Titanic Sinks Tonight
9pm, BBC Two
The Titanic’s final 160 minutes above sea are relived in real time for this sombre but fascinating four-part series. Actors read from first-hand testimonies, letters, memoirs and telegrams to show the stories of survivors, while experts offer insight into what the voyage meant, especially for the second and third classes searching for a new life. It starts on the evening of 14 April, when ice warnings came through as the passengers partied or slept. Hollie Richardson
Tennis: Battle of the Sexes
3.45pm, BBC One
Is it sport or showbiz? It’s probably somewhere in between and, given the constant denigration of women’s sport by certain gatekeeping men, this game has a somewhat queasy feel. Still, the BBC is showing live coverage of the event which takes place in that bastion of female empowerment, Dubai. Phil Harrison
Fletchers’ Family Farm at Christmas
6.30pm, ITV1
The hills are alive with the sound of cowbells as the Fletchers (dad Kelvin, mum Liz and their four young kids) leave the Peak District behind for a festive visit to the Austrian Alps. They learn about local farming traditions while also enjoying a chaotic gingerbread bake-off. Graeme Virtue
Royal Institution Christmas Lectures: Is There Life Beyond Earth?
7pm, BBC Four
The Earth is often called a “Goldilocks planet” – not too hot, not too cold, but just right for life to evolve. It’s something the excellent Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock explores, alongside the moon, the sun, interstellar travel and the likelihood of other life out there, in her three-part Christmas lecture, marking the 200th anniversary of Michael Faraday’s special science series for children. Ali Catterall
Death in Paradise
8.30pm, BBC One
Worried you overdid it at the office Christmas party? It can’t have gone as badly as this one: colleagues wake up with the hangover from hell in Saint Marie to find a stranger shot dead in the pool of their villa. Weirder still, the victim has one of Santa’s reindeer’s names inked on his hand. DI Mervin Wilson (Don Gilet) investigates – but the murder weapon has links to Swindon. HR
Torvill & Dean: The Last Dance
8.30pm, ITV1
Dancing on ice … Torvill & Dean: The Last Dance on ITV1. Photograph: ITV
More than 40 years have passed since Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean became household names with the Olympics-winning Bolero. Now they’re hanging up their skates. This documentary follows the lifelong friends as they prepare for their final tour and reflect on what it took to become the nation’s best-ever ice skaters. HR
Live sport
Premier League Football: Sunderland v Leeds, 1pm, Sky Sports Main Event Followed by Crystal Palace v Tottenham at 4pm.
