New British TV Series Preview: What to Watch This Autumn & Winter

If the turn of a calendar page wasn’t enough to convince you that summer is gone and the time of long sleeves and hot chocolate is here, then the weather in the UK is a helpful reminder. Rain and cloud and a 10-degree drop in temperature are all heralds of the new season, the season of staying in and watching TV. After a long, hot summer of sport, sport and more sport, we’re finally getting some new British & Irish TV shows.

What kind of TV shows? Take your pick. There are fresh seasons of Bad Sisters, Heartstopper, Taskmaster, The Devil’s Hour and Wolf Hall. There are brand new thrillers Black Doves and Nightsleeper, there’s zombie horror-comedy Generation Z, frothy Jilly Cooper fun Rivals, the Doctor Who Christmas special (plus one each from Gavin & Stacey and Outnumbered), and a bevvy of crime dramas and mysteries to untangle. Get your mental highlighter pen out and start circling.

Bad Sisters season 2

Release date: November 13, Apple TV+

An Irish rather than British entry on this list, but forgive the aberration. If you’ve yet to meet the Garvey sisters (Eva, Grace, Ursula, Bibi and Becka), then take the necessary steps to remedy that, because better TV series are hard to find. In season one, Bad Sisters told a whodunit/howdunit story about the death of John Paul (Claes Bang), Grace’s vile and abusive husband whom the sisters gang together to take out. An Irish-set remake of Belgian series Clan and co-written by Coupling and Catastrophe’s Sharon Horgan, it was funny, dark, moving and filled with entertaining characters. Season two’s story is still under wraps, but anticipation is high.

Black Doves

Release date: tbc, Netflix

An original spy thriller from Joe Barton (the creator of The Lazarus Project and Giri/Haji – one of the most underrated thrillers of recent years), Black Doves should be at the top of your to-watch list. It stars Keira Knightley as an intelligence agent who gets into hot water when the man she’s having an affair with is caught up in the criminal underworld. Ben Whishaw and Sarah Lancashire also star, and with a cast that good, expect big things. There’s no official release date yet, but seeing as this slick, London thriller is set at Christmas, perhaps we’ll see it at the end of the year.

Curfew

Release date: tbc November, Paramount+

Jayne Cowrie’s novel After Dark joins Naomi Alderman’s The Power (now a very decent Prime Video series) in imagining a world where the gender status quo is flipped, and now it too has a TV adaptation. Coming to Paramount+ in the UK, Curfew is a murder mystery set in an imagined society where men are tagged and forced to abide by a nightly curfew. When a woman is killed, the investigation asks if and how the system failed. W1A‘s Sarah Parish, Doctor Who‘s Mandip Gill, and Alexandra Burke star.

Doctor Who 2024 Christmas Special

Release date: tbc (but definitely December 25), BBC One

Steven Moffat wrote this year’s Doctor Who Christmas special “Joy to the World”, which stars Bridgerton and Derry Girls‘ Nichola Coughlan as Joy, a young woman who… well, the story’s still mostly under wraps but it involves a hotel, a toastie and a latte, and presumably some sci-fi shenanigans. As teased at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con, the hour-long special stars Ncuti Gatwa as the Doctor, alongside Plebs‘ Joel Fry and Sherlock‘s Jonathan Aris. It’ll stream on Disney+ in the US.

Generation Z

Release date: tbc, Channel 4

The first TV series from writer-director Ben Wheatley (Kill List, Sightseers, A Field in England), Generation Z is a dark fantasy comedy about the societal clash between old and young. This six-part satirical series sees the residents of a nursing home become infected by a zombie virus that sends them thirsting for young brains. It stars Sue Johnston, Robert Lindsay, a host of new faces, and promises to be a sickening, insightful treat.

Junior Taskmaster

Release date: tbc, Channel 4

You may well be thinking, ‘Taskmaster but with kids instead of comedians? Doesn’t that sound sort of… dreadful?’ Apparently not, according to feedback from the studio records held earlier this year. The kids are apparently a take-no-prisoners delight, while new Taskmaster Rose Matafeo and her assistant Mike Wozniak hold the whole thing together with the right combo of sternness and whimsy. While no release date has yet been announced, there’s a chance we could see it straight after series 18 concludes in November.

