Best Recent British TV Dramas
 

It would be ignorant for me to say I've run out of US dramas to watch, but I've probably knocked out at least 30 full series the last 5 years. I am sitting here watching Sherlock, series 1, episode 3 and I'm just amazed. I never really have given British TV a go, except for a show called Survivors, which I thought was very good.

Please recommend your top British TV dramas from the 2000s or later. I look forward to expanding my TV watching horizons.

Sherlock is very, very good. There is a second series of three available as well.

The BBC also did a very good Robin Hood Series. That one went four seasons I believe. At least the first couple are available on DVD/Blu-ray.

The obvious answer is Doctor Who

Sherlock, for me.

And I haven't gotten around to Downton Abbey yet. I am ashamed of this.

It sucks that we won't see any new Sherlock for at least a year.

That one went four seasons I believe.

The second series of Sherlock may even be better than the first. Great writing in that show.

Agreed. When I first heard of the concept, I was wary of an attempt to update Sherlock Holmes into the 21st century...but the creators of Sherlock did an outstanding job of bringing Sherlock forward, while keeping the essence of Sherlock Holmes pure.

I wish we were getting another season of Sherlock this fall, instead of the CBS version (I forget what they are calling it) with Lucy Liu as Watson. My gut tells me that version is going to suck donkey balls.

When I was in London I saw an ad about a TV show of three humans with superpowers, a werewolf, a ghost, and another character I forgot about. I tried searching but I couldn't figure it out.

If you are in for some comedy, then you can't go wrong with Extras and The Office.

Good British movies? Get Pretty much anything for Guy Richie.

BBC Drama is a good source. You can list TV shows by ratings, etc.

The first one is called Being Human.

Ice seen plenty of British Comedy. Not really what I'm looking for.

Being Human. Meh.

*edit* Buck got there first

Not much activity in this thread, but I've been asking around and here are some other shows that have been recommended.

-Misfits
-Spooks
-Dr. Who
-Torchwood
-Luther
-Jekyll
-Merlin
-Hustle
-Life on Mars
-Being Human
-The Street
-Downton Abbey

Some of my favorites:

State of Play (highly recommend this mini-series)
The Shadow Line
Luther (Stars Stringer Bell. First series is better than the second.)
The Hour
Downton Abbey
Life on Mars
Jekyll (from Steven Moffat who is also responsible for some of the new Sherlock and wrote some of the strongest Dr. Who episodes)
Dr. Who (can be fairly hit or miss but the peaks are worth it)
Spooks
Inbetweeners

I need to see Misfits & Luther.

Also, yeah Sherlock is pretty dope.

Had not heard of that one, but if Steven Moffat is doing it, then it is worthy of checking out. Thanks!

The Bleak House miniseries, obvs.

That's what I was thinking too and then I saved it to my Netflix instant Queue. That was almost a year ago, and I still haven't watched it. LOL! Sometimes I think that my Netflix queue is where films go to die.

I like watching the show Merlin with my kids. It's pretty much cartoony, kid-stuff for the first couple seasons, but that last season was by far the best one. It became drastically improved when Arthur and Merlin finally start coming into their own.

I really enjoy Merlin. One of the best things SyFy broadcasts these days.

Luther. Anyone who says otherwise come see me irl. You won't come back living.

Just watched the first episode on Netflix. I'm in, I'll be watching the rest over the next couple of weeks. Looking forward to it. He's very compelling, and they've already introduced a foil for him.

Luther was great the first season. The second season notsomuch.

Sherlock is great.
I liked Foyle's War, too.

Ummm what? The second season was great. What are you smoking? Is that a joke? WTF didn't you like about it? Enlighten me. Actually no, because I don't give a shit because it's impossible to not like season 2. F you man, F YOU!

Just watched the first episode of the second Sherlock series, and it was amazing (they're showing them on PBS right now, the next one is tomorrow night).

I heard that PBS has been cutting off double-digit minutes from the episodes. At least, they cut off 10 minutes from episode 1 of series 2.

