TV Guide UK Tonight: Thurs 10 Sept 2026 – The Paper, Ludwig & Taskmaster

Published: 2 September 2026

Thursday 10 September 2026. BBC One‘s biggest night isn’t actually home-grown: The Paper, the US Office spin-off, returns to Sky One at 9pm with a double-episode season opener that will be the thing everyone’s talking about tomorrow. David Mitchell’s Ludwig is right up against it on BBC One at the same time, and ITV1 sends a long-absent face back to Weatherfield as Coronation Street brings in Doug. Channel 4‘s Taskmaster has Richard Ayoade wrestling a historic tower and a tin of beans. EastEnders is on as usual at 7.30pm.

Quick Picks: Tonight’s Best

• The Paper Sky One, 9pm. Season two opener, two episodes, streaming on NOW.
• Ludwig BBC One, 9pm. A dead snooker star and a rival with too much to hide.
• Coronation Street ITV1, 8.30pm. Doug arrives after six months away.
• Taskmaster Channel 4, 9pm. Richard Ayoade v a historic tower and a tin of beans.
• EastEnders is on tonight — BBC One, 7.30pm, as usual.

Early Evening

EastEnders – BBC One, 7.30pm

Alfie’s on a mission to smooth things over between Kat and Zoe tonight, in the wreckage left by Max and Cindy’s wedding earlier in the week. It’s the sort of patch-up job nobody in Walford manages first time, and Alfie’s optimism has never been a great match for how quickly Square feuds actually heal. Expect at least one attempt to go sideways before the credits.

Today at the Test – BBC Two, 7pm

The day’s highlights package from Edgbaston, where England and Pakistan are through day two of the third and final Test with the series still to be settled. Play ran 11am to 6pm, and this is the hour-long version for anyone who couldn’t sit through it live. BBC Two at 7pm.

Dragons’ Den – BBC One, 8pm

A finger-golf game gets a distinctly unenthusiastic reception before somebody blinks and makes an offer anyway, and a tinned seafood range, caught locally and pitched at the premium end, leaves Deborah Meaden with nothing to say: she’s plant-based, and tells them so outright rather than sit through a pitch she’ll never back. A pitch for ethically made, living-wage clothing fares much better.

The Big Deal with Steph McGovern – BBC Two, 8pm

Semi-final week, and the surviving art dealers spend three days aboard the Queen Anne, buying in stock to furnish a newly built cabaret bar on board, a strange brief that rewards whoever can read a cruise crowd better than the competition.

Emmerdale – ITV1, 8pm

Charity hands Mack a task that’s clearly designed to test his loyalty, in the village’s usual Thursday slot ahead of Coronation Street.

Coronation Street – ITV1, 8.30pm

Steve Evets arrives on the cobbles as Doug, the Ramseys’ estranged patriarch, back after six months in a psychiatric unit and clearly carrying enough baggage to fill several episodes. Bethany, meanwhile, keeps needling Jodie about her motives, unaware she might be circling the very secret that would give her the upper hand.

The Yorkshire Vet – Channel 5, 8pm

Peter Wright is asked to take another look at a spaniel someone else has already treated, Rohin gets called out to a newborn calf that needs rescuing, and Julian has a pair of sheep to deal with. Gentle, unhurried and exactly what an 8pm slot on Channel 5 is built for.

Bangers and Cash – U&Yesterday, 8pm

Derek Mathewson heads to Southwold in Suffolk this week, chasing down a promising Hillman Avenger for the next sale. Thirteen series in, this classic-car staple still hasn’t run out of odd, lovable machines to put under the hammer.

Prime Time

The Paper – Sky One, 9pm ⭐

This is the one everybody will be discussing at work tomorrow. The Office spin-off machine finally lands somewhere properly interesting: a real, ailing local newspaper, the Toledo Truth-Teller, where Domhnall Gleeson’s shambolic editor Ned is trying to talk unpaid volunteers into producing actual journalism because print media barely pays for itself any more, let alone its staff. It’s a mockumentary conceit that shouldn’t still work a decade after The Office US finished, and somehow does.

