Staying In: What To Watch, Read & Do At Home This October
By
3 weeks ago
Buzzy new books, TV launches, seasonal foods and more
There’s plenty for homebodies to get excited about this autumn. As the weather cools, it’s time to lean into cosiness and get stuck into all the great new TV shows and books coming out in the coming weeks. It’s also the perfect time to get back into some cooking and baking after months of heatwaves keeping us out of our kitchens, with the harvest bringing an abundance of new seasonal fruits and vegetables. Read on for ideas of what to watch, read, eat and do in our homes this autumn. And for more daily recommendations direct to your inbox, sign up to our Staying In, Going Out newsletter.
The C&TH Staying In Guide: October 2026
WATCH
Love of Your Life
Love of Your Life is a new a romantic drama available to watch on Prime Video from today. It stars Margaret Qualley (Maid, The Substance) as Maya, a nurse living in Boston whose chance encounter with Charlie (Gabriel Basso) leads to a sweeping romance. But when tragedy strikes, Maya embarks on a globe-trotting adventure around Europe to rebuild herself. Alongside Qualley, there’s Aaron Pierre (Lanterns) as Maya’s new love interest, a single dad named Felix, and Patrick Schwarzenegger (The White Lotus) as her longtime best friend. It’s star-studded behind the scenes too: the film is directed by esteemed cinematographer Rachel Morrison and written by Julia Cox (Nyad), with Ryan Gosling as one of the producers. Expect a beautifully shot film which tackles themes of grief, friendship and self-love.
Out 14 October, Prime Video
Carrie
With October now well underway, we’re officially in the thick of spooky season. And what better way to celebrate than revisiting Stephen King’s horror classic, Carrie. There have been plenty of onscreen adaptations over the years – who could forget the 1976 film starring Sissy Spacek? – but for fresh blood, check out Prime Video’s brand new miniseries. Grounding the genre-defining novel in today’s digital age, this version of Carrie sees newcomer Summer H. Howell take on the titular character. Having spent her life in seclusion with her mother (Samantha Sloyan), it’s a shock to the system when the sudden death of her father forces Carrie White to enter public high school for the first time – where she must contend with a new social life, a bullying scandal and the emergence of her growing telekinetic powers.
Out now, Prime Video
Carla Duval (Sienna Miller) and Morgan Henderson (Dominic West) in WAR. ©Sky/ HBO/ New Pictures
War
The show everyone’s going to be talking about this autumn? War, Sky’s sleek new legal drama starring Dominic West and Sienna Miller as a couple going head-to-head in what’s being billed as ‘the biggest divorce trial in British legal history’. Created by George Kay (Hijack), the eight-part series follows British tech entrepreneur Morgan Henderson (West) and movie star Carla Duval (Miller) as they battle it out in the public eye with their respective rival law firms, Cathcarts & Sons and Taylor & Byrne. Alongside West and Miller, the star-studded cast includes Celebrity Traitors alumni Celia Imrie and Nick Mohammed, alongside Archie Panjabi (Bend It Like Beckham) as a barrister and rising star Archie Reneaux as an ambitious young lawyer.
Out now, Sky and NOW
Kristen Bell as Joanne in episode 209 of Nobody Wants This. (Erin Simkin/Netflix © 2025)
Nobody Wants This Season 3
Kristen Bell and Adam Brody are returning to our screens for a third instalment of Netflix romcom Nobody Wants This, which explores the role of faith and religion in a romantic relationship. Bell plays agnostic sex podcaster Joanne, while Brody stars as progressive rabbi Noah, and the series charts their growing romance and differing beliefs – while also following the lives of their families, including the unspoken attraction between Joanne’s sister Morgan (Justine Lupe) and Noah’s brother Sasha (Timothy Simons). Season two ended with Joanne and Noah deciding to recommit to one another, and season three will pick up where they left off – now ready to move into their new home together, with Joanne taking the leap to convert to Judaism. New faces to watch out for include Sarah Silverman as Rabbi Eden and Girls star Andrew Rannells as Sebastien, Joanne’s nemesis in conversion class.
