Five Things To Watch This March
Your small screen highlights for this month
This month, our multiple channels and streaming services are serving up an embarrassment of riches. From the return of everyone’s favourite bodice-ripper to a supernatural twist on the classic murder mystery and a new French comedy drama to fall in love with. Meanwhile, our obsession with the art of the scam continues; with Hulu’s much anticipated dramatisation of the Elizabeth Holmes Theranos scandal to the lesser-known – but no less mad- story of what happened to raw food pioneer Sarma Melngailis. Trust us, you will want to tune in.
Here’s our essential watch list for the month ahead…
The Rising
The first series to be made entirely in house by Sky Studios, this is a gripping and supernatural take on the crime drama in which the victim joins the search for her own killer. Adapted from the Belgian crime thriller Hotel Beau Sejour, The Rising sees young woman Neve Kelly rise from the water of a lake, only to realise she has been murdered and, as becomes increasingly clear; by someone she knows in her tight-knit local community. The eight-part drama is a tightly made, creeping mystery, which trades on its superb central conceit and remote lakeside setting to provide some seriously atmospheric chills, reminiscent of Jane Campion’s award-winning Top of the Lake.
The Rising begins streaming on NowTV on 18 March.
Bridgerton
Unless you have been living under a rock for the last year, you will not have escaped the news that is spreading across the ‘ton… Netflix’s second most streamed show of all time (pipped to the post by the compulsive Squid Game in 2021) is returning. Whilst many are still recovering from news that the Duke of spoon licking himself, Regé-Jean Page will not be reprising his role, there is more than enough intrigue in store for season two; from the unveiling of Lady Whistledown to a new romantic lead in the form of Kate Sharma, played by Simone Ashley. Taking its direct cues from Julia Quinn’s novels, the next instalment of Bridgerton will focus on Daphne’s brother Anthony (Jonathan Bailey) and his search for love. Expect a quippy enemies turned lovers arc which will no doubt be as captivating as the first season’s pastel-hued bodice ripping.
Bridgerton Season 2 begins streaming on Netflix on 25 March.
Bad Vegan
Following the vogue for true crime shows about mysterious scam artists is this compelling four-part drama about the unbelievable Sarma Melngailis saga. What begins as a fairly formulaic tale of the woman behind New York’s first blockbuster vegan raw restaurants, Pure Food and Wine and One Lucky Duck, soon descends into the jaw-dropping account of how Melngailis became a fugitive; involved with a man who had promised her (and her dog) eternal life. To explain more would be to give away much of this show’s enthralling, escalating madness, which must be seen to be believed.
Bad Vegan begins streaming on Netflix on 18 March.
The Dropout
With impeccable timing, Hulu miniseries focusing on the fall of Theranos, begins airing just as its controversial real-life protagonist, Elizabeth Holmes, begins to appeals her conviction for fraud. A perfectly cast Amanda Seyfried portrays disgraced founder (and eponymous Stanford ‘dropout’) Holmes, fully embodying her black-polo, red lip getup and distinctive baritone, in one of her most captivating performances to date. Seyfried leads a stellar cast including William H. Macy, Laurie Metcalf and Stephen Fry in this brilliant take on one of recent histories most audacious scams. This is Fyre festival with the nuances and tragedies of medicine, the buzz of Silicon Valley and an alluring, maddening anti-heroine at its core.
The Dropout begins streaming on Disney + on 3 March.
Standing Up
For anyone with a Call my Agent, French Netflix drama hole in their lives, Standing Up is here to help. This quirky, charming tale of struggling stand-up comedians in Paris is, in fact, created by the same team that brought you Call My Agent, and is an utter delight from start to finish. Like its predecessor, it is warm, witty and frequently emotionally devastating. Full of human spirit, biting humour and spot-on observations, this is a joyous binge watch.
Standing Up begins streaming on Netflix on 18 March.
Written by Marie-Claire Chappet for Harpers Bazaar UK