HD Heads-Up: April 25-May 1

➢➢ TVNZ 2 rolls out the latest season of Celebrity Treasure Island (7.30 Monday-Wednesday, same-night repeats post-10.30) just in time to combat Three relaunching The Floor Australia (7.30 Sunday-Monday) the same week as it debuts Millionaire Hot Seat Australia (7.00 Monday-Friday). Could the latest iteration of Millionaire be the anchor Three’s sorely lacked since axing The Project? When it went to air on Ten in February, The Age said: “Even with genial new host Rebecca Gibney, this slimmed-down version of the popular quiz show needs more pizzazz.” It regularly draws about 315,000 viewers an episode, or roughly a third of the Eddie McGuire version in its heyday — but is competitive in key demographics and more popular than time slot predecessor Deal or No Deal …

➢➢ The quiz duo’s return is bookended by a new season of Wild Heroes (7.00 Sunday) and a reboot of Game of 2 Halves (8.30 Friday) in a new one-hour format. Otherwise, expect the usual “battle of banter, buzzers, and brainiac sporting knowledge” as sporting legends and fresh talent challenge Kiwi comedians for trivia supremacy …

➢➢ Wednesday’s CTI will be an invaluable lead-in to the premiere of NZ Spy (TVNZ 2, 8.30 Wednesday), a six-part comedy series about NZ’s newest spies embarking on their first mission. Set in the 1960s/’70s, it was written by and stars Rose Matafeo, Paul Williams, Bret McKenzie and Joe Thomas …

➢➢ ANZAC Day highlights include the Dawn Service on TVNZ 1 and Whakaata Māori as well as the Anzac Day National Commemorative Service from 11am. Both pepper their schedules with themed documentaries, mostly repeats, although new to TVNZ 1 at midday is From Field to Front. It chronicles how Dave Gallaher, captain of New Zealand’s 1905 ‘Originals’ All Black team, became a leader on the battlefield as well as the rugby field and precedes 2.30 live coverage of an ANZACs clash between classic All Blacks and Wallabies. Sky Open has New Zealand’s Air Force – Then & Now (10am Saturday), in which veteran WWII pilots discuss the Air Force of old while new recruits talk about the Air Force today …

➢➢ Most of the networks commemorate ANZAC Day over the long weekend with themed movies, the most notable of which is the free-to-air premiere of Oppenheimer — not on TVNZ 1, as you would expect for such a prestigious award-winner, but on Duke (8.30 Saturday). Here’s the rest of the week’s coming attractions in HD:

• One Life (Whakaata Māori, 11.30am Saturday)
• Spitfire (Whakaata Māori, 4.00 Saturday)
• Devils on Horses (Whakaata Māori, 6.30 Saturday)
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (Three, 7.00 Saturday)
• Dunkirk (Three, 8.25 Saturday)
• Midway (Whakaata Māori, 8.30 Saturday)
• Lean on Pete (TVNZ 2, midnight Sunday)
• Home (TVNZ 2, 2.00 Sunday)
• Valkyrie (Sky Open, 7.30 Sunday)
• Saving Private Ryan (TVNZ 2, 8.30 Sunday)
• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Three, 8.30 Sunday)
• The Imitation Game (Whakaata Māori, 8.45 Sunday)
• 2 Guns (Sky Open, 8.30 Monday)
• Alien Weaponry: Kua Tupu Te Ara (Whakaata Māori, 8.30 Monday)
• Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (Duke, 10.30 Monday)
• Oblivion (Duke, 8.30 Tuesday)
• Skyscraper (TVNZ 2, 8.35 Tuesday)
• The Devil Wears Prada (TVNZ 2, 7.30 Thursday)
• Ratchet & Clank (Whakaata Māori, 7.30 Friday)
• Bombshell (Whakaata Māori, 9.10 Friday) …

➢➢ ANZAC Weekend pre-emptions include Q+A replacement Ka Ora Tonu – When We Walk (TVNZ 1, 9am Sunday), which reveals “the raw, human moments” behind the 2024 Hīkoi mō Te Tiriti movement, and, instead of Seven Sharp, The Chase Bloopers (TVNZ 1, 7.00 Monday) …

➢➢ Sky Open dusts off Sue Perkins’ Big American Road Trip (8.30 Thursday) four years after it first aired on Channel 4. Said The Guardian of the two-parter: “The programme is a standard gentle travelogue format done well. A presenter who manages to be irreverent without being disrespectful, who can engage at the right level with any interviewee and ad-lib jokes whenever things might otherwise flag, is always a joy.” But the Daily Mail argued “the show desperately needed a presenter who cared about Americana” …

➢➢ Following on from The Simpsons, Family Guy is the latest Disney+ ‘toon to return to free-to-air. Duke will air S21 from May 1, launching the season with a five-episode binge to help close the gap with US broadcasts, where S24 is screening. More five-episode blocks will air May 2-4, ahead of single half-eps screening 8.00 weeknights (or you can stream the most up-to-date eps on Disney+) …

➢➢ Also new to Duke is lifestyle series Aussie Mates, Their Lawns & Barbies (7.00 Saturday) while returning are Scottish comedienne Susan Caiman in Susan Caiman’s Grand Week by the Sea (TVNZ 1, 1.45 Sunday) and:

• Emergency (TVNZ 2, 1.00 Saturday)
• FBI (Three, 8.30 Monday)
• 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown (TVNZ 2, 9.00 Wednesday)
• The 1% Club UK (Three, 7.30 Friday)
• Never Mind the Buzzcocks (TVNZ 2, 9.30 Friday) …

➢➢ The Claudia Winkleman Show (TVNZ 2, 7.30 Friday) ends its first season with a highlights compilation featuring Lisa Kudrow, Jennifer Saunders and Niall Horan among others. Also ending their runs are:

• The Dog House
• Alison Hammond’s Big Weekend
• Leonard and Hungry Paul
• Gangs of London
• Dexter: Original Sin
• Law & Order: Organized Crime …

➢➢ Live/delayed free-to-air sport includes:

• Rugby: The Classics v Classic Wallabies (TVNZ 1, 2.30 Saturday)
• Netball: ANZ Premiership: Pulse v Stars (TVNZ 2, 4.00 Saturday)
• Netball: ANZ Premiership: Magic v Tactix (TVNZ 2, 7.00 Saturday)
• NRL: Warriors v Dolphins (Sky Open, 7.30 Saturday)
• Pacific 4: Australia v Black Ferns (Sky Open, 10.30 Saturday)
• UFC Fight Night: Aljamain Sterling v Youssef Zalal (Duke, 9am Sunday)
• Premier League: Liverpool v Crystal Palace (Sky Open, 10am Sunday)
• SPR: Highlanders v Moana Pasifika (Sky Open, 1.30 Sunday)
• Netball: ANZ Premiership: Mystics v Steel (TVNZ 2, 4.00 Sunday)
• Sal’s NBL: Taranaki Airs v Franklin Bulls (2.00 Monday)
• A-League Men: Sydney FC v Auckland FC (Sky Open, 4.30 Friday)
• SRP: Hurricanes v Crusaders (Sky Open, 6.30 Friday)
• NRL: Dolphins v Storm (Sky Open, 9.55 Friday).