What's on TV tonight Sunday 17 May 2026? After yesterday's marathon -- Eurovision from Vienna on one side, the FA Cup Final at Wembley on the other -- Sunday arrives with a quieter energy and a rather good evening schedule. This is the comfortable comedown: BBC One doing what it does on Sunday nights, which is cosy crime drama followed by something with more edge. Timothy Spall is back as John Chapel in Death Valley at 8.15pm, pompous as ever, litter-picker in hand, apparently quoting Keats at a murder scene in mid-Wales; Sheridan Smith and Michael Socha are in the endgame of The Cage at 9pm, the Liverpool casino thriller building toward its Sunday 24 May finale. Before the evening kicks in, there is a full afternoon of genuine sporting consequence: the Women's Six Nations Grand Slam decider -- France v England, both teams unbeaten, one will leave Bordeaux with the championship and the Grand Slam -- and the final round of the PGA Championship at Aronimink, where Scottie Scheffler is defending and Rory McIlroy, fresh from winning the 2026 Masters, is making his case for back-to-back majors. Sunday 17 May does not need to be loud. It just needs to deliver.
Browse what's on right now for live updates, check tonight's highlights, or head to the full channels list including dedicated pages for BBC One, BBC Two, BBC Four, ITV1, Channel 5, Channel 4, Sky Sports Golf, and Sky Sports Main Event. Yesterday's TV guide covers the Eurovision Song Contest 2026 Grand Final from Vienna and the FA Cup Final, Chelsea v Manchester City at Wembley: see our Saturday 16 May 2026 TV guide.
What's on TV tonight: quick picks
- Death Valley -- BBC One, 8.15pm -- SERIES 2 LAUNCH; Timothy Spall; Gwyneth Keyworth; Melanie Walters; murder in Community Payback; full 6 episodes on iPlayer from today
- The Cage -- BBC One, 9pm -- EPISODE 4 OF 5 (penultimate); Sheridan Smith; Michael Socha; Barry Sloane; Geraldine James; Liverpool casino thriller; finale Sunday 24 May
- "Rugby Union: Women's Six Nations" -- BBC One, 4.25pm (k/o 4.45pm) -- France v England LIVE; Grand Slam decider; Matmut Atlantique, Bordeaux; England seeking 8th consecutive title
- "Rugby Union: Women's Six Nations" -- BBC Two, ~12 noon (k/o 12.15pm) -- Wales v Italy LIVE; Cardiff Arms Park; Super Sunday final round
- "Golf: PGA Championship" -- Sky Sports Golf, 4pm + Sky Sports Main Event 8pm -- FINAL ROUND LIVE; Aronimink; Scheffler defending; McIlroy chasing back-to-back majors
- Believe Me -- ITV1, 9pm -- Episode 3 of 4; Jeff Pope true-crime; Daniel Mays as John Worboys; finale Monday 18 May
- "Your Song: the Grand Final" -- Channel 4, 9pm -- Grand Final live from Hackney Empire; Alison Hammond hosts; Sam Ryder + Paloma Faith mentors; 5 finalists
- "Later... with Jools Holland" -- BBC Two, 10pm -- SERIES 68 LAUNCH; Squeeze; Niall Horan; TOMORA (AURORA + Tom Rowlands); Aja Monet; Getdown Services; Alexandra Palace
- The Family Next Door -- ITV1, 10.20pm + 11.20pm -- NEW SERIES UK PREMIERE; Australian psychological thriller; Teresa Palmer; Bella Heathcote; based on Sally Hepworth novel
- Brother -- BBC Two, 10.50pm -- 2022 film; Clement Virgo; Aaron Pierre; Lamar Johnson; 12 Canadian Screen Awards including Best Picture; ★★★★
- "Cycling: Giro d'Italia" -- TNT Sports 3, 11am -- STAGE 9 LIVE; Cervia to Corno alle Scale; 184km; mountain stage; first summit finish of the Giro
- "Countdown to RHS Chelsea Flower Show" -- BBC Two, 8pm -- Sophie Raworth; Adam Frost; Chelsea opens Tuesday 19 May
See what's on right now for live updates.
