Thursday's got some serious range. Prince Harry versus the tabloids, Hitchcock's shower scene dissected, an Orkney murder mystery finale, and Luke Littler throwing arrows at Ally Pally. Something for everyone who likes their television with a bit of edge.

Table of Contents

Quick Picks: Tonight's Best

Early Evening (6:30pm - 8pm)

Darts: World Championship - Sky Sports Main Event, 6:30pm

Luke Littler defends his title on day one from Alexandra Palace. The teenage sensation took the darting world by storm last year, and now he's back as the man to beat. Even if you're not usually into darts, there's something infectious about the Ally Pally atmosphere. Fancy dress, singing crowds, and precision under pressure.

Super-Agers: Wisdom at 90+ - ITV1, 7:30pm

Super-Agers: Wisdom at 90+

Britain now has more than half a million people over 90, and this charming documentary shows they're more active than ever. Paul Brand meets five nonagenarians whose schedules include teaching photography and running an animal sanctuary. Inspiring without being saccharine.

Emmerdale - ITV1, 8pm

Yorkshire soap continues. If you're following the current storylines, you know the drill.

Prime Time: Drama and Documentary (8pm onwards)

Dispatches: The Prince v the Paper - Channel 4, 8pm ⭐

Dispatches: The Prince v the Paper

Expect legal fireworks in January when Prince Harry's case against Associated Newspapers goes to court. He's joined by six other public figures including Doreen Lawrence and Elton John, with accusations of phone hacking and bugging at the heart of the matter.

Cathy Newman presents this primer to the upcoming trial, laying out the allegations and what's at stake. Whatever your views on Harry, this case has implications far beyond royal drama. If the accusations are proven, it'll reshape our understanding of tabloid methods over the past two decades.

Essential viewing before the courtroom action begins.

The Man in the Mask: An Orkney Murder - BBC Two, 9pm

The Man in the Mask: An Orkney Murder

Reporter Hazel Martin reaches the final stretch of this strange, twist-filled case. The question: did suspect Michael Ross kill waiter Shamsuddin Mahmood in 1994? After all these episodes, we're still genuinely unsure.

Now a new eyewitness comes forward with testimony that could close things for good. True crime that keeps you guessing right until the end.

Play for Today: Special Measures - Channel 5, 9pm

Play for Today: Special Measures

The revival of the BBC's legendary one-off drama strand continues on Channel 5. Tonight's instalment sees a school thrown into panic by an imminent Ofsted inspection. When the head of English quits on the morning of the visit, teacher Amy Harrison (Jessica Plummer) has to hold everything together.

Anyone who's worked in education will recognise the chaos. The Ofsted inspection as dramatic pressure cooker works surprisingly well.

Talking Pictures: Psycho - BBC Four, 9pm

Talking Pictures: Psycho

Celia Imrie's love of spooky suspense was obvious during her Celebrity Traitors appearance. Here she digs deeper into that enthusiasm, exploring BBC archives for insights into Hitchcock's classic - including an interview with the director himself.

The film follows straight after at 9:40pm. If you've never seen Psycho, this is a brilliant way in. If you have, the documentary adds fascinating context to every shrieking violin note.

Psycho - BBC Four, 9:40pm

Psycho

Hitchcock's 1960 horror masterpiece. Janet Leigh, Anthony Perkins, the Bates Motel, that shower scene. Still genuinely unsettling after 65 years. The black-and-white cinematography, Bernard Herrmann's score, Perkins' twitchy performance - it all holds up brilliantly.

The Death of Bunny Munro - Sky Atlantic, 9pm

The Death of Bunny Munro

"I'm having a bit of a time of it," confesses Bunny, and for once the cocky travelling salesman isn't lying. He's broke, stranded, phoneless - and he abandoned his kid at the pub hours ago.

If you've been following this adaptation of Nick Cave's unsettling novel, you know things can always get worse. They do.

Late Night: For Night Owls (10pm onwards)

Saving Lives at Sea - BBC Two, 9:45pm

RNLI crews tackling real-life emergencies around Britain's coast. Reliable, occasionally harrowing documentary fare.

BBC News at Ten - BBC One, 10pm

The day's headlines. Reliable if you've avoided news all evening.

If You're Not Into Drama

Celebrity MasterChef - BBC Two Wales, 9pm

If you're in Wales, you get cooking competition instead of Orkney murder. Famous faces, ticking clocks, John Torode looking concerned.

The Viewing Schedule Table

Time Channel Programme
6:30pm Sky Sports Darts: World Championship
7:30pm ITV1 Super-Agers: Wisdom at 90+
8:00pm Channel 4 Dispatches: Prince v the Paper
8:00pm ITV1 Emmerdale
9:00pm BBC Two The Man in the Mask
9:00pm Channel 5 Play for Today: Special Measures
9:00pm BBC Four Talking Pictures: Psycho
9:00pm Sky Atlantic The Death of Bunny Munro
9:40pm BBC Four Psycho
9:45pm BBC Two Saving Lives at Sea

Final Verdict

Thursday's a corker. The Dispatches on Harry versus the Mail is timely viewing before January's court action, and BBC Four's Psycho double-bill is a treat for Hitchcock fans. If true crime's your thing, The Man in the Mask finally delivers its conclusion. And Luke Littler at Ally Pally is the sports event of the evening - even non-darts fans get swept up in the atmosphere. Strong night all round.

Nick Bain writes about television for TVRadar.co.uk