerton and much, much more.
The new season of what some fans consider the ‘best Walking Dead spin-off’ is finally streaming.
Fans can finally binge all episodes of Dead City season two from today (July 10). Viewers just need access to Sky Max or an entertainment pass on NOW streaming platform.
Fans over in the UK have had to wait a considerable amount of more time than those in the US for its release. However, all eight episodes have been released at once.
Here is everything you need to know about The Walking Dead: Dead City season two, including plot, cast and reviews so far.
Season two of the spin-off is finally streaming in the UK(Image: AMC)
What is second season of The Walking Dead: Dead City all about?
The series follows two of the most popular characters from the main and original Walking Dead series in Maggie and Negan. Audiences are used to seeing them on opposite sides but the first season saw them traveling together into a post-apocalyptic Manhattan cut off from the mainland .
They were in search of Maggie’s kidnapped son, Hershel. The crumbling city is filled with the dead and denizens who have made New York City their own world full of chaos, danger, beauty, and terror.
Season two picks up a year after Maggie infiltrated New York to save her son. Her group, The Brocks have been forced to join the New Babylon Federation while Maggie has been trying to move on with her life with teen son Hershel and Ginny.
However, those now in charge want to conscript the residents for a mission to finally take over the city. Meanwhile, Negan attempts to bring together the gangs that control Manhattan, knowing an invasion is inevitable.
Who stars in The Walking Dead: Dead City season two?
Lauren Cohan reprises her roles as Maggie Greene: formerly a part of Rick Grimes’ group on The Walking Dead. She is the leader of the Bricks, a community of survivors that relocated to New York from Virginia, where it was known as the Hilltop Colony.
Jeffrey Dean Morgan also returns as Negan: The reformed former leader of the Saviors who left the Commonwealth with his pregnant wife to build a life together at the end of The Walking Dead.
Gaius Charles as Perlie Armstrong: A marshal for the New Babylon Federation, a network of survivor communities in New York, who is tasked with hunting down Negan.
Željko Ivanek as Mile Jurkovic / The Croat: from Croatia, hence his name, he is a sadistic former member of the Saviors who kidnapped Maggie’s son in season one. He is also the leader of the Burazi (Brothers), a group of hostile survivors who have taken control of Manhattan.
Mahina Napoleon as Ginny: A young girl under Negan’s care who is selectively mute following the traumatic death of her father.
Lisa Emery as The Dama: The Croat’s mysterious ally.
Logan Kim takes over the part of Hershel Rhee, Maggie’s teenage son in season two.
Orange is the New Black’s Dascha Polanco plays Lucia Narvaez: A high-ranking marshal for New Babylon who takes part in their mission to control Manhattan.
Keir Gilchrist as Benjamin Pierce: New Babylon’s historian who documents the rebuilding of society and is fascinated by New York City.
Get Sky’s new TV and Netflix bundle
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This delivers live and on-demand TV without a satellite dish or aerial and includes hit shows like The Last of Us and Squid Game.
What have The Walking Dead: Dead City reviews been like for season two?
The second season’s final has now aired in the US and as a result, full series reviews have started to be shared online. The first season received some high praise from fans, with one even claiming: “It’s definitely the best of the three spin off shows. I had low expectations going into this as the Daryl spin off was a big disappointment. But I was pleasantly surprised by how good this was and really enjoyed it.”
Unfortunately, it seems the second season hasn’t wowed the critics as much. It only has a 63% rating on Rotten Tomatoes while season one managed 80%.
However, one reviewer claimed the leads make it worth a watch. They said: “Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Lauren Cohen make the writer’s job easy as they consistently deliver within Negan and Maggie, making Season 2 well worthy of a watch.”
Another added: “The Walking Dead: Dead City goes weirder in season 2, with more eccentric groups, all the while continuing its introspective look at Maggie and Negan.”
Maggie and Negan reunite once again
Have the stars of Dead City said anything?
While Lauren Cohan reprised her role as Maggie, a character she has played since 2011, the star also directed an episode of Dead City for its second season.
Speaking about the new role, she said: “Being able to direct on a creative level is so satisfying because you collaborate with everyone and you get to you get to go into their world. You go into the production designers’ world you go into the costume designers’ world.”
