# Please recommend some TV, possibly British **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 27, 2013, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-some-tv-possibly-british/664693 "2013-07-27T18:48:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2013, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-some-tv-possibly-british/664693/21 "2013-07-28T00:36:13Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > I haven’t tried the UK version of “Being Human” yet - I watched a bit of the North American version, and I liked it okay, but I didn’t love it. I think the UK version is on Netflix - I’ll have to give it a try. I think the UK version of Being Human is better than the American remake. For one thing, there’s a nice mixture of drama, horror and humor. And I’d also recommend the UK original Shameless (which is in its eleventh and final series) and the teen drama Skins (which is in its seventh and final series). In particular, I liked the first two series of Skins (the first generation) and the first couple of series of Shameless (while most of the core family was still on the show). (Both of these programmes were remade for the US market, although the US Skins only lasted one season.) ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2013, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-some-tv-possibly-british/664693/22 "2013-07-28T02:05:15Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > I haven’t tried the UK version of “Being Human” yet - I watched a bit of the North American version, and I liked it okay, but I didn’t love it. I think the UK version is on Netflix - I’ll have to give it a try. It’s great, but the cast kind of revolves too much, with people leaving and so forth. It’s frustrating. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2013, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-some-tv-possibly-british/664693/23 "2013-07-28T02:15:58Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > Hustle. _Hustle_ is a brilliant suggestion. I loved loved loved this show. (I also like the US copycat show, _Leverage_) _Life on Mars_, and the sequel series _Ashes to Ashes_ are good fun. ---
**Author:** ![LMarie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c68b51/32.png) [@LMarie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LMarie)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2013, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-some-tv-possibly-british/664693/24 "2013-07-28T04:28:29Z")
Have you watched [Foyle’s War](http://movies.netflix.com/WiMovie/Foyle_s_War/70143821?trkid=2361637)? I haven’t seen it, but it’s one of my husband’s favs. ---
**Author:** ![Asympotically\_fat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e47c2d/32.png) [@Asympotically\_fat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asympotically_fat)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2013, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-some-tv-possibly-british/664693/25 "2013-07-28T05:23:46Z")
_This is England_, the film and the spin-off TV specials gets my vote for the best British drama of recent years. That said a series that I think the OP would almost certainly love is _The Returned_/_Les Revenants_ which is a French TV series currently airing in the UK. ---
**Author:** ![HenryGale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b782af/32.png) [@HenryGale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HenryGale)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2013, 6:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-some-tv-possibly-british/664693/26 "2013-07-28T06:58:20Z")
> [@glee](#): > > As you liked House of Cards (part 1 of a trilogy), I confidently recommend: > > - To Play the King (part 2) > - The final Cut (part 3) > > The funniest political comedy ever is in two parts: > > Yes, Minister > Yes, Prime Minister Ooh.. I didn’t realize it was a remake (isn’t everyrhing these days?) I think I might be too invested in Kevin Spacey’s version of Frank Underwood to switch versions in the middle, though. ---
**Author:** ![HenryGale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b782af/32.png) [@HenryGale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HenryGale)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2013, 7:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-some-tv-possibly-british/664693/27 "2013-07-28T07:02:15Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > _Lark Rise to Candleford_ won many plaudits, though I’ve not seen it. _I, Claudius_ also fits the bill. _Life on Mars_ and _Ashes to Ashes_ are excellent. > > With _Merlin_, be warned that it is very much a children’s show. Was there a new I, Claudius, or are you referring to the classic with Derek Jacobi? I vaguely remember watching it on PBS with my parents when it was new. Might be time to watch it again… ---
**Author:** ![epbrown01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7ba0ec/32.png) [@epbrown01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/epbrown01)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2013, 7:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-some-tv-possibly-british/664693/28 "2013-07-28T07:22:00Z")
> [@HenryGale](#): > > British TV we watch: Doctor Who, Sherlock, Downton Abbey, just started on Merlin > American TV we watch: Breaking Bad, The Newsroom, Dexter, Walking Dead, Game of Thrones, House of Cards, Hannibal, Bates Motel, Homeland. Gave up on True Blood, Falling Skies, and Revolution. Couldn’t get into Under the Dome. > > Past favs: Joss Whedon stuff, Fringe, Lost, BSG > > I’m asking specifically for British TV because I’m less likely to know it, but any and all recs are appreciated I’ve mentioned _Episodes_ before (and will again). Funny British/American comedy. Going back a bit, if you haven’t seen _Wonderfalls_ or _Pushing Daisies_, give them a try. I also liked _The Fades_ from BBC3 (iirc), but it only runs six episodes. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2013, 8:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-some-tv-possibly-british/664693/29 "2013-07-28T08:56:35Z")
