TV tonight: an accident-prone infant stirs up horror and black comedy

Phil Harrison, Graeme Virtue, Ali Catterall, Henry Wong and Stuart Heritage
·3 min read

The Baby

9pm, Sky Atlantic

This oddball new series plays out as an intriguing if muddled mixture of horror and black comedy. Michelle De Swarte stars as Natasha, a commitment-phobic 38-year-old still hanging on to the remnants of hedonistic youth as her friends start embarking on family life. And then, something strange happens: a terrifyingly accident-prone baby insinuates itself insistently into her life. At this point, it’s hard to know where this might be going but it’s singular enough to be worth a second look. Phil Harrison

Sarah Beeney’s Little House, Big Plans

8pm, Channel 4

More Tardis-style design ideas from Beeney and architect Damion Burrows as they nose around property projects striving to do more with less. This week the main focus is on Becca and Dan’s railway cottage near Cardiff: can they turn it into a grand open-plan home before baby No 2 arrives? Graeme Virtue

Million Pound Pawn

9pm, ITV

The investigation into the incredibly lucrative pawnbroking business continues. Tonight Dan heads to Wales to meet Big Bertha, a 10-year-old eventing mare; while in the Cotswolds, art lover Alfred thinks he might be harbouring a fortune. Ali Catterall

The Undeclared War

9pm, Channel 4

Peter Kosminsky’s gift for urgent dramas about big issues finds perfect expression in this thriller about cyber warfare – arguably the most clear and present battle of our era. Tonight, Hannah Khalique-Brown’s Saara finds a piece of encrypted code that could have terrifying consequences. A physical rendezvous is necessary – but is she walking into a trap? PH

The Midwich Cuckoos

10pm, Sky Max

Kids grow up so fast these days, especially when they are a creepy alien hive mind with ominous intentions. As the adaptation of John Wyndham’s sci-fi fable reaches its penultimate episode, the Midwich kids suddenly seem keen to leave the village. GV

The Toys That Built the World

10pm, Sky History

War! What is it good for? The toy industry, apparently. This new series on landmark designs kicks off with two toys invented in wartime. One engineer trying to protect sensitive naval equipment develops a spring that can slink down stairs. Meanwhile, a wartime effort to reproduce rubber results in a gooier invention: Silly Putty. Henry Wong

Film choice

Nicole Kidman and Matt Dillon in To Die For. They are on a bed, both clothed, she sits astride him.
Murder in mind … Nicole Kidman and Matt Dillon in To Die For. Photograph: Maximum Film/Alamy

To Die For (Gus Van Sant, 1995) 12.55am, Talking Pictures TV
Gus Van Sant’s dark 1995 comedy remains remarkable, not just for its star-making abilities – Nicole Kidman and Joaquin Phoenix were both relatively unknown when it was made – but because of how neatly it predicted the age of social media. Kidman plays Suzanne Stone, a woman who – thanks to her desire for fame at any cost – seduces some teenagers and convinces them to murder her husband. Her character drips with such narcissism you can’t help but feel she would be massive on TikTok these days. The best, and most beguiling, role of Kidman’s career. Stuart Heritage

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