She continued: “I felt like the responsibility to the fans is baked in because we know it, we love it. We just don’t want to get in the way of the thing we love. And the responsibility to my co-stars, working with the actors is the best part of the whole thing because we speak the language.”
The Walking Dead: Dead City is streaming on Sky and NOW.
Fresh storylines are waiting TV fans this week, with new series hitting screens and streaming platforms alike. From powerful documentaries to suspenseful dramas, get the lowdown.
Gut-punch drama is to be expected on our screens this week(Image: CREDIT LINE:BBC/Hera/Enda Bowe)
Ups and downs are ahead for drama lovers with new action-packed shows being released this week – but that’s not all the TV landscape brings.
Over on Channel 4, former motorcycle racer Guy Martin embarks on road trip across Vietnam, while Matt Baker pays tribute to the people behind the UK’s bustling life.
Discovery +, on the other hand, delivers a compelling feature about Olympic champion and LGBTQ+ icon Tom Daley – from his beginnings as a young diving whizz to his life with his loved ones. Here’s everything you should keep an eye on.
Princes William and Harry have been feuding for several years(Image: In Pictures via Getty Images)
Crisis At Sandringham Summit
Saturday, C5
The royal walls shook in 2020 – now Crisis at Sandringham Summit reveals the explosive fallout that fractured The Firm. With Harry and Meghan’s bombshell exit still reverberating, this documentary explores the aftermath of that infamous family meeting.
Featuring gripping dramatisations, royal insiders and top-tier journalism, it digs deep into the tension between Prince Harry, his brother Prince William and their father, King Charles.
What really happened behind closed doors? And how did one discussion spark a global media frenzy? Prepare for a compelling look into palace drama that’s more explosive than fiction.
A sinister houseguest, a haunted pregnancy and a chilling secret – Brandy Norwood stars as Belinda in this taut psychological thriller that will twist your nerves into knots.
When Belinda welcomes her creepy stepmother-in-law into the family home, things spiral fast into gothic terror for her and her husband Norman (Andrew Burnap).
Based on Susan Hill’s short story, The Front Room is a slow-burn descent into paranoia, grief and maternal instinct gone primal. Expect fiendish secrets, surreal horror and tension that’ll cling to your skin like fog long after the credits roll.
Guy Martin takes a trip to Vietnam as he explores the country’s history and culture(Image: Channel 4)
Our Guy In Vietnam
Sunday, C4
Guy Martin heads to Vietnam for a riveting, three-part road trip across war-scarred land and a fast-moving culture. From riding the Ho Chi Minh Trail to triggering a dormant bomb, Our Guy In Vietnam unpacks a nation’s trauma with heart and horsepower.
This isn’t your usual history lesson – it’s culture, tech and memory through a mechanic’s lens. Fifty years after the war ended, Vietnam’s resilience roars back to life in this loud, smart and surprising journey.
Tom Daleu opens up about his journey, from teen prodigy to Olympic champion(Image: Eurosport.)
Tom Daley 1.6 seconds
Sunday, Discovery+
In just 1.6 seconds, Tom Daley must deliver perfection. This gripping documentary follows the Olympic diving legend and LGBTQIA+ trailblazer as he reflects on a lifetime of pushing limits.
With never-before-seen footage and heartfelt interviews with his family, Tom Daley: 1.6 Seconds dives deep into the victories, heartbreaks and pressures behind the podium.
From teenage prodigy to global icon, Tom lifts the lid on the grit that comes with the gold. But more than a sports story, it’s a portrait of resilience and the quiet power of becoming your truest self.
C*A*U*G*H*T
Sunday, ITVX
War, mistaken identity and viral fame collide in C*A*U*G*H*T, where four Aussie soldiers are dumped in the chaos of a war-torn island, where everything spirals out of control.
Captured by rebels who believe they’re Americans, the group become viral sensations after filming a hostage video – then decide fame beats going home.
Created by Kick Gurry, this darkly funny satire skewers celebrity culture with help from stars like Sean Penn and Matthew Fox. It’s outrageous, unpredictable and wickedly smart.
Isolated from the chaos below, their retreat turns into a psychological (and hilarious) pressure cooker. Who cracks first? Who hoards the snacks? And what’s left when your money means nothing? It’s a sharp and stylish satire on privilege.