Out 22 October, Netflix
East of Eden
John Steinbeck’s 1952 family saga East of Eden is being adapted for Netflix, with Florence Pugh taking on one of American literature’s greatest villains, Cathy Ames. Across seven episodes, the series tells Steinbeck’s epic tale of two families, the Trasks and the Hamiltons, set in the farmland of the Salinas Valley in California – bookended by the American Civil War and World War I. Alongside Pugh, there’s Christopher Abbott as Cathy’s husband Adam Trask and Mike Faist as his brother Mike, and Tracy Letts as their father Cyrus.
Out 1 October, Netflix
Fellow Welshman Tom Cullen stars as Martin’s wealthy best friend Ben Fitzmaurice. (© World Productions)
The Party
Another book-to-screen adaptation to have on your radar this month is ITV’s take on Elizabeth Day’s 2017 novel The Party. Written by actor-turned-screenwriter Sarah Solemani – who also stars in the series – the five-parter follows journalist Martin Gilmour (Luke Evans), and his friendship with the wealthy politician Ben Fitzmaurice (Tom Cullen). Martin grew up in a working-class home, but is able to attend a prestigious school after getting a scholarship – and it’s here that he meets the privileged Ben. Three decades later, Martini is invited to Ben’s lavish party where he announces his intent to run for Conservative party leadership. The series flips between the birthday party and flashbacks of their friendship, with Solemani playing Martin’s pregnant wife, Lucy. Speaking about the project, Solemani said: ‘Class, sex, shame, power, betrayal, secrets – stunned ITV are letting me air my dirty laundry for our new show The Party, stewarded by the legendary World Productions.’
Out 11 October, ITV1 and ITVX
(c) Conor McDonnell
How to Live on Earth
He’s known for playing characters like Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Steven Strange, but for his latest project Benedict Cumberbatch has taken on a very different role. He’s stepping into the shoes of David Attenborough for new environmental documentary How to Live on Earth, which premiered on YouTube last week. Presented from the Natural History Museum in London, the film explores how humans can work with nature to build a thriving future. We hear from climate justice activist Xiye Bastida, wildlife filmmaker Dan O’Neill, and Barack Obama’s former senior policy advisor Sam Cass, and delve into environmental case studies from all over the world – from forest rangers protecting elephants from poachers in central Africa to the cleanup of the Klamath River in north-west California.
Watch on YouTube
Brothers
There’s a strange running joke between Texas-born Hollywood A-listers Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey: that they are secretly half brothers. Ignoring that the truth could be unveiled with a simple (and ubiquitous) DNA test, the duo has latched onto a surprising connection between their parents and run with it. And now we have Brothers, a kind of dramatisation of this discovery, with Harrelson and McConaughey playing themselves, surrounded by fictional families. In the works since 2023, despite being age-old friends, this is the first time Harrelson and McConaughey have starred side-by-side since True Detective in 2014.
First two episodes streaming now, followed by new episodes weekly, on Apple TV
Colin from Accounts
Titled for the strangely named dog at the show’s heart, this is an Aussie comedy that, on paper, doesn’t seem like it would be a hit, swimming as it is in an oversaturated genre of will-they-won’t-they romances. But Colin from Accounts – which opens with the throwing together of strangers Gordon (Patrick Brammall, now of The Devil Wears Prada 2 fame) and Ashley (Harriet Dyer) when they both play a hand in accidentally maiming a runaway border terrier – has been just that: a runaway hit (and, thankfully for Colin, not a hit and run). After the sad ending to season 2 (Colin is fine), season 3, streaming now on BBC iPlayer, opens three years later and delivers the triumphant ending we’ve been rooting for.
