Megan Furniss is addicted to watching series, and is therefore qualified to call some of the best British TV series out there!
MEGAN FURNISS
I am addicted to binge watching series. I am currently obsessed with Better Call Saul, the spin-off prequel to Breaking Bad (confession: I have not watched Breaking Bad, but I am definitely going to have to). I have binge watched a few really good series, and even some not so good ones, and here is a list of some of the ones that got me hooked, in no particular order. And look. They are all British.
Last Tango In Halifax (2012)
This most delicious series is a high class soap opera. It is a love story spanning 50 years, and many family members, and it has a spectacular cast including Anne Reid, Derek Jacobi, Sarah Lancashire and Nicola Walker. It has everything a good family drama needs; old secrets, dysfunctional relationships, teenage pregnancies, betrayals, affairs, bigotry, age gaps, rural vs urban, rich vs poor, and of course, love and death.
Happy Valley (2014)
Sarah Lancashire stars as a sergeant with her own family problems, but she gets drawn into a terrible crime drama. The acting is gritty and real, and the tension of this piece, with abuse at its core, is utterly gripping. I saw it ages ago and I still think about it. Family history and secrets, the face of evil, the peculiarity of the law.
River (2015)
This is another riveting crime drama, starring Nicola Walker and Stellan Skarsgård, with an original storyline. River is a police inspector who is haunted by the victims of the crimes he needs to solve; particularly that of his late partner. Loved it.
Humans (2015)
This sci-fi series starring Gemma Chan, Katherine Parkinson and even William Hurt (in the first season) is a take on what happens when AI robots, created to be domestic slaves, become sentient. Beautifully shot, with haunting performances and a devastating plot, this was far better and more satisfying than Westworld.
Broadchurch (2013)
I think I love Olivia Colman the best. But that is not why Broadchurch is everybody’s most favourite series of series (with three seasons under its belt). A gripping, complex crime drama with red herrings galore and fabulous performances from everybody, we keep going back to Broadchurch for more. I love how a brand new storyline in season 3 was able to integrate so well with the previous seasons.
The Fall (2013)
Two seasons of this gory and gritty crime drama about a serial killer star Gillian Anderson like you have never seen her, and Jamie Dornan who will never be seen like this again. Set in Belfast, which is a bleak backdrop to the hunt for this complex killer by an equally complex detective, I was hooked, horrified and fascinated. Bleak and brilliant.
Babylon (2014)
Although there were only seven episodes of this totally underrated mockumentary style satire about a contemporary London police force, I loved it. I found it real, surprising, horrifying and hilarious. It stars Brit Marling (OA), James Nesbitt, Nicola Walker and Paterson Joseph, to name a ridiculous few of this extraordinary cast.
The Detectorists (2014)
Of all the series I have loved, I still return to this one as an all time favourite. I can’t even remember why we decided to give it a bash, but before I knew it we were searching for the second season and swallowing it whole. Created by and starring Mackenzie Crook, and co-starring Toby Jones, this is the sweetest, wackiest, and most charming comedy series about a couple of weekend hobbyists who are obsessed metal detectorists. The episodes are very short, and there are only six in each season, but it is enough to fall in love in. I dream of being in a series like this (and Schitt’s Creek).
WS