> [@HenryGale](#): > > Ooh.. I didn’t realize it was a remake (isn’t everyrhing these days?) I think I might be too invested in Kevin Spacey’s version of Frank Underwood to switch versions in the middle, though. The original _Yes, Minister_ is a complete scream. For [example](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DGscoaUWW2M). > [@HenryGale](#): > > Was there a new I, Claudius, or are you referring to the classic with Derek Jacobi? The original. ---
**Author:** ![NAF1138](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naf1138/32/3245_2.png) [@NAF1138](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NAF1138)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2013, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-some-tv-possibly-british/664693/30 "2013-07-28T11:24:28Z")
Let me throw in a vote for the new Netflix original series _Orange is the New Black_(not British, just great), which is based on a true story about a middle class suberban type lady going to prison because of mistakes she made a decade before. It’s created by Jenji Kohan, creator of _Weeds_, and has a similar tone to the first couple of seasons of \*Weeds \*when it was still good, before it got ridiculous. It features some of the very best acting I have ever seen on television. Uzo Aduba as Crazy Eyes, is particularly good. ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2013, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-some-tv-possibly-british/664693/31 "2013-07-28T15:19:30Z")
[The Hour](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/newreply.php?do=newreply&noquote=1&p=16518807), a BBC show that also ran on BBCamerica, depicts the production of a news show on the BBC, back in the mid 50’s. We see national & international news of the day–as well as the complicated personal lives of characters played by a really superb cast. Warning: It was cancelled after two series of 6 episodes each. If you love the show as much as some of us do, this will make you very unhappy… _Parade’s End_ is a 5-hour BBC/HBO miniseries based on novels by Ford Madox Ford. Tom Stoppard wrote the script & there’s another of those excellent (mostly) British casts. Set just before & during WWI, the production values are sumptuous & the story witty & interesting. DVD’s & BluRays in the US format will be available in September. When we’ll also see if any of those 5 Emmy nominations result in awards. (_The Hour_ got 2 nominations) _The Bletchley Circle_ is another BBC series; we saw it on PBS. Set in the early 50’s, four women who’d done top secret codebreaking work during The War use their talents to find a serial killer–and stave off ennui… If all these exquisite little series leave you a bit hungry–Netflix has 5 series of _Mad Men_… ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2013, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-some-tv-possibly-british/664693/32 "2013-07-28T16:13:12Z")
[Ripper Street](http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=kCvyZ4Ll2qg&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DkCvyZ4Ll2qg)! Love it! ---
**Author:** ![Accidental\_Martyr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ce7236/32.png) [@Accidental\_Martyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Accidental_Martyr)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2013, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-some-tv-possibly-british/664693/33 "2013-07-28T20:46:32Z")
If you like the Simon Pegg/Nick Frost stuff you should probably watch _Spaced_. > **[Spaced](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spaced)** > > Spaced is a British television sitcom created, written by and starring Simon Pegg and Jessica Stevenson, and directed by Edgar Wright, about the (comedic and sometimes farcical and action-packed) misadventures of Daisy Steiner and Tim Bisley, two twenty-something Londoners who, despite only having just met, decide to move in together after she gives up on squatting and he is kicked out by his ex-girlfriend. Supporting roles include Nick Frost as Tim's best friend Mike, Katy Carmichael as Daisy... ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2013, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-some-tv-possibly-british/664693/34 "2013-07-29T14:35:23Z")
[New Tricks](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Tricks_(TV_series)), about a cold case squad in London. This isn’t your typical cold case squad in that, except for the woman in charge, its members are all officers who have retired. Plots center around the Case of the Week with bits about the squad’s personal lives, which sometimes intertwine. Like when the squad goes after the suspect in a hit & run in which the victim was the wife of one of their own. Some very good television here, I was hooked after seeing that victim’s husband attempting to run over the suspect. The Wikipedia link has a good rundown of the characters and what channels carry the show. All past seasons are also available on DVD. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-recommend-some-tv-possibly-british/664693.md?page=1)