Tonight's TV schedule: full listings
| Time | Channel | Programme |
|---|---|---|
| 11.00am | TNT Sports 3 | "Cycling: Giro d'Italia" Stage 9 LIVE -- Cervia to Corno alle Scale; 184km; mountain finish |
| 12.20pm | BBC One | Zog (2018 animation) -- Julia Donaldson; Axel Scheffler; Magic Light Pictures; accident-prone dragon |
| ~12 noon | BBC Two | "Rugby Union: Women's Six Nations" coverage -- Wales v Italy; Cardiff Arms Park |
| 12.15pm | BBC Two | "Rugby Union: Women's Six Nations" Wales v Italy KICK-OFF -- Cardiff Arms Park; Super Sunday final round |
| ~4.25pm | BBC One | "Rugby Union: Women's Six Nations" coverage -- France v England; Grand Slam decider; Bordeaux |
| 4.45pm | BBC One | "Rugby Union: Women's Six Nations" France v England KICK-OFF -- Matmut Atlantique, Bordeaux; England seek 8th consecutive title |
| 4.00pm | Sky Sports Golf | "Golf: PGA Championship" Final Round LIVE -- Aronimink; Scheffler defending; McIlroy 2026 Masters champion |
| 7.00pm | U&Alibi | Murdoch Mysteries Season 19 -- James Gillies returns; Watts; Brackenreid |
| 7.15pm | BBC Two | Expedition with Steve Backshall -- Kamchatka; Kronotsky river rapids; brown bears; Dave original repeated on BBC Two |
| 8.00pm | ITV1 | Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? -- Jeremy Clarkson; Pringles question; Masters student from Cardiff |
| 8.00pm | BBC Two | "Countdown to RHS Chelsea Flower Show" -- Sophie Raworth; Adam Frost; Chelsea opens Tuesday 19 May |
| 8.00pm | U&Alibi | Hudson and Rex S8 E2 "Runaway Witness" -- autistic child witness communicates through drawings; Rex connects with traumatised child |
| 8.00pm | Sky Sports Main Event | "Golf: PGA Championship" Final Round LIVE -- evening simulcast window |
| 8.15pm | BBC One | Death Valley Series 2 Ep 1 -- COVER PICK; Timothy Spall; Gwyneth Keyworth; Melanie Walters; Community Payback murder; full series on iPlayer |
| 9.00pm | BBC One | The Cage Episode 4 of 5 (penultimate) -- Sheridan Smith; Michael Socha; Barry Sloane; Geraldine James; finale Sun 24 May |
| 9.00pm | ITV1 | Believe Me Episode 3 of 4 -- Daniel Mays as Worboys; Jeff Pope true-crime; ends Monday 18 May |
| 9.00pm | Channel 4 | "Your Song: the Grand Final" -- Alison Hammond; Sam Ryder; Paloma Faith; Hackney Empire; 5 finalists |
| 10.00pm | BBC Two | "Later... with Jools Holland" Series 68 Ep 1 NEW SERIES -- Squeeze; Niall Horan; TOMORA; Aja Monet; Getdown Services; Alexandra Palace |
| 10.20pm | ITV1 | The Family Next Door Episode 1 "Essie" UK PREMIERE -- Teresa Palmer; Australian thriller; Sally Hepworth novel |
| 10.50pm | BBC Two | Brother (2022 film) ★★★★ -- Clement Virgo; Aaron Pierre; Lamar Johnson; 12 Canadian Screen Awards including Best Picture |
| 11.20pm | ITV1 | The Family Next Door Episode 2 -- second part of Sunday double bill |
| Now streaming | Netflix | Berlin and the Lady with an Ermine -- all 8 eps available; Money Heist spin-off; Pedro Alonso; dropped Friday 15 May |
| Now streaming | Prime Video | Good Omens Series 3 -- David Tennant; Michael Sheen; available from Wednesday 13 May |
Death Valley -- BBC One, 8.15pm
Death Valley Series 2, Episode 1 launches on BBC One at 8.15pm on Sunday 17 May 2026. Timothy Spall and Gwyneth Keyworth return in the BBC's most successful new scripted drama in five years. The full six-episode series is available on BBC iPlayer from today.
