10 of the most eagerly-anticipated series of 2019
Small screens will be blazing this year thanks to a crop of new series and new seasons of well-established favourites including 'Game of Thrones' and 'Big Little Lies'
1. BIG LITTLE LIES S2
In the wake of the runaway success of the first season, the girls from Monterey are back for a second season in 2019. Although no release date has been disclosed, seven new episodes are expected.
Nicole Kidman, Reese Witherspoon, Shailene Woodley, Laura Dern and Zoë Kravitz will reprise their roles.
2. GAME OF THRONES S8
The final season is coming. The series based on the fictional world created by George RR Martin will draw to a close with this ultimate eighth season of six episodes, to begin airing in April 2019.
The war between the living and the dead is set to come to a head in the Seven Kingdoms. Jon Snow may have reunited the Houses of Targaryen and Lannister, but having breached the Wall, the White Walkers and the Night King are dangerously close to Winterfell.
3. ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK S7
After six seasons, the inmates of Litchfield prison are back for a seventh outing. Netflix hasn't revealed a release date, but if the season follows the format of previous offerings it should comprise 13 episodes.
According to reports, fans of the saga may have get to see their favourite characters in a second show now that Lionsgate Television is mulling a follow-up.
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4. TRUE DETECTIVE S3
The third season of detective series is set in three distinct time periods and will star Mahershala Ali.
The Moonlight Oscar winner will play police detective Wayne Hays, who arrives in the Ozark Mountains to investigate a baffling crime.
5. PEAKY BLINDERS S5
The Shelby family are set to continue their criminal activities in pre-war Birmingham, led by Tommy (Cillian Murphy). The plot is set against the economic crises in 1929.
6. VEEP S7
Set to begin in April, Julia Louis-Dreyfus continues as President Selina Meyer for the seventh and final season of Veep, which will air two years after the release of season six. Shooting was delayed to allow the lead actress time undergo treatment for cancer.
7. STRANGER THINGS S3
Not much is known about the third season of this sci-fi-fiction series, but Netflix has released a teaser with the titles of the upcoming episodes.
Following the 1984-set second season, the new episodes will take place in 1985, with Millie Bobbie Brown, Finn Wolfhard, Winona Ryder and David Harbour reprising their roles.
8. THE HANDMAID'S TALE S3
Despite a second season which failed to emulate the success of its predecessor, Hulu renewed the show for a third round.
Elisabeth Moss and Samira Wiley will be back to reprise their roles in the dystopian drama based on the novel by Margaret Atwood.
9. GOOD OMENS
Neil Gaiman penned this adaptation of the novel Good Omens, which he co-wrote with Terry Pratchett. Coming to the small screen as an Amazon Prime Video flagship series, the saga stars David Tennant and Michael Sheen.
It recounts the exploits of the emissaries of Heaven and Hell, who have been sent to Earth in a bid to avert an apocalypse. Jon Hamm, Miranda Richardson and Nick Offerman also star.
10. THE CROWN S3
The cast of The Crown gets a complete overhaul for the third season. Claire Foy, who occupied the throne as Queen Elizabeth II for the first two seasons, hands over to Olivia Colman. Tobias Menzies and Helena Bonham Carter also star in the Netflix series' new season.