Top TV shows to watch this week: Aussie The Office worth a look, plus guilty pleasure Rivals

The verdict on the controversial and much hyped Aussie remake of The Office is in — and indulge in the 1980s excess of guilty pleasure Rivals.

We’ve sifted through the latest offerings from TV and streaming platforms to find the best shows you should be watching this week.

Felicity Ward (centre) in the Australian version of The Office.

THE OFFICE

PRIME VIDEO

In some ways, the creators of the thirteenth international version of Ricky Gervais’ hit comedy were on a hiding to nothing in bringing this to Australian screens. Not only were there the ghosts of Gervais’ revered original and the long-running US spin-off fronted by Steve Carell to deal with, but award-winning successes such as Fisk and Utopia have pretty much set the gold standard for Australian office comedies in recent years. Then there’s the decision to gender-flip the two main roles, which seems to be red rag to a bull for haters and trolls. But if you ignore all that – and you should – it’s well worth paying the worker drones at Western Sydney packaging company Flinley Craddock a visit as they often hilariously unpack the dreary mundanity of office life. In a very 2020s twist, managing director Hannah Howard (Felicity Ward, less nasty than Gervais’ David Brent but still devious and needy) is trying to protect her tiny kingdom from a head office work-from-home order and is prepared to go to great lengths to do so. The cringe-heavy humour and oddball characters take a while to warm to, but it’s worth sticking with and you’ll fly through the eight short, sharp episodes with as many giggles as groans.

Kate Winslet one of the best and most forthright actors of her generation. Picture: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

KATE WINSLET: A QUEST FOR AUTHENTICITY

WEDNESDAY, 8.30PM, SBS VICELAND

Currently doing the media rounds in Australia promoting her excellent new biopic of World War II photographer Lee Miller, Kate Winslet is not just one of the best actors of her generation, but one of the most interesting, authentic and outspoken. This French-made – at times a little breathless – documentary traces her fascinating journey from a bullied teenage aspiring actor in working-class Reading to her “Kate corset era” and the sometimes uneasy heights of her Titanic fame and the unwelcome, borderline abusive, spotlight it brought. Then there’s her Oscar-winning triumph in The Reader and stunning Emmy-winning turn in Mayor Of Easttown, and embracing her power and her voice. It also zeros in on her forthright views on body image and ageing in the industry – and special mention should be made of her rare ability to absolutely nail the Australian accent.

Ant Middleton dancing with danger on the world’s second highest peak, K2.

K2 WITH ANT MIDDLETON

THURSDAY, 7PLUS

SAS Australia host and former special forces soldier Ant Middleton is never someone to do things by halves and he takes his trademark grit, bloody-mindedness and derring-do into this venture to conquer the world’s second highest peak, which at 8611m is much more dangerous than Everest and has earned the name “the Widow Maker”. Just getting to base camp would be a feat beyond most of us mere mortals and Middleton and his crazy-brave mountaineering mates have given themselves a very tight schedule to acclimatise to the altitude and beat the weather. But as he prepares to scale the peak, he’s worried he might have finally bitten off more than he can chew as he battles with 30 per cent oxygen in the air, falling rocks, blue ice and dead bodies. As self-doubt, and the fear of being selfish set in, he turns to thoughts of family to get him through a truly remarkable feat.

India and New Zealand meet again in the second Test. Picture: IDREES MOHAMMED / AFP)

INTERNATIONAL TEST CRICKET

THURSDAY, KAYO

With the local international cricket season just weeks away and the Aussies preparing for a One Day International series against Pakistan kicking off on November 4 and then what should be an epic five-match Test series against India that starts in Perth on November 22, here’s a chance to get a preview of the opposition. With a 3pm start, India will be looking to bounce back from a humbling home loss – and being destroyed for 46 in their first innings – when they take on New Zealand in the second of three Tests on home soil. And an hour later, hosts Pakistan will square up against England in the third and final test, with the series delicately balanced at one a piece.

Growing Home With Jamie Durie, pictured with partner Ameka Jane.

GROWING HOME WITH JAMIE DURIE

FRIDAY 8.30PM, CHANNEL 7

Jamie Durie marries his horticulture and landscape design skills with this passion for the environment in what he’s calling his most personal project yet. Having bought a run-down house on a spectacular waterfront block on Sydney’s northern beaches, he’s determined to not just make it into a dream home for his growing family, but also to do it entirely sustainably and off the grid. But with a 37 degree block to contend with, serious access issues, disgruntled neighbours and potential erosion problems, his challenges are many. Durie has a slight mad-scientist air about him as he juggles the practical with the aesthetic, but there’s some great info on emerging, environmentally friendly technology and products such as geothermal heating and carpets made from recycled ocean plastics.