Series 1 of Death Valley arrived with the quiet confidence of something that knew exactly what it was doing. A comedy drama set in mid-Wales, built around the collision of two people who should not be working together and, as it turns out, should definitely not be sleeping with each other's relatives. Timothy Spall played John Chapel -- a retired actor from a long-running fictional TV show called Caesar, self-important, pompous, possessed of the peculiar insight that pompous people sometimes have and refuse to use wisely. Gwyneth Keyworth played DS Janie Mallowan, who brought Chapel in as a consultant with her eyes open about his uselessness and then repeatedly found herself surprised by his results. The show became BBC One's largest overnight audience for a new scripted series in five years, which is the number that produces a Series 2 announcement in August 2025.
Series 2 opens with a new complication, and it is a personal one. Since the end of Series 1, Chapel has been in a relationship with Yvonne Mallowan -- Janie's mother, played by Melanie Walters -- which means that the professional awkwardness between Chapel and Janie now has a domestic dimension that neither of them knows how to manage. Janie has also been promoted: she is Detective Inspector Mallowan now, which gives her slightly more authority to ignore Chapel's advice, and he slightly more reason to provide it anyway.
The episode
The inciting case involves a car dealer who has plunged -- or been pushed -- from the parapet of a 12th-century castle, and it sends Janie, under DCI Barry Clarke (Steffan Rhodri), into a Community Payback operation that requires bringing Chapel in as the one person who can go undercover without looking entirely out of place. His cover involves a high-vis tabard and a litter-picker that Chapel has already decided, within the first few minutes, to use as a prop sword. He quotes Keats and Milton at a murder scene. Steffan Rhodri's DCI Clarke watches this with the expression of a man who has given up wondering how he got here.
The guest cast for Series 2 includes Jane Horrocks, Alexandra Roach, Mark Lewis Jones, Owen Teale, Asim Chaudhry, Roisin Conaty, Jim Howick, and Hammed Animashaun -- a lineup that suggests the show has no shortage of actors willing to be funny in a Welsh field with Timothy Spall.
All six episodes are on BBC iPlayer from tonight. On BBC One at 8.15pm.
The Cage -- BBC One, 9pm
The Cage, Episode 4 of 5 (the penultimate episode), airs on BBC One at 9pm on Sunday 17 May 2026. The series finale -- Episode 5 -- airs on Sunday 24 May at 9pm, not Monday as some listings have suggested. All five episodes are on BBC iPlayer.
Tony Schumacher won a BAFTA for The Responder, his Liverpool police drama with Martin Freeman. The Cage is his follow-up, produced by Element Pictures (Normal People, Poor Things), and it covers similar geography -- Merseyside, the particular pressure of that city, people backed into corners by the structures around them -- but from a very different angle. This is not a police procedural. It is a thriller about two people who thought they were getting away with something and have discovered they are not.
Sheridan Smith plays Leanne, a single mother who has been skimming cash from the safe at the casino where she works, trying to keep her family home. Michael Socha plays Matty, a gambling addict employed at the same casino and, it turns out, doing exactly the same thing. They discovered each other's secret; they made an alliance; the alliance has put them both at greater risk. Barry Sloane plays Gary, the casino boss whose suspicions are now sharpening into something more dangerous. Geraldine James plays Nancy, Gary's mother, who has her own reading of the situation.
Episode 4's description -- Matty tries to get through to Leanne; at a tense casino night, Gary unravels -- suggests the walls are closing in before Sunday 24 May's finale. Smith and Socha have been the engine of this thing throughout, and the fourth episode of a five-parter is usually where the noose tightens for good.
On BBC One at 9pm. Finale: Sunday 24 May, 9pm.
Believe Me -- ITV1, 9pm
Believe Me, Episode 3 of 4, airs on ITV1 at 9pm on Sunday 17 May 2026. Jeff Pope MBE's true-crime drama about the John Worboys case. Daniel Mays plays Worboys. The series concludes on Monday 18 May; all four episodes are available on ITVX.
Jeff Pope is the writer who made Philomena, Mrs Biggs, and Little Boy Blue. His approach to true crime is grounded, patient, and unfailingly focused on the human cost of what happened rather than the procedural mechanics. Believe Me is his account of the Black Cab rapist John Worboys -- the 2008 Metropolitan Police investigation, the failures that preceded it, and the subsequent legal action brought by survivors against the police authorities.
