Best British crime dramas
British crime drama does bleak coastal towns, police corruption and London gangs better than almost anyone. Every show here is a UK production with crime or mystery at its core. Every pick has a TMDB rating of 7.0 or more from at least 60 votes, and new releases wait until their ratings settle. The order follows the Boxlist quality score, and we checked the list by hand to remove obvious misfits.
- 1
Sherlock (2010)
TV8.5
A modern update finds the famous sleuth and his doctor partner solving crime in 21st century London.
US Amazon Prime (buy), Google Play (buy), UK BBC, NowTV
- 2
Peaky Blinders (2013)
TV8.6
A gangster family epic set in 1919 Birmingham, England and centered on a gang who sew razor blades in the peaks of their caps, and their fierce...
US Netflix, Amazon Prime (buy), UK BBC, Netflix
- 3
- 4
Line of Duty (2012)
TV8.3
A drama about the investigations of AC-12, a controversial police anticorruption unit.
US Acorn TV, Amazon Prime, UK BBC, Amazon Prime (buy)
- 5
The Day of the Jackal (2024)
TV8.3
An unrivalled and highly elusive lone assassin, the Jackal, makes his living carrying out hits for the highest fee.
- 6
Luther (2010)
TV7.9
A dark psychological crime drama starring Idris Elba as Luther, a man struggling with his own terrible demons, who might be as dangerous as the...
US BritBox, Tubi TV, UK BBC, Amazon Prime (buy)
- 7
Broadchurch (2013)
TV7.9
The murder of a young boy in a small coastal town brings a media frenzy, which threatens to tear the community apart.
US Amazon Prime, PBS, UK ITV, Amazon Prime (buy)
- 8
Adolescence (2025)
TV7.8
When a 13-year-old is accused of the murder of a classmate, his family, therapist and the detective in charge are all left asking: what really...
- 9
Gangs of London (2020)
TV8.0
When the head of a criminal organisation, Finn Wallace is assassinated, the sudden power vacuum his death creates threatens the fragile peace...
US Amazon Prime, AMC, UK NowTV, Amazon Prime (buy)
- 10
The Night Manager (2016)
TV7.9
Former British soldier Jonathan Pine navigates the shadowy recesses of Whitehall and Washington where an unholy alliance operates between the...
US Amazon Prime, BritBox, UK Amazon Prime, BBC
- 11
The Fall (2013)
TV7.8
When the Police Service of Northern Ireland are unable to close a case after 28 days, Detective Superintendent Stella Gibson of the Metropolitan...
US Acorn TV, Amazon Prime, UK BBC, Netflix
- 12
Taboo (2017)
TV7.9
Adventurer James Keziah Delaney returns to London from Africa in 1814 along with fourteen stolen diamonds to seek vengeance after the death of his...
US IMDB TV, Popcornflix, UK BBC, Netflix
- 13
Bodyguard (2018)
TV7.9
A troubled war veteran is assigned to protect a controversial politician who may be the target of a terror plot.
US Netflix, Amazon Prime (buy), UK Netflix, Amazon Prime (buy)
- 14
Disclaimer (2024)
TV7.4
When an intriguing novel appears at the bedside of a journalist whose career has been built on revealing transgressions, she is horrified to...
- 15
The Stranger (2020)
TV7.6
A web of secrets sends family man Adam Price on a desperate quest to uncover the truth about the people closest to him.
US Netflix, UK Netflix
- 16
The Missing (2014)
TV7.1
A gripping anthological relationship thriller series exploring the emotional fallout of a child's abduction not only on the family but on the...
US Amazon Prime, STARZ, UK BBC, Disney
- 17
The Serpent (2021)
TV7.6
The remarkable story of how murderer Charles Sobhraj was captured.
US Netflix, UK Netflix, Amazon Prime (buy)
Ratings are TMDB audience scores out of 10. Where to watch shows up to two services each for the UK and US.
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