TV Guide UK Tonight: Thurs 4 Jun 2026 – Taskmaster, David Beckham: In Ten Pictures & The Hardacres

Published: 29 May 2026

Thursday 4 June 2026. A loaded 9pm again, but a fun one. Taskmaster is back on Channel 4 with a new line-up that includes Armando Iannucci, BBC Two has a proper look at David Beckham, and Channel 5’s Hardacres rolls on. Before that, MasterChef sends its last four into a Michelin-starred kitchen at 8pm, and EastEnders brings its big week to a close at 7:30pm. Plenty to juggle.

Quick Picks: Tonight’s Best

• Taskmaster ⭐ Channel 4, 9pm. New series. Armando Iannucci in the line-up. Always the funniest thing on.
• David Beckham: In Ten Pictures BBC Two, 9pm. Beckham’s life told through ten photos. Sharper than the usual celeb doc.
• MasterChef BBC One, 8pm. The final four cook at Opheem in Birmingham. One goes home.
• EastEnders BBC One, 7:30pm. The last night of “The Night That Changes Everything”. George makes his move.
• The Hardacres Channel 5, 9pm. Period drama, series two. Michele Dotrice as the new villain.
• Reported Missing BBC One, 9pm. Quietly gripping documentary on police search teams.

Sport

Men’s Test Cricket: England v New Zealand – Sky Sports Cricket, from 10am

Day one of the first Test against New Zealand at Lord’s, the start of a three-match series. If you can’t sit through a full day’s play, highlights are on BBC Two at 7pm. Subscription required for the live coverage.

Tennis: French Open – TNT Sports 1, from 10:30am

It’s women’s semi-finals day at Roland-Garros, with two spots in Saturday’s final on the line. Subscription required via TNT Sports.

Cycling: Women’s Giro d’Italia Stage 6 – TNT Sports 3, 2:30pm

A 159km stage from Ala to Brescello, one for the sprinters’ teams to control before the race hits the mountains. Subscription required.

Early Evening

Build Your Dream Home in the Country – Channel 5, 7pm

Mark Millar has watched a lot of self-builds, so when he raises an eyebrow at a plan, you pay attention. Tonight it’s retirees Allan and Alison, who’ve decided to build a house from scratch in the Lancashire countryside with no real experience between them. Allan, a former police officer, is project-managing; Alison has swapped teaching for designing the interiors. It starts well, with Allan’s fast-build method impressing everyone, and then, as these things do, the complications arrive and the deadline starts to slip. 5 streaming.

EastEnders – BBC One, 7:30pm

Yes, EastEnders is on tonight, and it’s the final instalment of “The Night That Changes Everything”, the week of episodes all set across one long night in Walford. Tonight the sun comes up and George Knight makes a decision for the good of his family, the kind that solves one problem and quietly creates several more. The week has been building to this, and the closing episode makes clear the hard part is only just starting for some of the Square’s residents. BBC iPlayer.

Prime Time

MasterChef – BBC One, 8pm

The last four amateurs get the toughest test yet: a real service at Aktar Islam’s two-Michelin-starred Opheem in Birmingham, working to a standard most home cooks never have to think about. Then it’s back to the MasterChef kitchen to take a classic dish and do something clever with it, the sort of round where playing it safe and overreaching are equally risky. Grace Dent and Anna Haugh send one cook home by the end, and on this form it’s genuinely hard to call. BBC iPlayer.

Emmerdale – ITV1, 8pm

Laurel Thomas (Charlotte Bellamy) finally allows herself a bit of happiness, setting her sights on Ross Barton, the village’s reliable source of trouble. The catch is that stepdaughter Gabby has feelings of her own about the same man, and what starts as a hopeful new chapter for Laurel curdles fairly quickly. ITVX.

David Beckham: In Ten Pictures – BBC Two, 9pm

There can’t be many lives more thoroughly documented than David Beckham’s, so the smart move here is the format. This entry in the A Life in Ten Pictures strand tells his story through ten photographs, and the constraint does it a favour: it forces the film to pick its moments rather than plod through the whole timeline.

You get the Manchester United kid, the free-kick against Greece that dragged England to the 2002 World Cup, and the long second act as a global brand, complete with the red cards, the haircuts and the carefully managed image. The contributors are a cut above the usual celebrity-doc talking heads, and even if you reckon you’ve had your fill of Beckham, there’s enough here to hold you. All episodes on BBC iPlayer.

Taskmaster ⭐ – Channel 4, 9pm

This is the one. A new series of Taskmaster with a line-up that includes Armando Iannucci is about as appealing as a Thursday night gets. The format hasn’t changed in years and doesn’t need to: five comedians, a set of deliberately daft and frequently impossible tasks set by Alex Horne, and Greg Davies handing out points and abuse from his big chair.

Watching someone as cerebral as Iannucci, the man behind The Thick of It and Veep, reduced to flapping over a task involving, say, a watermelon and a tape measure, is exactly the kind of levelling the show does so well. The genius of Taskmaster is that the cleverest person in the room is no safer than anyone else, and the failures are funnier than the wins. Channel 4 streaming.