The Gentlemen Season 2 (c) Netflix
The Gentlemen Season 2
After the stonking success of season 1 (which premiered in March 2024), Netflix renewed The Gentlemen for a second season just a few months later. The wait is finally over: season 2 is streaming now on Netflix, and there are plenty more lucrative pies for Eddie (Theo James) to stick his fingers into after entering an equal partnership with criminal lynchpin Bobby Glass (Ray Winstone) and his daughter Susie (Kaya Scodelario) at the end of season 1. One year on, as the trio drive to increase their empire, Eddie and Susie realise the decisions Bobby is making are increasingly unsound. With new players flooding the market, they’re left to decide whether to take action, or risk losing everything.
Out now, Netflix
MobLand Season 2
Once you’ve devoured The Gentlemen, get excited for the return of another gritty crime drama. MobLand, Paramount+’s wildly popular British drama about a war between two rival London crime families, is returning for a second instalment and it looks just as juicy. Tom Hardy returns as Harry Da Souza, a fixer for the notorious Harrigan family, led by Maeve (Helen Mirren) and by Conrad (Pierce Brosnan) – who is seen to have gone ‘completely bonkers berserk’, and features in the trailer holding a gun to his own son Kevin (Paddy Considine). According to the synopsis, season 2 sees the Harrigans struggling ‘to show a unified front as rising rivals threaten their fractured criminal empire – and Harry Da Souza, their street-smart and formidable “fixer”, must walk a dangerous tightrope when tensions within the family intensify’.
From 18 September, Paramount+
Last Seen
If you’re a fan of Harlan Coben’s addictive crime dramas, you’ll love Apple TV’s new thriller Last Seen – based on Ryan David Jahn’s 2011 book The Dispatcher. Set in Victoria, Australia, it stars Patrick Brammall (Colin from Accounts) as Ian Ridley, a former police detective now working as a dispatcher who is struggling to cope following the disappearance of his daughter Maggie eleven years prior. But one day, he receives a distress call from a girl who he believes could be her. Ridley springs into action and launches a search for answers – but is paranoia and hope getting the better of him? Brammall stars alongside Maxine Peake (Say Nothing, Black Mirror), Brendan Cowell (Dune: Prophecy) and Daniel Henshall (Mickey 17) in this gripping, unpredictable six-parter.
First two episodes streaming now, Apple TV
The Great British Bake Off
Nothing screams autumn like the return of Bake Off. And there’s extra excitement surrounding this series thanks to the arrival of newbie Nigella Lawson, who replaces Prue Leith as Paul Hollywood’s fellow judge. Hopefuls this year include 67-year-old retired garment technologist Gary, drag king Gabe and Hertfordshire-born marketing graduate Clara. The format will be the same as usual, with a new Audience Choice week seeing contestants take part in a challenge decided by viewers.
From 22 September at 8pm, with episodes airing weekly, Channel 4
(First look at Slow Horses season 6; Apple TV)
Slow Horses
Less than a year since the thrilling finale of Slow Horses’ fifth season, Apple TV’s hit spy thriller is back for a sixth instalment. Based on Mick Herron’s books of the same name, the series follows a group of MI5 agents who have been relegated to a dumping ground department – led by the unkempt Jackson Lamb (Gary Oldman). This series, the gang – which also includes Jack Lowden as River Cartwright, one of the favourites to be the next Bond – are on the run after finding themselves erased from MI5’s databases. Worse still, former members of Slough House are starting to turn up dead. As the official synopsis reads, ‘Season 6 sees the Slow Horses on the run as Diana Taverner embroils them all in a fatally high-stakes game of retaliation and revenge.’
16 September, Apple TV
LISTEN
The world of wellness can feel like a minefield – but Joe Wicks is here to debunk the fads. His new video podcast, Health or Hype, sees the fitness coach trying out some of the most googled topics spanning nutrition, sleep, movement and mental health, to see what’s really worth our time and money. What happens, for instance, when he drops down to 2,000 steps a day? Spends 24 hours alone in a rainforest? Locks himself inside a Joe-sized box to tackle anxiety? Created in partnership with Bupa, the podcast features conversations with top neuroscientists, nutritionists and coaches to cut through internet noise and deliver evidence-backed ways to feel better.