Ludwig

Release date: tbc, BBC One

Attn: cosy crime fans! Sprightly six-part comedy-drama Ludwig has all the makings of a comfort-blanket TV classic. David Mitchell plays John, a reclusive puzzle-obsessive forced into the world when he has to investigate the disappearance of his identical twin brother… by impersonating him. Created by Mark Brotherhood, the series co-stars Motherhood‘s Anna Maxwell-Martin, Mum‘s Dorothy Atkinson, Boiling Point‘s Izuka Hoyle and We Hunt Together‘s Dipo Ola.

Mr Loverman

Release date: tbc, BBC One

Lennie James of The Walking Dead and Save Me fame plays the lead in this BBC adaptation of Booker Prize-winner Bernadine Evaristo’s novel. It’s a beautiful story about Hackney dandy Barrington Jedidiah Walker, a colourful local character whose wife suspects of cheating on her with other women. Instead, Barry’s story, as told through flashbacks, is one of bigotry, shame, repression, and a decades-old love.

Nightsleeper

Release date: September 15, BBC One & iPlayer

Remember BBC One’s Vigil? A cop on a sub has to work with her onshore team to find out which of her fellow submariners is a Russian saboteur before they launch the nukes? Nightsleeper is like that, but on a train. A Met detective (Joe Cole) on a hijacked overnight train from Glasgow to London has to work with a cyber-security expert (Alexandra Roach) to work out which of his fellow passengers is aiding the hijackers. Expect action, tension, twists and a lovely selection of regional accents in this six-part thriller.

Playing Nice

Release date: tbc, ITV

Behind that generic title is a great deal of promise, chiefly due to the names attached to this ITV thriller. Actors James Norton (Happy Valley) and Niamh Algar (Mary and George) star in this four-part adaptation of JD Delaney’s novel about two sets of parents who learn that their toddlers were swapped in hospital as babies. Do they hand over the son they’ve been raising to strangers, and take back their biological child, or keep their families intact? And how far can each couple really trust the other? Grace Ofori-Attah, the creator of Malpractice, adapts this twisting, Cornwall-set psychological thriller for ITV.

Rivals

Release date: October 18, Disney+

Double-dealing aristos do battle with venal playboys to secure TV franchise rights, against a backdrop of sex, glamour and stately homes in this Jilly Cooper adaptation. Coming to Disney+ in October, this eight-episode escapist series stars Poldark‘s Aidan Turner, Doctor Who‘s David Tennant, EastEnders‘ Danny Dyer, The IT Crowd‘s Katherine Parkinson, Sherwood‘s Claire Rushbrook, The Inbetweeners‘ Emily Atack and about a million other recognisable faces. Fingers crossed for OTT frothy fun.

Say Nothing

Release date: November 14, Disney+

Another Irish entry here (well, an Irish-US co-production), but one too good not to beat the drum for. Award-winning factual writer Patrick Radden Keefe (Empire of Pain)’s meticulous retelling of the true story of an abduction and murder in Northern Ireland has been turned into a nine episode drama for Disney+. Shardlake and Masters of the Air‘s Anthony Boyle stars with Bloodlands‘ Lola Pettigrew, and Anne‘s Maxine Peake to tell a powerful true story embedded in the political conflicts of Northern Ireland. It’ll come to FX on Hulu in the US.

Showtrial Season 2

Release date: tbc, BBC One & iPlayer

The first series of Ben Richards’ gripping Showtrial explored the murder of a university student, and the subsequent high-profile trial of a caustic and unsympathetic defendant, played brilliantly by Céline Buckens. It examined the influence that the national press and class prejudices have on the UK justice system, a theme that’s potent enough to have warranted this second series with an entirely new story and cast. This time, a climate change protester has been killed in a hit-and-run, and over five episodes, a defence solicitor (Adeel Akhtar) has to defend the police officer (Michael Socha) accused of his murder and seek out the truth.

Sweetpea

Release date: tbc October, Sky Atlantic.