Season two opens with two episodes back to back, and both are preoccupied with the will-they-won’t-they between Ned and top reporter Mare, left hanging at the end of series one. Whether they’re heading for a happy ending or a slow-motion disaster is genuinely unclear, which is rarer than it should be in a show this openly built on Office DNA. Ned spends the opener working out how to ask his boss Marv for a bigger budget, before the two of them give the documentary crew the slip entirely — a small rebellion against the format that suggests the writers know exactly what they’re playing with. On NOW.

Ludwig – BBC One, 9pm

A star snooker player is dead, and John’s eureka moment arrives fast: a pamphlet of trick shots convinces him elaborate murder plots and elaborate snooker breaks need exactly the same things: groundwork, an impossible-looking setup and a finish nobody sees coming. He’s fixed on the victim’s long-time rival, played with a brilliant sheen of smugness by Stephen Merchant, and proving it means picking apart a feud that’s been simmering for decades. David Mitchell keeps John endearingly out of his depth even as sister-in-law Lucy edges closer to real danger. The series and episode number weren’t confirmed ahead of broadcast, but nobody watching for the plotting will mind.

Taskmaster – Channel 4, 9pm

Richard Ayoade does something almost un-Taskmaster-ish this week and somehow ends up looking like the smartest person in the building — twice — despite being handed nothing more sophisticated than an old tower and some tinned beans. David Mitchell has always sworn he’d never go on this show, on the grounds that it would puncture his reputation for being the brainy one; watching Ayoade thrive here, it’s easy to see why that fear is justified.

Long Lost Family – ITV1, 9pm

Two searches tonight, both siblings looking for sisters on behalf of their mothers. Michael made a promise to find the older sister his mother gave up as a young, unmarried woman; Melissa has known about hers since childhood, but her own mother’s early-onset Alzheimer’s has turned the search urgent. Davina McCall and Nicky Campbell’s steadiest format doesn’t need embellishing, and doesn’t get any.

The Great Plague: the Village That Saved Britain – Channel 5, 9pm

Ruth Goodman tells the story of Eyam, the Derbyshire village that sealed itself off in 1665 to stop the plague reaching Sheffield, Derby and Manchester. Two hundred and fifty-eight people died there over fourteen horrific months. It was a young parish priest’s decision, and by any reasonable estimate it saved tens of thousands of lives elsewhere. Not a cheerful hour, but it earns every minute of the retelling.

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid – BBC Four, 9pm

BBC Four‘s 1969 classic still holds up as one of the great double acts in American cinema, Paul Newman and Robert Redford outrunning a posse across a western that spends more time being funny than being tense. William Goldman’s script won an Oscar after several studios passed on it, and Conrad Hall’s cinematography earned one too, despite Hall reportedly walking off set at one point because Utah dust kept ruining his equipment. Redford fell hard enough for the state to buy land there and later founded the Sundance Institute, which is still backing new film-makers now. A Talking Pictures profile of Redford follows at 10.45pm.

Sandi’s Ireland: a Literary Journey – More4, 9pm

More4 closes out Sandi Toksvig’s tour of Ireland’s literary heritage with a stop at a bookshop specialising in rare Irish first editions — Joyce, Yeats, Wilde, Beckett — and, remarkably, no purchase. She also makes the case for reading Dickens aloud, wandering the streets, bars and countryside that shaped the writers she’s been chasing all series.

Hit Point – U&Dave, 9pm

Dave has the full run of this new drama, and tonight sinister Pascal leans hard on his nephew Lucas — “all I do is for you, your future” — while conveniently skipping the part where his help tends to end with somebody on a mortuary slab. Carter, meanwhile, tries to talk his way out of the plan entirely, telling Leo he’s out with all the confidence of an investor who’s just realised what he’s bought into.

Digging for Britain – BBC Two, 9pm

Alice Roberts is back with an Iron Age hillfort dig in Norfolk and a community excavation in Lincolnshire, the usual mix of proper archaeology and the enthusiasm of people who’ve clearly been waiting all year to get their hands dirty again.

Late Night

Robert Redford: Talking Pictures – BBC Four, 10.45pm

A short profile following straight on from Butch Cassidy, and a decent enough excuse to stay up if you’ve just watched him and Newman outrun a posse for two hours.

8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown – Channel 4, 10pm

Jimmy Carr’s numbers-and-letters spin-off, which remains funnier than any format built around a maths round has any right to be.