I finished Luther today, watched on Netflix. It was really good. Luther certainly carries the show, but the bad guys in most eps were also compelling.

Perhaps I'll have to re-watch Sherlock once it comes to Netflix.

Donger on CP TV Network.

So did anybody watch the last ep of Sherlock? How did he pull the sleight of hand at the end?

There's all sorts of DEEP theories and audience investigation and speculation about how he pulled it off.

If you wanna' read up on the ideas out there, go here: http://finalproblem.tumblr.com/theory-index

I just finished season 2 of Sherlock and I cannot fathom it at all.

I don't know shit about British television, but my brother and his wife really really enjoyed Merlin, and I've heard a lot of great things about Sherlock.

I don't like many if any british tv dramas. I find them boring and compared to american tv shows incompetent. Dr who is for kids and sherlock is ridicilous. I quite liked dr who with David Tennant but definetly not with the new one.

My cable went out for a week and a half and I somehow managed to miss both the 2nd and 3rd episodes.

(you may ask how one goes a week and a half without cable...I still had roadrunner the whole time, which is more important to me than TV for work-related reasons so I procrastinated on the service call...)

Fortunately: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/watch/index.html

Wow. I read that one theory on there, and now it makes perfect sense. IT HAS TO BE THAT.

I just watched the first episode of Sherlock last night on Netflix. It was ****in great. I'm hooked. Can't wait to watch the rest. I took a chance on it and I'm glad I did.

Well I finished the first 3 episodes of Sherlock. I liked the first episode by FAR the best. Episode 2 and 3 weren't as good imo. Hopefully season 2 has more episodes like the first.

For me--Doctor Who, Merlin, Foyle's War, Rumpole of the Bailey. Doctor Who's upcoming season is going to be the show's 50th anniversary and they are going to be pulling out all the stops. Merlin is a really entertaining show with a super-likable cast. Foyle's War (now on Netflix!) is about a police inspector during WW2--the first 4 seasons were terrific, the last couple not so much (the show is currently not being made because of a legal dispute). Rumpole was an 80's drama-comedy about a grizzled old lawyer arguing underdog cases at the Old Bailey courts (and his overbearing wife!). Plenty of great suggestions on this thread!

Time for this thread to get an update.

Just started Luther. Loving it so far. Suggestions?

Derek. Ricky Gervais has another winner.

First season of Skins is really good, season 2 was ok. then stopped watching, but loved season 1.

Isn't this that show on MTV?

MTV is the American Version. They snagged it fromthe British TV Show
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0840196/

Skins US

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1755893/

Us Version wasnt that bad, but UK was way better

Still seems really teenage soap opera-esque...

Started Robin Hood. It's decent.

Well, its about high school kids who like to party and make bad choices. lol so yeah, your exactly correct.

Try Broadchruch and Top of the Lake. Also it's not really drama but Black Mirror is absolutely brilliant.

I watch Downton Abbey and I am not afraid to say it.

While it's not a drama, more of a crude comedy really, I've recently seen some scenes from Mrs. Brown's Boys. Hilarious and raunchy comedy. Here's a sample.

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Yeah, I watched the first episode of black mirror a while back...and wow...came here and did a search, couldn't believe no one here had mentioned it yet. Haven't watched any other episodes, but will sometime this year probably.
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I'll admit, it about lost me in the first season. It was pretty hokey there for a few episodes. There were some good episodes and I was into it when



But it got soft and hokey after that.

But the last episode of the first season when he



I was like awwww hell they gone and done it.

Second season was improved particularly towards the end. Wbut they pulled out the big guns when



Didn't see that shit coming at all. Not even a little bit. But it really parlayed into season 3 very well. Season 3 was exemplary other than Prince John being over the top douchey. I really got engaged and cared about the characters. And the last 2 episodes in particular were pretty damn good tv. Maybe it is because the baby is nearly here but



I was really surprised I got that into it. Seriously. After all the hokiness of the first season, which I primarily had it on in the background while I was working at my desk, and what the hell. Marion was hot, so I kept it going. I'm really surprised I was that into it.

I think it's jumped the shark.