Fallout and Yellowjackets‘ Ella Purnell leads this dangerous, comic story about an apparently unremarkable young woman whose ability to go unnoticed lets her get away with… murder? Adapted by Pure‘s Kirstie Swain from the novel by CJ Skuse, this six-part series looks like dark fun. It’s coming to Hulu in the US.

Taskmaster Season 18

Release date: Thursday September 19, 9pm, Channel 4.

They finally bagged Jack Dee (creator Alex Horne’s longtime dream contestant) for Taskmaster! Joining him in the ‘do very silly things for the approval of Greg Davies’ are stats-obsessed cricket fan and political satirist Andy Zaltzman, stand-up, writer and disability activist Rosie Jones, comedian and Celebrity Gogglebox-er Babatunde Aleshe, and Starstruck actor Emma Sidi. 10 episodes of the new series will air from September 19 on Channel 4, hopefully followed by the first Junior Taskmaster series (see above).

The Devil’s Hour Season 2

Release date: October 18, Prime Video

If you missed this supernatural thriller back in 2022, then there’s still time to catch up before the second instalment arrives in October (a third and final season has already been filmed). Created by Tom Moran, it stars Baptiste and Call the Midwife‘s Jessica Raine as a social worker plagued by insomnia and visions that strike at the exact same time every night. Thanks to shadowy killer Gideon Shepherd, played by Doctor Who and The Thick of It‘s Peter Capaldi, she gradually gets answers that turn the world upside down. Time loops, creepy kids, hauntings, parallel worlds, serial killers… this show has it all.

The Listeners

Release date: tbc, BBC One

The early word on this five-episode BBC drama from the Toronto International Film Festival is strong, with particular praise for Rebecca Hall’s excellent performance as Claire, a teacher whose life unravels when she’s the only person who can hear a low humming sound. Adapted by Jordan Tannahill from his own novel of the same name, The Listeners is the story of Claire’s search for answers, leading her to bond with the few people who can also hear the sound, and distancing her from her ordinary life.

Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light

Release date: tbc, BBC One

The BBC adapted the first two books in Hilary Mantel’s acclaimed Wolf Hall novel trilogy almost 10 years ago, so this follow-up has been a long time in the coming. Mark Rylance, Jonathan Pryce, Damien Lewis and more of the original cast return for the final chapter of Thomas Cromwell’s story, which sees Cromwell fall from the King’s favour as past rivalries seek to undo him. Filming concluded on this atmospheric historical drama in early 2024, so there shouldn’t be much longer to wait until we can see it.

AS WELL AS

All Creatures Great and Small season 5
Channel 5’s cosy veterinary drama continues.

Alma’s Not Normal season 2
Sophie Willan’s brilliant semi-autobiographical comedy returns to the BBC.

Amandaland
Lucy Punch stars in this Motherland spinoff focusing on tragicomic Queen Bee Amanda for the BBC.

A Very Royal Scandal
The Emily Maitlis/Prince Andrew Newsnight interview story has been dramatized again, this time for Prime Video, with Ruth Wilson and Michael Sheen, and the involvement of Maitlis. September 19.

Gavin & Stacey Christmas Special
Ruth Wilson and James Corden’s beloved BBC comedy comes back to settle the Nessa/Smithy question once and for all in this festive special.

Heartstopper season 3
Nick and Charlie’s sweet teenage love story returns for another run on Netflix. October 3.

Joan
Game of Thrones‘ Sophie Turner plays a real-life jewel thief in this 1980s-set ITV crime drama.

Miss Austen
Keeley Hawes plays Jane Austen’s sister Cassandra in this four-part BBC version of Jill Hornby’s novel.

Outnumbered Christmas Special
The Brockman family is back for a festive visit to the BBC. How does Christmas work now that the kids are all in their 20s?

Strictly Come Dancing Season 22
Dancing, sequins, “journeys”, enough Saturday nights to take us all the way to Christmas on BBC One. September 14.

The Great British Bake-Off Season 15
Baking, judging, building sculptures of your childhood fears out of shortbread… the cookery talent show is back on Channel 4. September 24th at 8pm.

The Traitors Season 3
Lies and back-stabbing in a Scottish castle. The hit reality game show returns this winter.