This July, SBS VICELAND serves up unsolved crime, comedy and toys – and fries with that

Plus we join Sophia Roe as she delves into faux meat, prison food and more in 'Counter Space', this month on SBS VICELAND.

'Counter Space' Source: VICE

Counter Space

In this unique program, charming host Sophia Roe makes recipes using ingredients we learn about, with the premise, ‘food is news’. Season 2 is chock-full of revelations, including about breakfast foods, why saving bats is crucial to the supply of agave, and how a prison in Maine, USA is improving the quality of inmates’ food. There’s also chocolate in Ghana, Taiwanese ceremonial cakes and Turkish honey for the sweet-tooths, and much more.

Season 2 of Counter Space premieres at 10.25pm, Monday 4 July on SBS VICELAND. Episodes air weekly. Stream season 1 and 2 episodes anytime at SBS On Demand. Jump into season 2 now:

Fries! The Movie

The perfect entrée to International French Fries Day on 13 July is this doco on everyone’s favourite snack food. Looking at global versions, from top chefs’ kitchens in Paris to Hong Kong’s street carts and everywhere in between, hosts, best-selling authors Malcolm Gladwell and Chrissy Teigen explore our collective obsession with the humble hot chip. They also answer chippie-related questions such as why Brits eat theirs out of newspaper and what made fast-food fries far tastier back in the day. One interviewee asks, ‘Who would want to be in a fry-less world?’ Banish the thought!

Fries! The Movie premieres at 6.05pm, Sunday 10 July on SBS VICELAND. Watch it at SBS On Demand anytime:

Scandinavian Star

Over 30 years ago, 159 people died in a fire onboard the cruise ship Scandinavian Star. Even though arson was the cause, investigators have given up trying to find the culprit. Why did the case go so wrong? The authorities’ resignation is not good enough for survivors and relatives of those who perished. In this six-part documentary series, they pursue the many clues and new witnesses of Scandinavia’s biggest unsolved murder mystery in recent times. Contains English, Danish, Norwegian, Filipino and Portuguese languages.

Scandinavian Star premieres at 6.30pm, Sunday 17 July on SBS VICELAND. Episodes air weekly. Stream the full six-part series anytime at SBS On Demand.

Modern Marvels: Toys

Adam Richman (left) visits the factory where Monopoly is made. Source: SBS VICELAND

You may know him from his Man vs. Food days; now, host Adam Richman is getting playful with toys, from classics to newest releases. In this super fun docu-series, Adam gets VIP access to the Play-Doh factory, susses out pinball machines and their continuing popularity and finds out why Slinkys keep bouncing back. He also takes us to the Monopoly factory and shows us how the latest technology is applied to new models of Hot Wheels. With such an exuberant man at the helm, every segment brings light-hearted joy.

Two-part series Modern Marvels: Toys premieres at 6.40pm, Saturday 23 July on SBS VICELAND and SBS On Demand. Episodes air weekly. 

Ascension

Nominated at this year’s Academy Awards for Best Documentary Feature, and winner in the same category at the Tribeca Film Festival, Ascension presents ‘an inside perspective on modern China from the bottom up’. In mesmerising cinema reminiscent of Baraka, Chinese American director Jessica Kingdon (Commodity City) reveals the everyday lives of contemporary Chinese, through powerful images of people at work or in the painful pursuit of it. An absorbing film.  

Ascension premieres at 9.20pm, Sunday 24 July on SBS VICELAND. The documentary is streaming at SBS On Demand until 23 August. 

PEN15

Maya Erskine and Anna Konkle in ‘PEN15’. Source: Distributor

Co-stars and co-creators, Maya Erskine and Anna Konkle go back to school in their sitcom in which they play teenage versions of themselves among 13-year-old actors. Reliving the wide variety of dramas faced by teens, their solid friendship sees them through hilarious, cringe-worthy and heartbreaking events, i.e. everyday life. Endearing and funny.

Season 1 of PEN15 premieres at 9.25pm, Monday 25 July on SBS VICELAND. Double episodes air weekly, and will be available at SBS On Demand for only a fortnight after they air.

Plus, make sure you catch…

The Orville

Season 3 of our favourite universe-hopping alien-diverse crew aboard the USS Orville is here! Make sure to catch the latest intergalactic action, landing at 8.30pm Friday nights on SBS VICELAND and SBS On Demand. If you’ve missed the first few episodes of season 3, get up to speed at SBS On Demand:

Or start at the beginning:

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