Daniel Mays plays Worboys, but the drama does not belong to him. Pope has structured the series from the perspectives of three survivors -- Aimée-Ffion Edwards as Sarah, Aasiya Shah as Laila, and Miriam Petche as a third woman -- and the centre of gravity stays there throughout. This is not a story about how Worboys was caught. It is a story about who had to fight to make that happen, and what they faced in doing so.
Episode 3: Worboys is arrested and convicted. The survivors begin taking legal action against the Metropolitan Police. Episode 4, the finale, airs on ITV1 on Monday 18 May.
On ITV1 at 9pm. Available in full on ITVX.
"Your Song: the Grand Final" -- Channel 4, 9pm
Your Song, Episode 6 of 6 (the Grand Final), airs on Channel 4 at 9pm on Sunday 17 May 2026. Hosted by Alison Hammond. Mentors Sam Ryder and Paloma Faith. Five finalists perform live at the Hackney Empire, London.
Your Song launched on Channel 4 on 12 April with a format that is simple and, in the right hands, genuinely affecting: amateur singers perform a song that means something to them personally, in front of mentors who cannot see them perform. Sam Ryder and Paloma Faith -- two musicians who have spent careers on either side of commercial and artistic pop -- have been those mentors throughout. The show has produced some remarkable moments in its five episodes, and tonight it moves to the Hackney Empire for the final.
Five contestants have earned their place: Chantel, who is a kidney transplant survivor; Findlay, who performs his late mother's favourite song; Milo, a teenager who stopped singing after being teased; Mina, an Iranian refugee for whom singing was an act of resistance; and wildcard Elliot. The winner gets to perform at the Hackney Empire concert. Alison Hammond hosts -- she was not mentioned in the original briefing for this show, but she has been the warmth at the centre of the format all series, and she is very good at this television.
On Channel 4 at 9pm.
"Later... with Jools Holland" -- BBC Two, 10pm
Later... with Jools Holland Series 68 launches on BBC Two at 10pm on Sunday 17 May 2026. The new series comes from Alexandra Palace Theatre. Episode 1 guests: Squeeze, Niall Horan, TOMORA (AURORA + Tom Rowlands of The Chemical Brothers), Aja Monet, Getdown Services.
Jools Holland is back with his 68th series, which makes Later one of the longest-running music programmes in BBC history and the one that has most consistently treated its audience as people capable of holding more than one musical register in their heads at once. The Alexandra Palace Theatre provides the room -- that mix of grandeur and approachability that the show has always needed.
Squeeze and the concept album
Jools Holland's former band headline the first episode, which carries its own particular pleasure given that this is the show where he built his post-Squeeze career. Squeeze perform from Trixies, their new concept album about a fictional club called Trixies. The songs were originally written in 1974 -- material that has been sitting in various states of completion for over fifty years -- and have been assembled into a narrative sequence about the club, the people who went there, what happened to them. Glenn Tilbrook and Chris Difford are still one of the most precise songwriting partnerships in British pop, and hearing material this old in this context is the television that Later exists to produce.
Niall Horan
The RT brief missed him, so worth noting clearly: Niall Horan is on the show tonight. The former One Direction member has been building a solo career of quiet seriousness since the band's hiatus; this appearance, performing two songs from his fourth album Dinner Party, puts him in the Squeeze-to-jazz-to-poetry lineup that Later has always assembled with cheerful disregard for any single genre's expectations. It will be interesting television.
TOMORA, Aja Monet, Getdown Services
TOMORA is the collaboration between Norwegian singer-songwriter AURORA and Tom Rowlands of The Chemical Brothers. The description "rave at a pixie village" is what one reviewer wrote, which tells you something about the sound and suggests that BBC Two at 10pm is either the exactly right or exactly wrong place for it, depending on how you feel about that combination. Aja Monet is a surrealist blues poet with Gil Scott-Heron as a reference point; Getdown Services are a Bristol indie-dance act with a song that allegedly features a reference to Dyson Airblades.
On BBC Two at 10pm.
