What to watch on TV this week from The Chair to The Walking Dead

It’s all about dark dramas this week (Picture: Metro.co.uk/ Hulu/ Thierry Valletoux/ AMC)

If you’re feeling miserable about the rather unseasonable weather outside, why not make the most of it by holing up indoors with a brand new box set.

In the spirit of embracing the doom and gloom, this week’s watch list is heading into noir territory with French crime thrillers and psychological dramas.

Not dark enough? The Walking Dead is back with plenty of zombie-smashing, dystopian survival and its standard levels of gruesome violence.

And if all of that is just too much, Sandra Oh will get you smiling again in slick comedy The Chair.

Hulu

Nine Perfect Strangers

Nicole Kidman stars as the mysterious wellness guru Masha (Picture: Vince Valitutti/Hulu)

Nicole Kidman turns up her speciality in glacial otherworldliness to the max in this stylish psychological drama, based on a book by Liane Moriarty, set in an Australian wellness retreat.

She stars as health guru Masha, who promises to ‘fix’ the broken guests – played by the likes of Melissa McCarthy, Luke Evans and Regina Hall – who arrive anticipating a touch of aromatherapeutic escapism.

But Masha’s ideas are more radical than scent diffusers.

First three episodes Friday, then weekly.

Netflix

The Chair

Sandra Oh is at full throttle in The Chair (Picture: Eliza Morse/ Netflix)

Sandra Oh at full throttle is a sight to behold and she’s on top form in this look at the sexist world of snooty old-school academia.

Oh plays Dr Ji-Yoon Kim, an academic who soon discovers that her new job as chair of the English department at fancy Pembroke University has left her holding a poisoned chalice.

That could be the set-up for a dark drama but here, with six episodes clocking in at 30 minutes each, it’s a short, sharp, comedic treat. Jay Duplass co-stars as the good doctor’s shambolic love interest.

Available Friday.

Disney+

The Walking Dead

The Walking Dead is back and as gory as ever (Picture: Josh Stringer/AMC)

When it comes to illustrating the law of diminishing returns – and diminishing TV ratings – The Walking Dead is an object lesson in not quitting while you’re ahead.

But, given that we were obsessed with the zombie dystopia for a good six, maybe seven, seasons, it will be hard to resist checking in for its final run (the 11th instalment) when it kicks off and all will (probably not be) revealed.

Norman Reedus as cool biker Daryl, who has somehow survived a million near-death experiences since season one, is always good value.

Episode one next Monday.

Walter Presents

The Crimson Rivers

The French crime thriller’s second series is here (Picture: Thierry Valletoux)

The dead body of a priest, found naked and crucified, starts this French crime thriller’s second series in which raddled cops Camille and Pierre (Erika Sainte and Olivier Marchal) investigate.

It’s like an extreme Midsomer Murders.

Available Friday.

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