17 British Crime Dramas That Will Have You Glued to the Couch

Happy Valley is an award-winning crime drama set in West Yorkshire in the North of England. The series follows Catherine Cawood (Sarah Lancashire), a police sergeant with a complicated family life. Cawood’s eldest child committed suicide after giving birth following a rape. When Cawood learns her daughter’s rapist is getting out of prison, she becomes obsessed with the idea of facing him, unaware of the crime syndicate he’s part of.

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Richard Gadd stars in Baby Reindeer, a Netflix drama based on his one-man show of the same name, inspired by real-life events. The show follows Donny (Gadd), a barman and aspiring comedian whose life is thrown into turmoil when a woman named Martha (Jessica Gunning) starts stalking him. Traumatic events from his past also start to interfere with his present, causing problems in his romantic relationship with Teri (Nava Mau).

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Cillian Murphy stars in this crime drama, which was inspired by a real-life crime gang that existed in the late 1800s. Taking place after World War I, Peaky Blinders follows a violent street gang led by Tommy Shelby (Murphy) as they fight for control of Birmingham and the surrounding area. The series ran for six seasons and will be followed up with an eagerly-anticipated feature-length movie.

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Before he became Christian Grey, Jamie Dornan starred in The Fall as the creepy Paul Spector, a man whose proclivities took a much more violent turn. Gillian Anderson stars as Detective Superintendent Stella Gibson, the person responsible for solving a series of grisly murders involving women. The closer Stella gets to Paul, the stranger their connection becomes.

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Famed mystery author Agatha Christie created the iconic Belgian detective Hercule Poirot, portrayed in this celebrated television adaptation by David Suchet. The talented detective has a penchant for solving even the most unexpected of crimes, and often finds himself at the center of twisted mysteries. A true classic.

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This British police procedural is set in an anti-corruption unit, tasked with investigating internal cases of wrongdoing. Detectives Kate Fleming and Steve Arnott work together under the guidance of Superintendent Ted Hastings to uncover links to organized crime and criminal activities being carried out by members of the force. The series ran for six seasons, starting out in Birmingham, England, and relocating to Belfast, Northern Ireland.

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Adapted from Harlan Coben’s novel of the same name, Netflix’s Fool Me Once is a fast-paced crime thriller starring Michelle Keegan and Joanna Lumley. Maya (Keegan) is grieving the death of her husband Joe (Armitage) who was murdered, when she thinks she sees him in a recording on her daughter’s nanny-cam. Meanwhile, Maya’s niece and nephew are traumatized following the death of their mother, and they begin seeking answers.

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Set on a fictional housing estate in London, Top Boy focuses on the lives of drug dealers Dushane (Ashley Walters) and Sully (Kane Robinson) and their associates. Dushane and Sully face violence, crime, and competition from those around them, often ending up in perilous situations. Drake is an executive producer on the show, and helped promote the series to his fanbase.

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Collateral stars Carey Mulligan as Kip Glaspie, a police inspector in London who is tasked with investigating the shooting of a pizza delivery driver. The more she discovers about the incident, Kip realizes that the crime is far from random, and appears to involve a high-level political cover-up, and some very complicated motives. Co-starring Billie Piper and John Simm.

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