For a while there I was an addict.

Being Human, Dr Who, Torchwood, Shameless (US version,) Primeval, etc. For a while it seemed like everything I wanted to watch had a Brit accent.

Now the same shows with the same names are seriously trying to slumpbust...

I hooked up to Netflix UK and watched all of season 1 of Black Mirror last night. Holy shit.

I watched the show knowing nothing except the name. Imagine how completely thrown off I was for the first 15 minutes of the second episode.

If you haven't seen it, I sincerely suggest you check it out.

Black Mirror people.

Its on Directv on Demand if you got it.

I watched E1 S1 last night. Holly crap.

Peaky Blinders

so ****ing baus. It's like if Boardwalk Empire was Irish/English and wasn't total shite.

I watched the first episode and couldn't get into it. What am I missing?

Yeah for some reason when I tell people to watch this show they seem to always say the first episode is boring but it picks up afterward. The writing is sharp and the shots are gorgeous and Cillian Murphy is a smooth mother****er.

Yeah. Murphy did a nice job, I just couldn't get it. I just didn't care. I'll rewatch E1 and give it another shot.

Surprised no one has mentioned Orphan Black. Took a while, but I'm hooked and last year it cleaned up at the British TV awards.

thats cause orphan black was canadian/american i believe.

/breaks quote

black mirror, WAS a great show until someone else got their hands on it. netflix and whomever is to blame.

im on episode 5 of the new season, and although its not terrible, its not up to the same standards as the uk version. unless it gets better from here out, i will rate as disappointed.

top of the lake was new zealand btw. great show.

now this is bri-ish:

shameless

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i binge watched all 11 seasons while off work with severed tendons. the only person you may recognize is frank. he played a part in hot fuzz as the shakespearean director. i am looking and apparently episodes are on netflix (thru season 4) and maybe youtube.

its a kack!! ROFL

(eta: skins, is a good show, but the format, after a couple seasons, they introduce new characters that get or it seems, younger each batch. by the end you feel like a grown man watching real world. :D)

Did you see 'What We Do in Shadows?'

Apparently, they are turning the cops who were oblivious to the vampires and werewolves among them into a series.

not a vampire and werewolf fan. they scare me.. joking aside, still not a fan. :D

Not sure if you're familar, but What We Do in Shadows is not scary in the least.

Jemaine Clement [Flight of the Conchords] and Taika Waititi [Hunt for the Wilderpeople] made a mockumentary about the only vampires in New Zealand. They're more like Real World bozos.

It's like if Spinal Tap met Tru Blood met The Real World.

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lololol, i was worried you were talking about something dramatic. whats great was while watching the first bit, all i could think about was 'flight of the concords', then the credits rolled ROFL

but this is a bbc/uk thread and i was joking about being scared LOL :D

Everything. It's a gorgeous show with tight writing and some great acting, though Cillian Murphy steals every scene that doesn't have Tom Hardy in it.

I started watching with subtitles after a while, and that was a good move. Catch a LOT more of what's happening. I lived in England and dated a Brit for a whole, so I can generally handle the accents, but they're heavy on this show.

That's a good idea. I'll kick them on and watch it again when I get a minute.

anything bri-ish needs subtitles, you proper royal blue bell end :D

What local dialect gives you the most trouble

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Black Mirror new season is on Netflix now.

i watched yesterday, i was very disappointed. not nearly as dark themed as the original three seasons. and its no longer bri-ish either. :(

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-mkYvO8zjQs" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>ROFL

I figured Chav would be the answer, I find it intoxicating. First fell in love with it with Archie Punjabi playing Pinky in Bend it Like Beckham.

https://images.hellogiggles.com/uplo...4508/pinky.jpg

Yeah, kind of interesting how different sensibilities are. The only ultra dark episode in the American version was "shut up and dance" and even that featured british actors.

But I didn't find that disappointing. I thought the American version in many ways were dark in their realism and "this could potentially happen" stuff. I also thought San Junipero was totally different from any of the other 12 episodes, but I also think that makes it one of the best in the entire series.