Matt Baker pays tribute to the people behind the UK’s landscapes(Image: Channel 4)
Matt Baker’s British Isles
Tuesday, More4
Matt Baker’s got his walking boots on – and his heart firmly rooted in home soil. In this lush four-part series, the Countryfile star treks across the UK, from Kent’s white cliffs to Northern Ireland and Scotland, to meet the extraordinary people quietly shaping Britain.
From sculpture-like mushrooms to engineering marvels in motion, Matt Baker’s British Isles is a feel-good patchwork of unsung heroes, beautiful vistas and big-hearted storytelling. It’s more than sightseeing – it’s soul-sighting. A great reminder of what makes Britain truly brilliant.
Blue Road: The Edna O’Brien Story
Tuesday, Sky Arts
Few writers lived as boldly as Edna O’Brien – and this intimate documentary captures her fire in full. From banned books to literary breakthroughs, Blue Road traces Edna’s fearless path through fame, feminism and family.
With tributes from friends, sons and fellow authors, plus access to her personal diaries, this isn’t just a biography – it’s a final love letter, month after the icon’s death in July, 2024. Filmmaker Sinéad O’Shea honours the Irish legend with grace and grit. Edna may have passed but her voice, spirit and rebellion clearly live on.
Nathan Fillion stars in The Rookie(Image: Disney via Getty Images)
The Rookie
Tuesday, Sky Witness
Nathan Fillion is back as the LAPD’s most seasoned recruit, John Nolan. No longer the new kid on the block, John faces fresh pressure in season seven of The Rookie as he recovers from a gunshot wound and grapples with the physical toll of the job.
But there’s no slowing down – especially with two new rookies joining the team and a dangerous manhunt underway for two escaped inmates. Blending grit, humour and heart, The Rookie continues to prove that experience is the ultimate weapon.
What It Feels Like For A Girl is based on Paris Lees’ memoir(Image: CREDIT LINE:BBC/Hera/Enda Bowe)
Heartbreaking, chaotic and unexpectedly hilarious, What It Feels Like For a Girl is the BBC’s Y2K-styled adaptation of Paris Lees’ memoir.
It follows Byron (Ellis Howard), who breaks free from the drudgery of his working-class hometown and dives headfirst into Nottingham’s neon-lit underworld.
There, he meets a crew of new friends, drugs and dizzying nights of rebellion. But when Byron falls for bad boy Liam (Jake Dunn), the fallout is brutal. A raw coming-of-age tale that blends euphoria, trauma and truth in equal measure. You’ll feel every high – and every crash.
Stick
Wednesday, Apple TV+
Owen Wilson stars in Stick, a quirky underdog comedy about second chances and missed swings. He plays Pryce Cahill, a washed-up golf pro whose glory days are long behind him.
After losing his wife, job and mojo, he meets Santi (Peter Dager), a 17-year-old golf prodigy with baggage – and maybe a shot. Together, they form an unlikely bond.
Set in small-town Indiana and full of dry wit, this series mixes sports, found family and emotional redemption. Pryce may be down, but don’t count him out – he’s about to tee off on life again.
Charlie Vickers (Rings of Power) fronts The Survivors(Image: Courtesy of Netflix)
When Kieran Elliott returns to his hometown, fifteen years after a deadly storm ravaged the area and left three of his friends dead, he walks straight into a fresh murder that rips open old scars.
The Survivors blends seaside small-town secrets with brooding, slow-build suspense across six punchy episodes. Fronted by Charlie Vickers (Rings of Power), the drama grips like a rip tide, dragging you through trauma, guilt and buried truths.
As the town closes ranks, Kieran’s past resurfaces – and the monster may be someone they all know. Emotional, eerie and impossible to pause.
Tyler Perry gives a raw look at motherhood in Straw(Image: Chip Bergmann/Perry Well Films 2/Courtesy Netflix)
Straw
Friday, Netflix
Tyler Perry and Taraji P. Henson deliver gut-punch drama in Straw, a searing look at one woman’s spiral through desperation. Janiyah, a single mother with a sick child, faces the kind of day where every door shuts – and survival demands unthinkable choices.
Stark, raw and viscerally emotional, Straw is a bruising portrait of motherhood on the edge. The Color Purple and Hidden Figures star Taraji is phenomenal, anchoring a story that speaks to systemic failure, strength and sacrifice. You won’t be able to look away – even when it hurts.
