TV tonight: this heartwrenching drama about Indigenous child welfare will make you seethe with anger

48 minutes ago 3

Little Bird

9pm, Sky Atlantic
A drama with minimal dialogue that can still stir such deep outrage is proof of its power. But there is a guttural cry in this week’s double bill that, somehow, makes you even angrier about the Sixties Scoop – the period when Canada removed Indigenous children from their families. Patti Bird is fighting to get her kids back while, flashing forward 18 years, Esther confronts her adoptive mother. Hollie Richardson

The Great British Sewing Bee

8pm, BBC One
It’s music week and the wholesome sewing competition takes a risque turn, with a pattern challenge inspired by Madonna’s iconic cone bra. The material girls then need to get into teams to make outfits for pop groups, before creating a 70s disco-inspired outfit – which leads to lovely host Sophie Willan calling them her “Sewing Bee Gees”. HR

Saving Lives at Sea

8pm, BBC Two
Forget about the calming nature of the shipping forecast, this dramatic series continues to follow lifeboat rescuers. Filmed around the “graveyard of the North Sea”, where ships regularly run aground due to the dangerous sand banks, this week, with a storm approaching, a yacht capsizes leaving its four passengers missing in the water. Priya Elan

Celebrity MasterChef

9pm, BBC One
Judge Giorgio Locatelli has seen enough of the fumbling celebrities. He’s donning his whites and stepping into the arena in a new feature that involves the chef cooking a signature dish (this time, pappardelle with pea puree and a butter sauce) while the contenders try to keep up. Phil Harrison

Emergency 24/7

9pm, BBC Two
The immersive documentary, filmed at Southmead Hospital in Bristol, tracks a Tuesday afternoon that brings the A&E department two tricky patients: a man whose leg has been severed by a train; and another whose wound looks like a stabbing. It’s as much about teamwork and organisation as it is about medicine. Jack Seale

The Tudors with Rob Rinder and Ruth Goodman

9pm, Channel 5

It’s 1588: as the Spanish Armada speeds towards England to overthrow Elizabeth I, every male from seven to 60 nervously fingers their (mandatory) bow and arrows – and Blighty’s sailors prepare to repel boarders. Ruth and Rob compellingly relate the events. Plus, an important question: “I hate to ask,” says Ruth, “but where did the crew go to the toilet?” Ali Catterall

Film choice

Arthur the King (Simon Cellan Jones, 2024), 10.40pm, BBC One

A group of people running a marathon with a dog leading the way

Michael (Mark Wahlberg) used to be an adventure racer, competing in team endurance events that involve epic stretches of running, trekking, cycling and kayaking – but never won a contest. Irked by his failure, he comes out of retirement for the world championship in the Dominican Republic. As his ragtag group struggle through mud, forest and mountain, Michael realises they are being followed – and at times assisted – by a stray dog. Simon Cellan Jones’s fact-based adventure is Lassie-like in its dog-friendly emotional manipulation, but has plenty of rugged action for extreme sports fans. Simon Wardell