The Family Next Door -- ITV1, 10.20pm + 11.20pm
The Family Next Door makes its UK premiere on ITV1 tonight with a double bill at 10.20pm and 11.20pm. An Australian psychological thriller based on the novel by Sally Hepworth. Teresa Palmer as Isabelle, Bella Heathcote as Ange. Six episodes, each told from a different character's perspective. Originally aired on ABC Television Australia from 10 August 2025.
Sally Hepworth's novels occupy the territory between domestic thriller and literary fiction that Australian writing has claimed as its own in recent years -- suburban settings, unreliable narrators, the gap between how families present and what they actually are. The Family Next Door adapts her work into a six-part series that uses a structural trick Hepworth employed in the source novel: each episode belongs to a different character, which means you are constantly revising your understanding of events based on whose eyes you are looking through.
Teresa Palmer plays Isabelle; Bella Heathcote plays Ange. The series was directed by Emma Freeman. Episode 1 is titled "Essie" -- Isabelle's perspective, as her new neighbour Ange arrives and something begins to feel wrong in ways that take time to name. The second episode of tonight's double bill has not been formally titled in listings at time of writing.
ITV has scheduled this as a double bill over consecutive nights, which is the right call for a series built on sequential revelations. For Australian viewers, this is nine months old; for UK audiences, it is brand new. On ITV1 from 10.20pm.
Brother ★★★★ -- BBC Two, 10.50pm (11.20pm in Northern Ireland)
Brother (2022) airs on BBC Two at 10.50pm on Sunday 17 May 2026. Directed and written by Clement Virgo, based on the novel by David Chariandy. Aaron Pierre as Francis; Lamar Johnson as Michael. Won 12 Canadian Screen Awards including Best Picture. Available on BBC iPlayer.
Clement Virgo's film is set in the Scarborough district of Toronto in the early 1990s -- a neighbourhood that was predominantly Caribbean-Canadian, high-rise housing, the specific texture of immigrant community life in a city that had not yet entirely decided what to do with the families that had built half of it. Aaron Pierre plays Francis, a young man whose presence in his brother Michael's memory (Lamar Johnson) structures the film. It is a film about grief and about brothers, about the violence that circulates in the streets below the apartment blocks and the ways that families absorb it.
It won 12 Canadian Screen Awards including Best Picture -- a record-setting haul at the time. It was part of TIFF's Canada's Top Ten 2022. David Chariandy's source novel is a short, intense piece of literary fiction, and Virgo's adaptation treats its source with precision and care. This is the film that BBC Two schedules late on a Sunday knowing that the right audience will stay up for it.
On BBC Two at 10.50pm. Available on BBC iPlayer.
Sport today
Women's Six Nations Grand Slam decider -- BBC One/Two, 4.45pm + 12.15pm
The final round of the Women's Six Nations 2026 is as high-stakes as it gets. Both England and France have won every match in the tournament with maximum bonus points -- four wins, 20 points each -- going into Round 5. There is no tiebreaker needed: whoever wins today wins the Grand Slam and the championship. England are seeking their eighth consecutive title, a run stretching back to 2018, and are also the reigning 2025 World Cup champions. France are hosting in Bordeaux at the Matmut Atlantique (the Atlantic Stadium, not to be confused with the old Stade Chaban-Delmas, which is a different ground), which gives them the crowd and the atmosphere.
This is the fixture that Women's Six Nations rugby has been building toward for years -- two genuinely equal sides meeting in a final-round decider that neither can approach as anything other than a must-win. BBC coverage from approximately 4.25pm on BBC One; kick-off 4.45pm. A note on the channel: the Radio Times brief and at least one external source differ on whether this match falls on BBC One or BBC Two. The RT brief assigns it to BBC One (not Northern Ireland); if your listing shows BBC Two, check the BBC website for the confirmed channel before settling in.
Earlier: Wales v Italy at Cardiff Arms Park, BBC Two, coverage from approximately 12 noon, kick-off 12.15pm (BBC One in Wales). A final-round match without the Grand Slam stakes, but Wales are at home and there is always something to play for on Super Sunday.
All Women's Six Nations matches stream live on BBC iPlayer.