Watch on YouTube or listen on Audible
READ
Partita by Barbara Kingsolver
It was a blog post accusing Barbara Kingsolver of being a phoney, that sparked the idea for her latest novel: Partitia. Appalachian born and raised, the Demon Copperhead writer had a difficult childhood – a fact that the blogger failed to buy, considering her achievements as a child piano prodigy. ‘This notion that I couldn’t possibly have fallen in love with playing the piano as a person in a small rural town, that offended me,’ she said. ‘Why do most people think this? […] Those were all questions that made me excited to write this book.’ The book in question follows the story of Livia. Stuck in an unhappy life on a Tennessee dairy farm reeling from her older brother’s death, the gifted musician is awarded a piano scholarship, and a ticket out. One day Livia catches a glimpse of a man, a revolutionary, and falls madly in love – a moment that spells disaster for her new life.
Out 8 October, Faber & Faber
Peck & Peck by Bonnie Garmus
If you loved the 2022 sensation Lessons In Chemistry – which went on to spark a series for Apple TV starring Brie Larson – we have good news: Bonnie Garmus is releasing her second novel. This time, Garmus swaps California for 1980s New York, where crime is on the rise. College graduate Batter Gray – a twin who lost his brother at birth – has recently moved to the city, and lands a job working at the world’s most secretive poetry quarterly (named Peck & Peck).
Out 27 October, Manilla Press
Stations, Louise Kennedy
After her debut Troubles novel Trespasses was Women’s Prize shortlisted in 2022, Irish novelist Louise Kennedy is finally back with her unflinching follow-up, Stations, out today. Where Trespasses traces about six months in 1975, Stations’ scope is much broader, skipping a couple of days, then a few months, then a year or two until it can stretch all the way from 1989 to 2007. Describing her debut novel as an unintentionally ‘plotty book,’ Stations embodies’ Kennedy’s more vibes-based manner of working. ‘I don’t plot or plan,’ the author shares. ‘If Stations has a plot, it’s maybe just about the choices that one girl – who then becomes a woman – makes over the course of her life, and the people who are important to her at various stages, who come and go, and what they help her learn about herself. A lot of it is about regret. I’m almost 60, and I don’t know anybody my age who doesn’t grapple with that often.’
Exit Party by Emily St John Mandel
If you are yet to read anything by this Canadian author, let us send you down a new rabbit hole. Published in 2014, Emily St John Mandel’s Station Eleven boomed in popularity during the pandemic, outlining as it does an even worse fallout from a similar SARS-like viral infection. Then came The Glass Hotel (2020) and Sea of Tranquility (2022), which are loosely connected to Station Eleven and each other by theme, characters and events. Undefinable by genre, the author moves through dystopia, sci-fi, thriller and noir, all meticulously plotted and underpinned by crystal clear prose as she weaves her own universe. Her latest, Exit Party, out today, harks back to one of Mandel’s earlier works, The Singer’s Gun (2009) – though you need not have read it to enjoy the new novel. We’re in Los Angeles, 2031. The Republic of California has declared independence, and everyone in the city is going to a party. Ari, newly released from prison, heads out with her friend Gloria – and encounters something very wrong, something that hangs over her new life in Paris years later.
Our Noble Selves, Kate Atkinson
It feels like summer is winding down, but for a spot of sunsoaked escapism we will be turning to Kate Atkinson’s new crime caper, which is backdropped by 1951’s Festival of Britain (the year of the author’s birth, no less). True to the Whitbread Award winning author’s form, Our Noble Selves is witty and warmhearted in equal measure, centring on hardened former war reporter and foreign correspondent Harry Flynn who joins an eccentric team preparing to ready the celebratory festival for its launch. At the same time, Harry attempts to resume some semblance of a romantic life now he’s settled back on home shores – but when one of his dates goes missing and the journalist is deemed the last person to see her alive, he finds himself in hot water. Could he really have somehow enabled her disappearance? Little does he realise, the answer may lie in the hands of the sharp tongued 13-year-old Veronica.
