Why wait for New year’s Day to catch him in a new episode of “Sherlock”? Benedict Cumberbatch stars on public television tonight as the ambitious Richard III in the second installment of the adaptation of Shakespeare’s history plays in “The Hollow Crown: War of the Roses” on “Great Performances” (PBS, 9 p.m., check local listings). Tonight is “Henry VI, Part II,” with Tom Sturbridge’s Henry VI a week leader and Sophie Okenedo’s Queen Margaret starting to overshadow him. Think of it as “Game of Thrones” with higher-minded dialogue.
Meanwhile, that other Sherlock is on tonight as well, investigating doctors writing illegal prescriptions on a new episode of “Elementary” (CBS, 10:30 p.m.).
The hills are alive with “The Sound of Music” (ABC, 7 p.m.) and its unsettling underlying themes of Nazi advancement..
Sunday Night Football has Tampa Bay at Dallas (NBC, 8:30 p.m.). Earlier games include Pittsburgh at Cincinnati (CBS, 1 p.m.), Philadelphia at Baltimore (Fox, 1 p.m.) and New England at Denver (CBS, 4:25 p.m.).
On a weekend when it seems like they’ve broken up, here’s the one hour “Rob & Chyna Baby Special” (E!, 8 p.m.) where the baby named Dream is born into a family that’s a celebrity Nightmare.
A major loss in the family is suffered on the seventh season finale of “Shameless” (Showtime, 9 p.m.).
On “The Affair” (Showtime, 10 p.m.), Alison and Noah go to Block Island.
War looms on “Madam Secretary” (CBS, 9:30 p.m.).
The final two episodes of “The Traffickers” (Fusion, 10 p.m.) looks at sex trafficking in Europe and fake drugs.
A lieutenant commander working on foreign cyber threats disappears on the Christmas episode of “NCIS: Los Angeles” (CBS, 8:30 p.m.).
Denzel Washington is profiled on “60 Minutes” (CBS, 7:30 pm.).
It’s the finale, too, for “Clash of the Grandmas” (Food, 10 p.m.), another cooking competition.
Helen learns the identity of the killer on “Eyewitness” (USA, 10 p.m.).
The palace likes reality TV as well, we learn on a new episode of “The Royals” (E!, 10 p.m.).
Bethany gets ready for a wedding on “Married by Mom and Dad” (TLC, 10 p.m.) and Madison is the first of the Brown children to marry on “Sister Wives” (TLC, 8 p.m.).
A traveling carnival brings a problem magician on “The Librarians” (TNT, 8 p.m.).
The top eight places for cheesy dishes are counted down on “Food Paradise” (Travel, 8 p.m.).
On “The Real Housewives of Atlanta” (Bravo, 8 p.m.), Sheree manages the new modeling career of her son.
A woman saved too much Christmas decorations on the second of two episodes of “Hoarders” (A&E, 9 and 10 p.m.).
A winner is named in the season three finale of “Holiday Baking Championship” (Food, 9 p.m.), for the one of the three finalists who can make the best North Pole-inspired cake.
It’s Christmas, too, on “Alaska: The Last Frontier” (Discovery, 9 p.m.).
On “Mariah’s World” (E!, 9 p.m.), the singer is an hour late for a concert in Luxembourg because she was unaware of a time zone change.
Charles Dickens may not have anticipated how his stories were turned into musicals like “Scrooge” (TCM, 8 p.m.) and “Oliver!” (TCM, 10 p.m.). Later comes the 1925 silent “Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ” (12:45 p.m.) and Roberto Rossellini’s 1946 “Paisan” (3:15 a.m.).
Men’s college basketball includes Penn State at St. John’s (Fox Sports 1, 11 a.m.), Miami- Ohio at Central Florida (ESPNU, noon), Gardner-Webb at Nebraska (ESPNU, 2 p.m.), Gonzaga at Tennessee (ESPN2, 4 p.m.), Clemson vs. Alabama (ESPNU, 6 p.m.) and Texas Southern at TCU (ESPNU, 6 p.m.).
Women’s games include UCLA at South Carolina (ESPN2, 2 p.m.).
Sunday Talk
CBS: Kellyanne Conway, Henry Kissinger, former national security adviser Tom Donilon. NBC: Former defense secretary Robert Gates, Sens. Shelley Moore Capito and Joe Minchin, John Podesta. CNN: Attorney General Loretta Lynch, Sen. John McCain. Fox News: Reince Priebus, Rep. Don Beyer, electoral college member Clay Pell.