Hijack; Saving Country Houses With Penelope Keith; A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms

“Sam Idris Elba Nelson is back. And this time, he’s on a train. An underground train, part of the Berlin metro, and let me tell you – shenanigans ensue. Sam is on his way to a meeting with a German government person. That gives us INITIAL TENSION, especially as we know Germans are efficient and don’t like to be kept waiting. It’s not xenophobia or stereotyping when it’s true. Just before Sam gets on the train, he notices a minor commotion being caused by a man sporting a red rucksack. Red for DANGER and HERRING so we must stay doubly alert. Sam is always alert because you never know when some business might need negotiating, but not I suspect aware of the herring part here because he doesn’t know he’s in a new series of Hijack.”
Lucy Mangan, The Guardian

“Modern TV thrillers, particularly on the streamers, often leave me with a sense that I’m being taken for a ride by someone who doesn’t know how to drive. But Hijack has the hallmarks of a team in full control of their material.”
Julia Raeside, The i

“There are plenty of twists – it’s interesting to rewatch episode one once you’ve understood what’s going on – but the plot becomes too convoluted, and the thrills are non-existent. By episode eight, if you make it that far, you’ll be desperate for Elba to be put out of his misery.”
Anita Singh, Telegraph

“The story here is more layered and complex than the first series, which, combined with a commanding central performance from Elba, makes for a well-crafted series of conspiracy, intrigue and surprise — one that never comes off the rails.”
Tim Glanfield, The Times

“Why no one thought of getting Dame Penelope Keith – To the Manor Born, for goodness sake! – to front one of these Residential Repair Shops until now I have no idea, but she is perfect for the job. A jewel in the country’s rich TV heritage who was well overdue a reno for the modern world; if anything, Saving Country Houses didn’t use her enough.”
Benji Wilson, Telegraph

“Most teenagers want a bedroom of their own, somewhere to have a few posters, a PlayStation and some privacy. George Lowsley-Williams had to share his with the resident ghosts. ‘I spent the first 17 years of my life living in a room that had to be exorcised twice,’ he grumbled.”
Christopher Stevens, Daily Mail

“Yes, it gets darker (and much more violent) in later episodes, but there’s more than enough gentleness and decency, playfulness and fun. It isn’t the Westeros we’re used to, but it makes a more than pleasant change.”
Ben Dowell, The Times

“With so much going for it, it’s disappointing that A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms retains some of its parent series’ more tedious elements. It is burdened with an adolescent desire to shock – whether via an extended male full-frontal scene (HBO having gone all out on the prosthetic penis budget) or a stomach-turning sequence in which we see a man going to the bathroom. But once it gets these childish instincts – those “Edgelord of the Rings” vibes – out of its system, the series settles into a sweet depiction of an unlikely friendship. A feel-good Game of Thrones prequel? Scratch that one off your “didn’t see it coming” list for 2026.”
Ed Power, Telegraph