Match of the Day: UEFA Champions League Highlights – BBC One, 10.40pm

League-phase Champions League matches are live on TNT Sports this evening; BBC One picks up the highlights package once the news bulletins are done, so this is the place to catch the goals without committing to a full night in front of the football.

A View to a Kill – ITV1, 10.45pm

Roger Moore’s last outing as Bond, chasing a megalomaniac tech tycoon played by Christopher Walken with Grace Jones on backup. It’s not the sharpest entry in the franchise, but it’s a fine way to see out a Thursday night.

Sport

England are into day two of the third and final Test against Pakistan at Edgbaston with the series still to be settled, with live coverage on Sky Sports Cricket and Sky Sports Main Event from around 10.15am and play running roughly 11am to 6pm; BBC Two’s Today at the Test packages the day into an hour at 7pm. The US Open women’s semi-finals are live on Sky Sports Tennis and Sky Sports Main Event from 5pm, with a night session running into the early hours, so check listings nearer the time for exactly which match falls when. League-phase Champions League matches are also live on TNT Sports this evening, feeding into BBC One’s Match of the Day-style highlights at 10.40pm.

The Viewing Schedule

What’s On Streaming

• BBC iPlayer: EastEnders, Dragons’ Den, Ludwig, The Big Deal with Steph McGovern, Digging for Britain, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
• NOW: The Paper
• ITVX: Emmerdale, Coronation Street, Long Lost Family, A View to a Kill
• Channel 4 streaming: Taskmaster, 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown
• U: Hit Point, Bangers and Cash

Frequently Asked Questions

Is EastEnders on tonight (Thursday 10 September 2026)?

Yes. EastEnders airs on BBC One at 7.30pm as usual. Alfie tries to broker peace between Kat and Zoe, in the fallout from Max and Cindy’s wedding earlier in the week.

What time is The Paper on tonight?

The Paper returns to Sky One at 9pm with two episodes back to back, taking it through to around 10.10pm. It’s streaming on NOW too.

What time is Ludwig on tonight?

Ludwig is on BBC One at 9pm. John investigates the death of a star snooker player and fixes on the victim’s long-time rival, played by Stephen Merchant.

What’s the best thing to watch on TV tonight (Thursday 10 September 2026)?

The Paper on Sky One at 9pm is the pick if you want the show everyone will be discussing tomorrow. Ludwig on BBC One in the same slot is the stronger option if you want a proper puzzle to follow.

What live sport is on TV tonight: Thursday 10 September 2026?

England v Pakistan’s third Test continues at Edgbaston, live on Sky Sports Cricket and Sky Sports Main Event from around 10.15am, with BBC Two’s Today at the Test highlights at 7pm. The US Open women’s semi-finals are live on Sky Sports Tennis from 5pm. League-phase Champions League matches are on TNT Sports this evening.

What’s on BBC One tonight?

BBC One has EastEnders at 7.30pm, Dragons’ Den at 8pm and Ludwig at 9pm, followed by Champions League highlights at 10.40pm.

Who plays Doug in Coronation Street?

Steve Evets, known for Brassic, plays Doug, the Ramseys’ estranged patriarch, who arrives on the cobbles tonight after six months in a psychiatric unit. Coronation Street is on ITV1 at 8.30pm.

What channel is Taskmaster on?

Taskmaster is on Channel 4 at 9pm. This week Richard Ayoade is set loose on an old tower and a tin of beans.

What time is Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid on TV?

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid is on BBC Four at 9pm, followed by a Talking Pictures profile of Robert Redford at 10.45pm.

Final Verdict

The Paper is the night’s genuine event, a season opener good enough to justify the hype, and two episodes to get properly stuck into. Ludwig gives it a real fight in the same slot, with a snooker-murder hook clever enough to carry the series on its own. On ITV1, Coronation Street brings in Steve Evets as Doug for what looks like a proper slow-burn storyline, and Taskmaster is as reliably funny as ever. If you want something heavier, The Great Plague: the Village That Saved Britain on Channel 5 is worth the hour. EastEnders is on as usual at 7.30pm.

Related: What’s On TV Tonight Thursday | What’s On TV Tonight Wed 9 Sept 2026 | What’s On TV Tonight Friday