Netflix: 10 of the best new shows and films to watch in June

Feel Good season 2

June 4th
Mae Martin's heart-scorching comedy-drama has thankfully found a new home. With Channel 4 bowing out after season one, Netflix has rescued this bitter-sweet delight from languishing in sitcom obscurity. This time around Mae tries to get back on track tackling their addiction issues after the prolonged breakdown of season one. Entering rehab in Canada, Mae must excavate painful truths from their past but is tempted to escape from reality again, this time through work as their comedy set goes viral, leading to exciting new prospects. George (Charlotte Ritchie) has meanwhile found love and is happily moving on, but when the two reconnect their lives become ever more complicated as their powerful attraction is reignited.

Breaking Boundaries: The Science of Our Planet

June 4th
David Attenborough returns to Netflix with this sobering documentary about the rapid destruction of the planet. Based on the book by Johan Rockström and Owen Gaffney, it concentrates on their ideal of "planetary stewardship", our responsibility to Earth, a rethinking of humankind's relationship with the environment and how the next decade will be the most important one in terms of shaping the future and preventing irrevocable damage.

Sweet Tooth

June 4th
Sweet Tooth's central premise may test even the heartiest of viewers: it revolves around a "mysterious virus" known as the Sick, which ravages half the world's population and leaves those behind cloaking their faces in masks and generally living in dystopian despair by way of Deliveroo. What could be a terrifying summation of the past year turns weird when an alarming discovery is made: living within this half-feral society are strange human-animal hybrids who are immune to the disease. Blamed for the creation of the virus, this new species is banished to the outskirts of society.

This is where a deer-boy named Gus (Christian Convery) lives with his human protector (Will Forte), who keeps him hidden from prying eyes in the edges of Yosemite National Park. As his curiosity piques, Gus manages to escape into the dangers of the wider world, meeting up with other hybrids with his friend Jep (Nonso Anozie), trying to prevent any perilous situations from occurring. It’s DC comics’ Boy’s Own tale, an adorable side of the apocalypse that’s less Mad Max than Just William.

Friends: The Reunion – The one where they’re all crinkly, creaky and Botoxy

---

The Road to Partition: You might as well call it The Idiot’s Guide to Irish History

---

TV guide: 24 of the best shows to watch this week, beginning tonight

---

Fresh, Fried & Crispy

June 9th
The YouTube star and fast-food gourmand Dayum Drops (aka Daymon Patterson) brings his unhinged enthusiasm to this new food show. Fresh, Fried & Crispy follows Drops as he eats his way around the United States, looking for the ultimate in fried cooking. Whether that's a wagyu-beef and deep-fried-lobster burger or the simplicity of the perfect chicken and waffles, the connoisseur of crunch will be there to sample every delicious item on the menu.

Lupin season 2

June 11th
The surprise sensation of lockdown is back. Assane Diop (Omary Sy), the modern-day gentleman burglar, is still trying to clear his father's name, exact revenge on the powerful Pellegrini, locate his kidnapped son and outfox the police without breaking a sweat under his stylish flat cap.

Lupin’s flashy but old-fashioned crime-caper thrills made it a smash hit, with the French fancy ratcheting up record-breaking streams in January. It remains to be seen whether the completion of this adventure will see Sy bid adieu to the series or if it’s just the beginning of an exhilarating new franchise.

Katla

June 17th
Set in Iceland, this brooding mystery series is set in the aftermath of a volcanic eruption. As people evacuate the small town of Vik, which was decimated by the disaster, a young woman named Grima is drawn to the village as she attempts to find her missing sister. A year on, Vik is a ghost that has been dramatically altered by the eruption, with disturbed ground bringing to the surface strange elements that have distressing consequences for the survivors.

Created by Baltasar Kormákur (Everest), Katla is filled with astonishing cinematography that adds to the otherworldly atmosphere. Its creeping sense of dread tips it into horror territory, away from the stereotypical steeliness of Nordic noir.

Elite season 4

June 18th
Just like Skins, its anarchic, teen-dramedy counterpart, Elite has dispensed with many of its old cast, and now a fresh batch of students are joining Las Encinas for its fourth season. The drama never ceases with newcomers including Prince Philippe von Triesenberg (Pol Granch), who is raising more than eyebrows at the school, and the principal's son Patrick (Manu Ríos), who ruffles feathers as he inserts himself into the beloved coupling of Ander and Omar.

Gloriously trashy, with a heightened sense of camp, the Spanish-language show has gained a dedicated following for its Cruel Intentions-style archness and Gossip Girl frothiness. Elite may have all the parent-worrying graphic content of Euphoria, but it mixes it with a healthy dollop of soapy glamour and humour that’s a winning formula.

This is Pop

June 22nd
This eight-part documentary is a study of pop in all its forms, from the songwriting production line of the Brill Building to boy bands and Britney Spears. The series delves into subjects such as the peculiarly Swedish influence on the charts, the through line from Abba to the uberproducer Max Martin, the modern tyranny of Auto-Tune, and the quixotic summer of Britpop. Featuring interviews with such musical luminaries as Benny Andersson, Chuck D, Shania Twain, Linda Perry and Hozier, it's a deep dive into what makes pop the soundtrack of our lives.

Too Hot to Handle season 2

June 23rd
With a trip to Love Island back on the cards at the end of June, Netflix's own dating grubfest is the perfect cheeky shot to start proceedings while awaiting the cheap cocktail that is the ITV2 phenomenon to begin.

The pandemic-proof concept of Too Hot to Handle stands, with contestants having to build up intimate relationships while flouncing around in tiny swimwear but without touching each other. Every move they make has a value, with the most ardent of acts causing the prize money to dwindle significantly. Whether they’re playing for love, money or just some Instagram followers, Too Hot to Handle is the humiliating clown prince to Love Island’s reigning monarch.

Sophie: A Murder in West Cork

June 30th
The 1996 murder of the French television producer Sophie Toscan du Plantier left an indelible mark on the Irish psyche. After the acclaimed, thoroughly researched West Cork podcast, now come the inevitable documentaries. The lead-up to the 25th anniversary of the murder has seen renewed interest in the case, with two true-crime series ready for release.

This three-part documentary, directed by John Dower (My Scientology Movie) and coproduced by the Oscar-winner Simon Chinn (Searching for Sugarman, Man on Wire), is not to be confused with Jim Sheridan's Murder in the Cottage, another film focusing on the story, which will be shown by Sky later this year.

Sophie: A Murder in West Cork explores the notorious case that became a “national obession” and examines the justice system in Ireland and France. The series has been given the full support of the du Plantier family; it features commentary by and interviews with them as well as Sophie’s son, Pierre-Louis Baudey-Vignaud, and those involved in the investigation.