What to Watch: Mix Tape, Ocean With David Attenborough, Play School, Fubar and The Inspired Unemployed

Mix Tape

Thursday, streaming on Foxtel and Binge

Binge is fast carving a place for itself as the go-to for reliably excellent locally produced series. This is a good thing: they recently lost their HBO slate to new streaming rival Max, so investing locally is probably a solid strategy going forward.

In recent years Binge has given us some ripper series, including The Twelve, Love Me and Colin From Accounts. Now they’re blessing us with this great four-part drama, based on the acclaimed novel by Jane Sanderson.

Told through dual timelines, it charts the teen love story of school friends Alison and Daniel (Florence Hunt and Rory Walton-Smith), living in Sheffield, England, in 1989, who fall in love and exchange mix tapes, which provide the musical backdrop to this beautifully realised series.

Alison and Daniel’s story picks up again in 2015, and by this stage the pair (now played by Teresa Palmer and Jim Sturgess) are long estranged, and living very different lives to their teen selves. Daniel is a music critic, still living in his hometown, and Alison is on the other side of the world in Sydney, the wife of an accomplished surgeon (played by Ben Lawson) — neither is wholly satisfied with where they’ve landed.

They reconnect again, once more through music, and their stories pick up where they left off. But there’s been a whole life lived between the stories, and the series asks whether lost love can ever really be reclaimed, and whether “the road not taken” really is the better one.

This is beautifully shot, with a great script and superb performances, especially from Bridgerton’s Hunt and newcomer Walton-Smith, who infuse their portrayals with just the right amount of teen intensity and crackling tension.

I adored this sweetly nostalgic series. You won’t want to miss it.

Ocean With David Attenborough

Sunday, streaming on Disney Plus

“If we save the sea, we save our world,” says David Attenborough in the trailer for his latest landmark documentary special, which highlights the importance of the world’s vast oceans and the part we all have to play in ensuring they remain healthy and viable. It’s a marvel that Attenborough, now aged 99, is still involving himself with these types of programs. How blessed we are to still be hearing his voice. A cinematic journey into the deep.

The Inspired Unemployed (Impractical) Jokers

Monday, 9.40pm, Ten

This one’s for all of you with teen boys at home: chances are they’ll be tuning in to the new season, which sees the four mates up to their old tricks, thriving in the chaos they create through their attempts to one-up each other in the embarrassment stakes. Real talk: this show is not for everyone, but if you like puerile humour and rapscallion hijinks (see also: teenage boys), then you’re in the right place. Not for the faint of heart.

Play School — My Place My Home

Monday, 9am, ABC Kids

There’s something so wholesome about Play School — I miss the time I spent watching it daily with my little one. This week sees the start of a new spin-off, this one all about “the beauty and diversity of Australia”. Different places are explored through the premise that regular presenter Teo is off having adventures, posting back parcels and videos showcasing where he’s been. For curious little minds.

Fubar S2

Thursday, streaming on Netflix

He promised us he’d be back, and Arnold Schwarzenegger is nothing if not a man of his word. He’s returning for another season of his surprisingly funny comedy, which has him star as an ageing CIA operative who realises his daughter, played by Monica Barbaro, is also working for his organisation. For years they’ve both been living double lives, unaware of each other’s professions — great premise, no? This season they’re joined by The Matrix’s Carrie-Anne Moss. Count us in!