Sophie, Standing There, Meg Mason
It’s easy to become parasocially obsessed with an author. They comfort you when you’re down, make you laugh when you need it. They get you, they understand you… quite like no one else. This is the conceit behind Meg Mason’s follow-up to her bestselling novel Sorrow And Bliss. When Sophie finds herself dumped by her husband mid-shower, it is books that she turns to for comfort. Particularly the books of Lilac Dunne. Sophie finds solace and companionship in her words, and so spends hours rereading her stories, scrolling through her images, listening to her podcasts, and even talking to an imaginary version of her. It’s almost like love. A lot like love. Sophie would love to meet Lilac. And then one day, she does. A hilarious and raw tale about finding connection in a lonely world.
Big Little Truths, Liane Moriarty
The last time we read about Madeline, Celeste, Jane, Renata and Bonnie, their lives were ruled by playground politics: birthday parties, playdates and all the whims of five-year-old tastes and tempers as these women mothered their little ones in the exclusive Sydney enclave of Pirriwee. But it’s been 10 years and those days are long over. The kids are now in high school, and drugs, sex and alcohol are the vices that keep these mothers up at night. That is until the high school principal receives a severed human finger in the mail – clearly there are even darker forces infiltrating their picture-perfect town. Having also penned Nine Perfect Strangers and Apples Never Fall (amongst many others), Big Little Truths is Aussie author Liane Moriarty’s very first sequel, plummeting us back into the lives of the women you might know better from Reese Witherspoon’s TV adaptation which starred Nicole Kidman, Laura Dern, Shailene Woodley, Zoe Kravitz and more. Whether you read or watched Big Little Lies – or both – Big Little Truths serves even more secrets, lies and hidden truths.
EAT & DRINK
MAKE: Midnight Margaritas Inspired By Practical Magic
With Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman returning in Practical Magic 2, in cinemas now, we’re revisiting the original film’s midnight margaritas scene, set to Harry Nilsson’s ‘Coconut’. This classic recipe takes its cue from the Owens sisters’ witchy woo woo gathering, combining tequila, fresh lime and orange liqueur. Dancing in the kitchen is encouraged, but there’s no need to wait until midnight.
Serves 2
Ingredients:
- 100ml blanco tequila
- 50ml Cointreau or triple sec
- 50ml freshly squeezed lime juice
- Ice
- Fine sea salt, for the rims
- 2 lime wedges, to garnish
- 10ml agave syrup, optional
Method:
- Run a lime wedge around half the rim of each glass, then dip into a shallow plate of salt. Fill the glasses with fresh ice.
- Pour the tequila, orange liqueur and lime juice into a cocktail shaker. Add the agave syrup if you prefer a sweeter drink, along with plenty of ice.
- Shake for 10-15 seconds, until thoroughly chilled.
- Strain into the prepared glasses and garnish with lime.
(c) Yuliia Huzenko, Unsplash
Get Stuck Into Some Seasonal Cooking
With a new month comes a whole host of exciting new produce to cook with, and October is particularly abundant. Think hearty stews and soups made with root vegetables – celeriac, parsnips, radishes and swede – and bakes featuring apples and pears. It’s also squash season, which provides plenty of opportunity in the kitchen: think pumpkin risotto, stuffed roasted mini squash and casseroles. Here’s a full list of what’s in season in October to inspire your autumn recipes:
- Apples
- Beetroot
- Broccoli
- Cabbage
- Carrots
- Kale
- Kohlrabi
- Leeks
- Pak choi
- Parsnips
- Pears
- Squash and pumpkins
