TV Guide UK Tonight: Mon 17 Aug 2026 – Buried with Michael Sheen, EastEnders & Long Lost Family

Monday 17 August 2026. BBC One brings in a whole new EastEnders family before Death in Paradise fills the 9pm slot. BBC Two stacks three quizzes back to back, then hands over to Michael Sheen’s chemical-dumping investigation. ITV1 checks back on two Long Lost Family searches, Channel 4 sends Martin and Roman Kemp deeper into Irish folklore before Celebrity Hunted, and More4 previews tomorrow’s PopMaster launch early.

Quick Picks: Tonight’s Best

• Buried with Michael Sheen ⭐ BBC Two, 9pm. Chemical dumping traced from South Wales to Alabama.
• EastEnders BBC One, 7:30pm. The Hawkins-Ropers land in Walford with a grudge.
• Long Lost Family ITV1, 9pm. Two searches revisited, years on.
• Martin and Roman’s Irish Road Trip Channel 4, 8pm. Tomb keys, a druid and straw wigs.
• Death in Paradise BBC One, 9pm. A bullet hole and a buried motive.

Early Evening

EastEnders – BBC One, 7:30pm

Nicola Mitchell’s birthday do for Kojo lands, unhelpfully, on the anniversary of her father’s death. The Hawkins-Ropers turn up first: Jamie Bamber and Patricia Potter lead a new clan carrying resentment and a secret or two. Between the party unravelling and the newcomers settling scores, Nicola ends up telling George more about her estrangement from her mother than planned. BBC iPlayer.

Mastermind, Only Connect & University Challenge – BBC Two, 7:30pm

A proper Monday triple bill. Clive Myrie’s specialist subjects range from Iron Maiden to Tintin, via Transport for London’s moquette and Paul Newman’s films. Victoria Coren Mitchell referees Accrual World against Knitwits, then Amol Rajan sends Bath up against City St George’s University to close the run. BBC iPlayer.

Child Maintenance: Parents under Pressure – Panorama – BBC One, 8pm

Krupa Padhy spends the hour with families let down by the child maintenance system, tracking how complaints get lost between agencies while bills keep arriving.

Martin and Roman’s Irish Road Trip – Channel 4, 8pm

Father and son keep picking through Ireland’s folklore, collecting the keys to a neolithic tomb in the Boyne Valley with strict instructions to knock four times first. There’s a druid’s sound bath that sends Martin straight to sleep while Roman sees the noises as shapes, a reportedly haunted house, and a mummers’ performance with straw wigs. Channel 4 streaming.

Prime Time

Buried with Michael Sheen – BBC Two, 9pm ⭐

The strongest hour of the night by some distance. Sheen picked this story up years ago after speaking to Douglas Gowan, a dying whistleblower who alleged that an American chemical firm had dumped huge quantities of banned PCBs near communities across South Wales. Tonight he widens the net to 13 further sites, working with campaigners, podcasters and councillors, before flying to an Alabama town with a strikingly similar history. Unshowy, angry filmmaking. BBC One in Wales, BBC iPlayer.

Death in Paradise – BBC One, 9pm (10:40pm in Scotland)

A repeat from 2022, but a decent one. Marlon Pryce’s loyalties are tested when a face from his old life turns up implicated in the shooting of a reggae artist, caught at the scene carrying a gun. The victim’s got a bullet wound dead centre in the forehead, which on paper looks open-and-shut. It isn’t. BBC iPlayer.

Long Lost Family: Born without Trace – What Happened Next – ITV1, 9pm

Two follow-ups rather than fresh cases, and both land well. Susanne Barrow, found as a baby in an east London phone box, met her half-brother Brian back in 2024, and there’s fresh information since come to light. Tom Yeo, left at Reading station in 1965, made his own connections in 2022, in a way that mattered well beyond his own family. ITVX.

Celebrity Hunted – Channel 4, 9pm

Jen Brister and Laura Smyth’s version of a low profile involves checking into a York hotel and heading out for an ice cream, hardly master-class evasion. Scarlette and Stuart Douglas, by contrast, simply keep asking strangers for help, and it keeps paying off. Channel 4 streaming.

Celebrity PopMaster TV – More4, 9pm

Ken Bruce brings his radio quiz to the screen a day early, with a well-stocked panel: T’Pau’s Carol Decker, Deacon Blue’s Dougie Vipond, Patsy Kensit, Eternal’s Kéllé Bryan, and Happy Mondays’ Shaun Ryder, whose banter with bandmate Bez is worth tuning in for alone.

Late Night

Silent Witness – BBC Three, 10pm

A double-bill repeat from series eight, Tom Ward’s Dr Nikki Alexander working two hours of forensic drama for anyone not ready to call it a night.

Disclosure: Welcome to Glasgow – BBC Two, 11:05pm

Myles Bonnar tries to make sense of why crime and homelessness keep climbing in Glasgow. Scotland gets it earlier, on BBC One Scotland at 9pm.

Sport

Cardiff City host Wrexham in the Championship, kicking off at 8pm after coverage starts at 7pm on Sky Sports Main Event and Football. It’s the last fixture of the opening round for both sides. The Cincinnati Open runs on Sky Sports Tennis and Main Event from 4pm, returning on Main Event at 10:30pm. Baseball fans get Cincinnati Reds against St Louis Cardinals from 6:30pm, first pitch 6:40pm, on TNT Sports 1.

The Viewing Schedule

What’s On Streaming

• BBC iPlayer: EastEnders, quizzes, Panorama, Buried with Michael Sheen, Death in Paradise, Silent Witness, Disclosure
• ITVX: Long Lost Family
• Channel 4 streaming: Irish Road Trip, Celebrity Hunted, Celebrity PopMaster TV

Frequently Asked Questions

Is EastEnders on tonight (Monday 17 August 2026)?

Yes. EastEnders airs on BBC One at 7:30pm, introducing the Hawkins-Roper family as Nicola’s birthday party for Kojo forces old history into the open. Catch up on BBC iPlayer.

What time is Buried with Michael Sheen on and what’s it about?

Buried with Michael Sheen airs on BBC Two at 9pm (BBC One in Wales). It’s part one of two, with Sheen investigating chemical dumping in South Wales and a similar case in Alabama.

What channel is Death in Paradise on tonight?

Death in Paradise is on BBC One at 9pm (10:40pm in Scotland), showing a 2022 episode involving a shooting linked to a reggae artist.

What live sport is on TV tonight (Monday 17 August 2026)?

Cardiff City host Wrexham in the Championship from 7pm, kick-off 8pm, on Sky Sports Main Event and Football. The Cincinnati Open runs on Sky Sports Tennis and Main Event from 4pm, and baseball’s Cincinnati Reds face St Louis Cardinals from 6:30pm on TNT Sports 1.

What’s the best thing to watch on TV tonight (Monday 17 August 2026)?

Buried with Michael Sheen on BBC Two at 9pm, a chemical-dumping investigation. EastEnders’ new arrivals and Long Lost Family’s follow-up cases on ITV1 are the other strong choices.

Final Verdict

Monday 17 August belongs to Buried with Michael Sheen ⭐, an angry, patient piece of journalism that finds an Alabama parallel for a South Wales scandal. EastEnders gives the Hawkins-Ropers a strong opening chapter, and Long Lost Family‘s two follow-ups are worth the hour alone. BBC Two’s quiz run makes solid company beforehand, and Death in Paradise suits anyone after an easier watch.

Related: What’s On TV Tonight Monday | What’s On TV Tonight Sunday | What’s On TV Tonight Tuesday