What to Watch in January

There's a huge amount of worthwhile TV out there nowadays, so it can be hard to choose what to watch. But who better to recommend shows than the person who programs them? Lisa Tipton, WTTW’s Head of Programming and Pledge, constructs the WTTW schedule by searching through offerings from many different sources which include the national PBS network, the BBC, and independent filmmakers to put together a varied and engaging broadcast schedule. Each month, she recommends a few shows that she thinks you should watch.

Find all the ways to watch WTTW here. Many of the below shows are available to stream via the PBS app or will be once they premiere, especially by WTTW Passport members. 

Dramas and Mysteries

January brings endless new seasons and new shows, starting on the very first day of the year with the new-to-PBS series Inspector George Gently, which airs Thursdays at 8:30 pm. A new season of Midsomer Murders joins it at 8:00 pm beginning January 8. 

Saturdays beginning January 3 we have new seasons of Death in Paradise (8:00 pm), which joins a new season of Father Brown (7:00 pm) that started in late December. 

Our big line-up comes on Sunday nights, with new seasons of Miss Scarlet (7:00 pm) and All Creatures Great and Small (8:00 pm) alongside the new mystery Bookish (9:00 pm), all premiering January 11. The Austrian-set Murder in the Mountains migrates from its popularity streaming via the PBS app to WTTW beginning January 18 at 10:00 pm.

New Seasons of PBS Classics

Entering an impressive 30th season, Antiques Roadshow returns with new episodes and amazing new discoveries on Mondays starting January 5 at 7:00 pm. Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. uncovers more celebrity ancestries in season 12 of Finding Your Roots on Tuesdays beginning January 6 at 7:00 pm.

The Natural World

Weathered: After the LA Firestorm looks at how Los Angeles is recovering and preparing for the future a year after devastating fires there, January 7 at 9:00 pm. NOVA explores a city now overtaken by jungle in Angkor: Hidden Jungle Empire on January 28 at 8:00 pm, and a theory that asteroids were essential for the creation of life on Earth, in Asteroid: Spark of Life? on January 21 at 8:00 pm. And Nature gets a rare look at elephant bulls in Tusker: Brotherhood of Elephants on January 14 at 7:00 pm.

Current Events and Past History

On Tuesday, January 6 at 8:00 pm, American Experience: Bombshell looks at how the U.S. government tried to hide the radioactive truth about the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II. Check back for an interview with the director.

Tuesday, January 20 at 8:00 pm, Breaking the Deadlock: A Matter of Life and Death encourages dialogue as experts on both sides of the issues come together to discuss reproductive rights and the right to die. 

Tuesday, January 27 at 8:00 pm, the Holocaust survivor, writer, and Nobel Peace Prize winner Elie Wiesel's life and career is excavated in American Masters: Soul on Fire.