PGA Championship Final Round -- Sky Sports Golf, 4pm
The 2026 PGA Championship comes to its conclusion at Aronimink Golf Club in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania. Aronimink is a par-70 course at 7,394 yards that punishes imprecision on approach shots more than it rewards raw power off the tee -- a course where moving day on Saturday tends to produce decisive separations and where Sunday's round can be as much about not making mistakes as making birdies.
Scottie Scheffler is the defending champion. He won the 2025 PGA Championship at Quail Hollow by five strokes, which is the margin of a player who was never really threatened. Rory McIlroy won the 2026 Masters in April, his long-awaited return to major-winning form after years of near misses, and he arrives at Aronimink as a genuine contender for back-to-back majors in the same season. The final round leaderboard could not be reproduced here at time of research -- check pgachampionship.com or Sky Sports for the current standings -- but this is the second major of the year, and those two names will be part of the story wherever the scoreboard stands.
Coverage on Sky Sports Golf from 4pm BST. Sky Sports Main Event picks up the evening window from approximately 8pm. Available on NOW for non-Sky subscribers.
Giro d'Italia Stage 9 -- TNT Sports 3, 11am
Stage 9 runs 184km from Cervia, on the Adriatic coast, to Corno alle Scale in the Apennines -- the last stage of the opening week and the first real mountain finish of this year's race. The route is deceptive in the best cycling sense: flat for the first 150 kilometres and more across the Romagna plains through Bologna, setting up a sprint for position that is not about sprinting at all, before the road tilts sharply upward for the Corno alle Scale ascent. The climb runs 12.8km at a 5.9% average gradient, with ramps touching 15% inside the final three kilometres. The first GC contest of the Giro that will mean anything. Live on TNT Sports 3 from 11am BST. Also available on HBO Max.
Also worth watching today
Murdoch Mysteries -- U&Alibi, 7pm
Season 19 of the Canadian period mystery series continues on U&Alibi, the show's UK home, at 7pm. James Gillies -- the recurring villain who was hanged on screen in Season 7 more than a decade before the events of Season 19 -- is back, in the manner of recurring Murdoch Mysteries villains, raising the question of how. It is comfortable Sunday evening television of the most reliable kind: Detective Murdoch (Yannick Bisson), Detective Watts, and the ever-present Brackenreid investigating things in 1890s Toronto. If you have been watching weekly, you know where you are.
Hudson and Rex -- U&Alibi, 8pm
Season 8, Episode 2 of the Canadian police procedural, titled "Runaway Witness," follows Murdoch Mysteries on U&Alibi at 8pm. A young lawyer is kidnapped; the sole witness is a child who communicates through drawings rather than speech. Rex -- the German Shepherd police dog at the centre of the series -- connects with the traumatised child in the way that this show handles its best episodes: the dog filling in the emotional registers that the human cast has to keep more professionally guarded. The production team consulted with autistic adults on this episode, which is worth noting.
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? -- ITV1, 8pm
Jeremy Clarkson hosts on ITV1 at 8pm. Tonight's episode features a Masters student from Cardiff and includes, apparently, a question about the Pringles advertising slogan -- "Once you pop, you can't stop" -- which is either an easy one or a trap depending on whether you have spent any time thinking about Pringles in the past thirty years. Clarkson has made the format his own in a way that uses his strengths -- the impatience, the willingness to tell contestants they are wrong, the genuine flicker of interest when someone is right about something he did not expect -- and minimises the things that do not suit him. It remains very watchable.
Expedition with Steve Backshall -- BBC Two, 7.15pm
The Kamchatka episode of Expedition with Steve Backshall -- Series 2, Episode 1 of the Dave original, now repeating on BBC Two -- airs at 7.15pm. Steve Backshall leads a team of world-class kayakers on the Kronotsky River in Kamchatka, at the far Pacific edge of Russia, attempting to run white-water rapids that have never been kayaked before. The Kamchatka peninsula has more brown bears per square kilometre than almost anywhere on earth, and the show makes good use of that fact. It originally aired on Dave in November 2021. On BBC Two at 7.15pm.