Shazad Latif as Nemo in Nautilus.

NAUTILUS

FRIDAY, STAN

The story of how this 10-part drama – effectively an origin story for Captain Nemo from Jules Verne’s trailblazing sci-fi classic Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas – finally made it to our screens is as eventful as any of the adventures it contains. Filmed over a year in Queensland for a whopping $300 million, including building a full-scale submarine, it was then sunk by Disney+ before being salvaged by Stan. It was an odd decision because while Nemo not going to win any awards, it’s a perfectly serviceable, swashbuckling, family-friendly romp. British actor Shazad Latif plays the title role, an Indian prince who, aided by a rag-tag group of fellow prisoners, pinches the trailblazing submersible secretly designed by the nefarious and greedy British East India Mercantile Company (the moustache-twirling villains of the piece) to crack open new markets in China and who will stop at nothing to get it back.

The Voice Grand Finalists for 2024.

THE VOICE GRAND FINAL

SUNDAY, 7PM, CHANNEL 7

Well, it’s down to the final four for the big one this weekend – as Annie Jones from Team Adam, Jaedyn Randall from Team Kate, SKŸE from Team Guy and Reuben De Melo from Team LeAnn get set to compete for The Voice 2024 crown – not to mention a very tasty $100,000 pay cheque and a foothold into the notoriously tough to crack music industry. And while they are all worthy contenders, it feels like De Melo was destined to be there from the moment he opened his mouth in the first episode, prompting coach Le Anne Rimes to bust out the show’s first Ultimate Block. There’s one more chance for each to shine solo and win over the Australian public – plus a duet with their coach.

LeBron James in the Netflix documentary Starting 5

STARTING 5

NETFLIX

This will be a slam dunk for fans of The Last Dance and sports docos in general, thanks to the incredible behind-the-scenes access we have come to expect from the streaming giant. It tracks five of the biggest players in the NBL – Jimmy “Buckets” Butler (Miami Heat), Anthony Edwards (Minnesota Timberwolves), LeBron James (Los Angeles Lakers), Domantas Sabonis (Sacramento Kings) and Jayson Tatum (Boston Celtics) – as they navigate on court pressure and off-court fame during the 2023-2024 season. Veteran James, as passionate and driven as ever at the age of 39 and playing in his 21st season, makes for a particularly fascinating contrast with the man many expect to replace him as the face of the league, rising star Edwards, whose talent and potential at 23 are staggering.

David Tennant in the over-the-top comedy drama Rivals.

RIVALS

DISNEY+

Mark this one down as the guilty pleasure of the year. Adapted from the 1988 Jilly Cooper novel of the same name (and set two years earlier), it’s as racy and as trashy as you’d expect – and a whole lot of fun with it. Former Doctor Who David Tennant plays a rapacious commercial broadcasting exec trying to hold on to his TV licence by poaching a serious but disgruntled journalist Declan O’Hara from the BBC (Aidan Turner) for a flashy talk show that becomes a ratings smash. O’Hara relocates to a well-heeled village in the Cotswolds where he meets Rupert Campbell Black, a champion showjumper turned politician and notorious pants man, who takes a shine to his daughter Taggie. Cue rich people behaving badly in the era of excess, with lashings of sex, drugs and a killer ‘80s soundtrack.

Sammy J with Alice Zaslavsly on cooking show A Bite With Alice.

A BITE TO EAT WITH ALICE

MONDAY, 6PM, ABC

This new nightly cooking show is the perfect vehicle for cook, author and radio presenter Alice Zaslavsly, marrying her top culinary skills with her effervescent personality and love of a laugh. Each episode starts with a recipe inspired by her guest, who then arrives with one of their favourite ingredients to be turn into something fabulous. As the banter flows freely, she casually drops kitchen hacks such as how to pop an avocado seed or pod a broad bean, while cooking easy-to-follow, healthy recipes. First guest is comedian Sammy J, who helps Alice whip up a tasty looking Avocado and Broadbean Bisarra With Poached Eggs and Pita Chip and in turn, she helps him overcome his long-held fear of lasagne with a vegetarian spin on the Italian staple. Other guests this weeks include Poh Ling Yeow, Colin Lane, Pia Miranda and Josh Thomas.

Originally published as Top TV shows to watch this week: Aussie The Office worth a look, plus guilty pleasure Rivals