Champions League night brings three English clubs into action, but if football’s not your thing, there’s plenty to choose from. Dawn French continues her insurance fraud caper, Leonard finds himself in a locked-room mystery after one too many drinks, and The Repair Shop celebrates nearly a decade of tearful reunions with restored treasures.
Quick Picks: Tonight’s Best
- Can You Keep a Secret? – BBC One, 9pm – Dawn French and Mandip Gill play amateur detectives
- Grantchester – ITV1, 9pm – Leonard wakes up next to a dead body
- Champions League – TNT Sports, 7:30pm – Liverpool, Chelsea and Newcastle all in action
- The Repair Shop – BBC One, 8pm – A vintage salon hair dryer gets the treatment
Early Evening (7pm – 8pm)
EastEnders – BBC One, 7:30pm
Wednesday’s instalment from Albert Square. Available on iPlayer from 6am if you can’t wait for the evening broadcast.
Prime Time (8pm onwards)
The Repair Shop – BBC One, 8pm
The barn doors have been opening for nearly ten years now, and the moment when someone sees their cherished possession lovingly restored remains genuinely affecting. Some dismiss it as sentimental, but the stories behind these objects and what they represent to their owners keep most viewers coming back.
Tonight brings an eclectic mix. A 1970s salon hair dryer arrives – the kind with the domed hood – once used by three sisters who ran a hairdressing business together. Health and safety would have a fit these days, but it holds decades of memories. There’s also a tattered flag from an Ireland versus England rugby match in 1936, a set of intricately carved wooden figures depicting Nigerian village life, and a battered leather cornet case. Watching Will Kirk, Dominic Chinea and the team apply their skills using traditional techniques remains both calming and remarkable. What continues to impress is how they never seem to overcook the restoration.
Digging for Britain – BBC Two, 8pm
Some seeds that look remarkably like mouse droppings might not excite most people, but for archaeologists working near Hull, they’re evidence of a thousand-year-old malthouse on the estate of England’s last Anglo-Saxon king. Alice Roberts is in her element as teams uncover Pictish artefacts in Fife – spear tips and decorative dress pins that offer rare glimpses into daily life before the fourth century. The programme also visits Lindores Abbey, where evidence of 14th-century whisky production has emerged.
Landscape Artist of the Year – Sky Arts, 8pm
The travelling art competition pitches up at Dover this week, with easels and canvases arranged on grassy fields overlooking the harbour. Artists arrive with wildly different equipment – cardboard viewfinders, strips of cloth, marbling ink, fluorescent paints. Stephen Mangan even has a go with one contestant’s tufting gun, with predictably mixed results. The location offers both natural beauty and industrial heritage, and the programme continues its gentle encouragement to simply go outside and appreciate what’s around you.
Coronation Street – ITV1, 8:30pm
Billy Mayhew’s funeral takes place, marking the end of more than a decade of the archdeacon presiding over Weatherfield’s send-offs. Bishop Greg steps in for the ceremony. Todd finds himself too emotional to deliver his ex-partner’s eulogy, leaving his current boyfriend to awkwardly fill in. Meanwhile, Theo grows increasingly nervous – he’s responsible for Billy’s death after leaving him in that exploding minibus during the Corriedale crossover. Someone on the street might know his secret.
Can You Keep a Secret? – BBC One, 9pm ⭐
Your pick of the evening. Now that Neha has fully committed to Debbie’s plan to fake her death and claim on the life insurance, the pair turn detective. They’re trying to identify who’s blackmailing them, though their investigation methods are somewhat amateur – they’re working on a child’s mini easel. Debbie’s confident she’ll be Cagney to Neha’s Hutch, but the reality is more Inspector Clouseau than Columbo.
William isn’t helping matters. He’s sneaking out again, this time in an elaborate disguise to avoid being spotted. Mark Heap gets to do what he does best – increasingly unhinged character comedy that somehow stays just the right side of ridiculous. Dawn French and Mandip Gill have genuine chemistry as the mismatched conspirators.
Grantchester – ITV1, 9pm
Leonard’s drinking has been causing concern for weeks, but tonight it catches up with him properly. After throwing a port and lemon in a police officer’s face, he spends the night in a cell. The problem is, when he wakes up, there’s a dead body next to him.
Alphy and Geordie attempt to work out what happened while Leonard is forced to examine the grief that’s been eating away at him since his father died. The alcohol has become a crutch, and it’s beginning to strain the patience of everyone who cares about him. A locked-room mystery provides the framework, but this is really about a man confronting his pain.