"Countdown to RHS Chelsea Flower Show" -- BBC Two, 8pm
Sophie Raworth and Adam Frost present BBC Two's preview programme ahead of the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2026, which opens to the public on Tuesday 19 May and runs until Saturday 23 May. The preview goes into the showground as designers and exhibitors make their final preparations -- always the most interesting moment of Chelsea week, before the public arrives and the immaculateness becomes performed rather than achieved. The main daily BBC coverage begins in earnest from Tuesday. On BBC Two at 8pm.
Zog -- BBC One, 12.20pm
For anyone with children in the house during the lunchtime slot: Zog airs on BBC One at 12.20pm. Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler's accident-prone young dragon, in Magic Light Pictures' 2018 animated adaptation, remains one of the more charming things the BBC has broadcast at midday. The Gruffalo people know what they are doing.
Frequently asked questions
What's on TV tonight Sunday 17 May 2026?
Sunday 17 May 2026: Death Valley Series 2 launches on BBC One at 8.15pm (Timothy Spall, Gwyneth Keyworth -- full series on iPlayer from today). The Cage, Episode 4 of 5, at 9pm on BBC One (Sheridan Smith, Michael Socha; finale Sunday 24 May). Women's Six Nations Grand Slam decider France v England kicks off 4.45pm BBC One; Wales v Italy 12.15pm BBC Two. PGA Championship Final Round from 4pm Sky Sports Golf. Believe Me Episode 3 at 9pm ITV1 (Jeff Pope, Daniel Mays; finale Monday 18 May). Your Song Grand Final at 9pm Channel 4 (Alison Hammond, Hackney Empire). Later with Jools Holland new series at 10pm BBC Two (Squeeze, Niall Horan, TOMORA). The Family Next Door UK premiere double bill from 10.20pm ITV1 (Teresa Palmer, Bella Heathcote). Brother on BBC Two at 10.50pm (Clement Virgo, 12 Canadian Screen Awards). Giro d'Italia Stage 9 on TNT Sports 3 from 11am. Browse tonight's highlights or what's on right now.
What time is Death Valley on BBC One tonight?
Death Valley Series 2, Episode 1 airs on BBC One at 8.15pm on Sunday 17 May 2026. Timothy Spall returns as John Chapel, the pompous retired actor who consults on murder cases in mid-Wales; Gwyneth Keyworth returns as newly promoted DI Janie Mallowan. Melanie Walters plays Janie's mother Yvonne, who is now in a relationship with Chapel. The full six-episode series is available on BBC iPlayer from today.
What is the Women's Six Nations final round on TV today?
A Super Sunday double bill. Wales v Italy kicks off at 12.15pm at Cardiff Arms Park; BBC Two coverage from approximately 12 noon (BBC One in Wales). France v England kicks off at 4.45pm at Matmut Atlantique in Bordeaux; coverage from approximately 4.25pm on BBC One (note: at least one external source suggests BBC Two for this match -- check the BBC website to confirm before kick-off). Both France and England are unbeaten entering Round 5 with maximum bonus points. England are seeking their eighth consecutive championship title and a Grand Slam; France have home advantage. All matches stream live on BBC iPlayer.
What time is the PGA Championship final round on TV today?
The 2026 PGA Championship Final Round at Aronimink Golf Club, Pennsylvania is live on Sky Sports Golf from 4pm BST. Sky Sports Main Event picks up the evening window from approximately 8pm. Defending champion Scottie Scheffler won the 2025 PGA Championship at Quail Hollow by five strokes. Rory McIlroy, fresh from winning the 2026 Masters, is among the leading contenders. Non-Sky subscribers can stream via NOW. The PGA Championship is the second major of the 2026 season.
What is The Cage on BBC One tonight?
The Cage is a five-part BBC One thriller set in Liverpool, created by Tony Schumacher (BAFTA-winning creator of The Responder), produced by Element Pictures. Sheridan Smith plays Leanne, a single mother skimming from the casino safe to save her family home; Michael Socha plays Matty, a gambling addict doing the same. Episode 4 (the penultimate episode) airs Sunday 17 May at 9pm. The series finale, Episode 5, airs Sunday 24 May at 9pm on BBC One. All five episodes are on BBC iPlayer.
What is Believe Me on ITV1 tonight?