The Hardacres – Channel 5, 9pm

Channel 5’s big, warm period drama is into its second series, and it’s settled into a groove. It’s 1895, electricity is creeping into Hardacre Hall, and the family are hoping to mark Sam’s (Liam McMahon) recovery before life gets in the way again. Standing in their way is Lady Imelda Hansen (Michele Dotrice), the new arrival determined to take them down a peg, while the slow-building romance between Edward (Niall McNamee) and Liza (Shannon Lavelle) deepens, much to the suspicion of Ma (Julie Graham). It’s unashamed Sunday-teatime comfort viewing that happens to land on a Thursday, and none the worse for it. The full series is on 5 streaming.

Reported Missing – BBC One, 9pm

A sobering statistic opens this one: someone is reported missing in the UK roughly every 90 seconds. The documentary follows police search teams through two cases tonight, a Chinese student who’s vanished in Edinburgh and a man hurt on a mountain hike in a vast, signal-free area near Glasgow. What stays with you isn’t the drama so much as the sheer effort and care the officers put into finding people. BBC iPlayer.

The Vardys – ITV1, 9pm

The Vardys’ Italian adventure carries on, and tonight life refuses to settle. Jamie’s new club are scrapping to avoid relegation, the family home is burgled, and the gloss of the relocation starts to wear thin. Whether you’re invested in Jamie and Rebekah or just watching out of curiosity, it’s a watchable look at a very public family trying to find their feet abroad. ITVX.

Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) – Rewind TV, 8pm

A treat for anyone who loves cult telly: Rewind TV is showing the late-1960s ITC detective series in which Marty Hopkirk (Kenneth Cope), killed in a hit-and-run, comes back as a ghost only his partner Jeff Randall (Mike Pratt) can see. The two of them then set about solving Marty’s own murder. With Annette Andre as Marty’s widow and that unmistakable harpsichord theme, it’s stylish, odd and a lot of fun. Freeview Play.

Late Night

Make That Movie – Channel 4, 10pm

Sam Campbell’s comedy is an acquired taste, but if you’re on its wavelength it’s one of the strangest, funniest things around. Built around a fictional reality show that turns absurd pitches into films, tonight’s first episode has Amy Gledhill as a teacher who falls in love with a bog body, followed by a second, sharper instalment featuring Lenny Rush. Full series on Channel 4 streaming.

The Viewing Schedule

What’s On Streaming

• Channel 4 streaming: Taskmaster, Make That Movie, George Clarke’s Beautiful Builds
• BBC iPlayer: David Beckham: In Ten Pictures (all episodes), MasterChef, EastEnders, Reported Missing
• 5 streaming: The Hardacres (full series), Build Your Dream Home in the Country, Cornwall: a Year by the Sea
• ITVX: The Vardys, Emmerdale
• Freeview Play: Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) on Rewind TV

Frequently Asked Questions

What time is Taskmaster on tonight?

Taskmaster is on Channel 4 at 9pm tonight (Thursday 4 June 2026). It’s a new series, with five contestants including Armando Iannucci attempting Alex Horne’s challenges to impress Greg Davies. Episodes are also on Channel 4 streaming.

Is EastEnders on Thursday 4 June 2026?

Yes. EastEnders is on BBC One at 7:30pm tonight, and it’s the final night of the soap’s “The Night That Changes Everything” run. George Knight makes a decision for the sake of his family as dawn breaks over Walford, with plenty of fallout still to come. Catch up via BBC iPlayer.

What is David Beckham: In Ten Pictures about?

It’s a BBC Two documentary at 9pm tonight, part of the A Life in Ten Pictures strand. The film tells David Beckham’s story through ten defining photographs, from his Manchester United breakthrough to the free-kick against Greece that sent England to the 2002 World Cup and his later life as a global celebrity. All episodes are on BBC iPlayer.

What time is MasterChef on tonight?

MasterChef is on BBC One at 8pm tonight. The four remaining amateur cooks cook a service at Aktar Islam’s two-Michelin-starred Opheem restaurant in Birmingham, then reinvent a classic dish back in the MasterChef kitchen. Judges Grace Dent and Anna Haugh send one cook home.

What’s the best thing to watch on TV tonight (Thursday 4 June 2026)?

Taskmaster’s new series on Channel 4 at 9pm. With Armando Iannucci in the line-up it’s an easy pick, and the format is still the funniest thing going. David Beckham: In Ten Pictures on BBC Two at 9pm is the night’s best documentary, MasterChef at 8pm on BBC One is genuinely tense, and EastEnders at 7:30pm closes a big week for the soap.

Final Verdict

Thursday is the most enjoyable night of the week so far. Taskmaster at 9pm on Channel 4 is the pick, and a series with Armando Iannucci in it is reason enough to set the series link. If you’d rather something with a bit more weight, David Beckham: In Ten Pictures on BBC Two at the same time is a smarter watch than another celebrity profile has any right to be. Earlier, MasterChef at 8pm on BBC One puts the final four through a proper Michelin-starred service, and EastEnders at 7:30pm wraps up its ambitious week. Set the recorder for the 9pm clash and enjoy the lot.

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