Patience – Channel 4, 9pm
A monk is discovered dead at a monastery altar, killed by a single wound from a candle spike. DI Monroe and Patience begin unpicking his past, revealing a history of violence and poor relationships with fellow monks. Jessica Hynes and Ella Maisy Purvis continue to build their unlikely partnership. Particularly charming this week is Patience realising she might have made a mistake ending things with “soco boy” – her hesitant exploration of those feelings is beautifully played.
Black Ops – BBC One, 9:30pm
Dom and Kay have finally tracked down Steve – the man who conned them into giving up MI5 secrets. The challenge now is bringing him in without him doing a runner. Dom favours gaffer tape and brute force. Kay, being the more spiritual and rule-following of the pair, suggests calling 101 and waiting with Steve until help arrives. Their actual approach descends into farce when they’re caught in Steve’s flat and have to pretend to be his flatmates. The highlight is Dom’s impersonation of an African church recruiter to throw off a suspicious neighbour.
Smiley’s People – BBC Four, 10pm
Double bill of the 1982 John le Carré adaptation starring Alec Guinness. These middle episodes distinguish the sequel from Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy – where that series showed Smiley piecing together a compromised system, here he’s more proactive, pursuing a personal vendetta against his Soviet nemesis Karla. Tonight finds him searching for Russians who might be useful to his mission, before events in Hamburg create problems with his own superiors.
Sport
Champions League: Final league-phase matches with three English sides in action. Liverpool v Qarabag at 7:30pm on TNT Sports 2 (kick-off 8pm) – the Reds look to finish top. Napoli v Chelsea at 7:30pm on TNT Sports 4 – crucial for the Blues’ knockout hopes. PSG v Newcastle at 7:30pm on TNT Sports 3 – the Magpies in Paris. Tennis: Australian Open quarter-finals from 7am on TNT Sports. Cricket: India v New Zealand T20 at 1:15pm on TNT Sports 1.
The Viewing Schedule
| Time | Channel | Programme |
|---|---|---|
| 7:30pm | BBC One | EastEnders |
| 7:30pm | TNT Sports | Champions League |
| 8:00pm | BBC One | The Repair Shop |
| 8:00pm | BBC Two | Digging for Britain |
| 8:00pm | Sky Arts | Landscape Artist of the Year |
| 8:00pm | Channel 4 | Kirstie and Phil’s Love It or List It |
| 8:30pm | ITV1 | Coronation Street |
| 9:00pm | BBC One | Can You Keep a Secret? |
| 9:00pm | ITV1 | Grantchester |
| 9:00pm | Channel 4 | Patience |
| 9:00pm | BBC Two | Cold Case Investigators |
| 9:00pm | Sky Witness | Matlock |
| 9:30pm | BBC One | Black Ops |
| 10:00pm | BBC Four | Smiley’s People |
What’s On Streaming
BBC iPlayer: Can You Keep a Secret? (full series), Black Ops (full series), The Repair Shop, Digging for Britain, EastEnders, Smiley’s People
ITVX: Grantchester (full series), Coronation Street
Channel 4 streaming: Patience (full series), Kirstie and Phil’s Love It or List It
Now: Matlock, Landscape Artist of the Year, Champions League
Frequently Asked Questions
What time is Can You Keep a Secret? on TV tonight?
Can You Keep a Secret? is on BBC One at 9pm tonight (Wednesday 28th January 2026). Dawn French and Mandip Gill continue their insurance fraud investigation.
What’s the best thing to watch on TV tonight?
Our top pick is Can You Keep a Secret? on BBC One at 9pm – Dawn French is on fine form as a woman faking her own death, with Mark Heap stealing scenes in increasingly bizarre disguises.
Is EastEnders on TV tonight?
Yes, EastEnders is on BBC One at 7:30pm tonight (Wednesday 28th January 2026). Episodes are also available on BBC iPlayer from 6am.
What Champions League football is on tonight?
Three matches tonight on TNT Sports: Liverpool v Qarabag (TNT Sports 2), PSG v Newcastle (TNT Sports 3), and Napoli v Chelsea (TNT Sports 4), all kicking off at 8pm.
What time is Grantchester on tonight?
Grantchester is on ITV1 at 9pm tonight, featuring Leonard at the centre of a locked-room mystery after spending the night in a police cell.
Final Verdict
Can You Keep a Secret? takes tonight’s top spot – Dawn French is having a ball and Mark Heap’s disguises are worth the admission alone. Football fans are spoilt with three Champions League games. And if you want something more cerebral, Smiley’s People on BBC Four remains one of the finest le Carré adaptations ever made.