Believe Me is a four-part ITV1 true-crime drama written by Jeff Pope MBE, covering the 2008 Metropolitan Police investigation into Black Cab rapist John Worboys. Daniel Mays plays Worboys. The series is told from the perspectives of three survivors: Aimée-Ffion Edwards, Aasiya Shah, and Miriam Petche. Episode 3 airs at 9pm on Sunday 17 May. The series finale, Episode 4, airs on Monday 18 May. All four episodes are on ITVX.
What is on BBC Two tonight Sunday 17 May 2026?
BBC Two Sunday 17 May: Women's Six Nations Wales v Italy from 12 noon (kick-off 12.15pm); Expedition with Steve Backshall (Kamchatka) at 7.15pm; Countdown to RHS Chelsea Flower Show at 8pm with Sophie Raworth and Adam Frost; Later... with Jools Holland Series 68 launch at 10pm from Alexandra Palace (Squeeze, Niall Horan, TOMORA, Aja Monet, Getdown Services); Brother (2022 film, Clement Virgo, Aaron Pierre, 12 Canadian Screen Awards) at 10.50pm.
What is Your Song on Channel 4 tonight?
Your Song is a six-episode Channel 4 music series in which amateur singers perform a personally meaningful song in front of mentors Sam Ryder and Paloma Faith. Tonight at 9pm is the Grand Final (Episode 6), live from the Hackney Empire, London, hosted by Alison Hammond. Five finalists -- Chantel, Findlay, Milo, Mina, and wildcard Elliot -- compete for the chance to perform at the Hackney Empire concert. The series launched on Sunday 12 April 2026.
Who is playing on Later with Jools Holland tonight?
Later... with Jools Holland Series 68 launches at 10pm on BBC Two from Alexandra Palace Theatre. Episode 1 guests: Squeeze, performing from new concept album Trixies (about a fictional club, songs originally written 1974); Niall Horan, performing two songs from his fourth album Dinner Party; TOMORA, the AURORA and Tom Rowlands (The Chemical Brothers) collaboration; Aja Monet, surrealist blues poet; and Getdown Services, the Bristol indie-dance act.
What is the Giro d'Italia stage today?
Stage 9, from Cervia to Corno alle Scale, 184km. The final stage of the opening week and the first significant mountain finish. Flat across the Romagna plains for the first 150+ kilometres before the Corno alle Scale climb: 12.8km at 5.9% average, ramps reaching 15% inside the final 3km. Live on TNT Sports 3 from 11am BST; also on HBO Max.
Tonight's final word
Sunday television at its best does not need to shout. Death Valley does not shout. Timothy Spall, litter-picker raised like a lance, quoting Keats in a high-vis tabard at a murder scene in mid-Wales -- that is a show that knows exactly the register it occupies, and it occupies it with complete assurance. The Cage arrives in its penultimate hour with the screw fully turned, Sheridan Smith and Michael Socha each discovering how little they can trust the other while trusting them completely is the only viable option. Two very different pieces of BBC One drama, doing what Sunday evening television was invented for.
Before that, the afternoon gives you the proper sporting stakes: a Women's Six Nations final round that is a straight fight, no tiebreakers, no countbacks -- England or France takes the Grand Slam and the eighth consecutive title for England or the historic French double, and it is being played in Bordeaux in front of a crowd that will be entirely on one side. That is a 4.45pm kick-off worth clearing the afternoon for. The PGA Championship at Aronimink runs alongside it on Sky Sports Golf, Scheffler defending, McIlroy chasing the double, the final round drama playing out while Bordeaux is still deciding its champion.
Late-night television holds up its end. Later with Jools Holland returning for Series 68 at Alexandra Palace with Squeeze and Niall Horan and TOMORA and Aja Monet in the same room is a booking that makes you grateful the show still exists in the form it does. Brother on BBC Two at 10.50pm is worth the late finish: Clement Virgo's film won 12 Canadian Screen Awards for reasons that are apparent from the first ten minutes, and BBC Two has done well to schedule it for an audience that will appreciate it.
Check what's on right now, see tonight's full highlights, or browse all channels. Tomorrow: the Giro d'Italia continues into its second week, Believe Me concludes on ITV1, and Chelsea Flower Show week begins on BBC Two.