New Seasons of British TV

ByD'Ann Mateer
16 Comments

We are huge fans of British TV, mostly for the depth of character in the storytelling. And the accents. And the scenery. 

Anyway, a whole slew of our shows—almost all of them murder mysteries (which at this moment are not the intense police drama kind) are in new seasons so I thought I’d share. 

Note: we have both BritBox and AcornTV streaming services. Some of these shows might be found elsewhere but I’m not certain. 

Sister Boniface Mysteries

These mysteries, a spinoff of Father Brown (small town, 1960s England), have been so fun. Sister Boniface, a nun who dabbles in chemistry and biology, helps out on the pathology end of the murders and often finds the key to solving the crime.

Death in Paradise

This series has gone through so many cast changes in all its years, but so seamlessly that it never loses its appeal. There is always a quirky British detective inspector who leads his team of locals on a fictional Caribbean island. The scenery is always great and the cast of characters delightful.

Harry Wild

Jane Seymour (yes, that Jane Seymour!) plays a retired English professor who solves mysteries with her young sidekick—to the consternation of her police detective son. This fun one is set in Ireland. 

Beyond Paradise

This spin-off from Death in Paradise began last year. DI Humphrey Goodman, a former Death in Paradise detective, moves back to England with the woman he loves and solves crimes in Devon. His quirkiness is so endearing. 

The Brokenwood Mysteries

This murder mystery series is set in a small town (Brokenwood) in New Zealand. A great cast of characters and a lot of humor. 

And the one non-murder mystery show but perhaps the one we are currently anticipating most: 

Escape to the Country

This is basically House Hunters in the British countryside! Not only do you get to see some amazing houses, but you also learn about different areas of the country. We have put so many places on our travel wish list after watching this show! 

Finally, if you enjoy British shows as well as movies that tell a true story, I urge you to watch Mr. Bates vs. The Post Office on PBS. Such a well-written, well-acted, true (and still ongoing) story that will both tear your heart out and make you cheer. 

Do you enjoy British shows? Which ones are you currently watching?

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Inspired by novelist Eugenia Price, D’Ann’s dream of writing historical fiction with an element of faith began in middle school, though her serious drive toward publication took a bit longer. D’Ann is the author of four historical novels and one novella, as well as a contemporary short stories in a compilation volume. D’Ann and her husband of 30 years can be found in Austin, TX when they aren’t touring historic sites or visiting their grown children.

16 Comments

  1. We love those shows. But haven’t tried the Escape to the Country one. We just finished Foyles War! Excellent. We have tried Walter Presents subtitled ones too. One that is both on that and in Eglish is Professor T. The English version has Ben Miller who was one of the Detectives on Daeth in Paradise and he was a crazy guy on Doc Martin, which is another great show to stream.
    Have you seen Shakespeare and Hathaway or Whitstable Pearl?
    Another couple favorites are Mary Berry baking shows that showcase her home and family. And Jaime Oliver, same home and family!

    1. I love Foyle’s War! I’m on my second time through that one. Professor T is great, too! We’ve enjoyed Whitstable Pearl as well. I hope there will be more seasons of that one. Haven’t done Shakespeare and Hathaway! We’ll have to try that one. We can’t do too many baking shows or my husband will bake all the time and I’ll weigh far too much! 😂

  3. I LOVE British shows! I haven’t seen any of these, however, because I mostly watch on Prime via my PBS monthly subscription.

  4. This was a fun post, D’Ann. I too love British shows, especially cozy mysteries. All of my favorites have been mentioned in either your post or the comments & there are a couple I will have to look into! Death in Paradise and Beyond Paradise are my faves, because there’s often a variation of the locked room mystery, so you’re not only trying to figure out whodunit but also how?

  5. D’Ann, you’ve listed favorites of mine. I didn’t know about Escape to the Country. I’ll have to look it up. Mr. Bates vs. the Post Office made me so angry (not at the show but at the true story it springs from). It is well-worth watching but so frustrating to watch how lives can be destroyed. I’m a “justice” kind of gal, and knowing the story goes on is what made me angry.

    1. Agreed! But we loved how well they told the story in the movie. The documentary was great too. Escape to the Country is so wonderful! And so many seasons for you to catch up on! 🙂

  6. I’ve been a long time fan of PBS’s “Masterpiece” since the late 1990s. I’ve recognized many British actors and actresses from “Masterpiece” productions over the years. Whether starting out or long time, it’s fun to spot familiar faces. Some of them have appeared in TV shows here stateside.
    WETA, the PBS affiliate for Washington, DC, broadcasts popular British shows. It’s a mix of older titles and new ones. (There’s WETA UK, which broadcasts the best of British TV. Select “Masterpiece” titles have rebroadcasted on this channel)
    If your local public library system subscribes to Kanopy, you can watch select BBC titles, free with your library card!(Kanopy is a comparable service to Hoopla) Please note some of the BBC shows have a mature audience rating and labeled in the show description.

  7. Good information for people to know! I think our love of masterpiece theatre drew us to the British TV streaming services. We don’t do Netflix or Hulu, just our Brit ones along with PBS 😂

  8. Oh, you hit my sweet spot with this post!
    I am well acquainted with several of your suggestions and love watching them.
    Harry Wild, Beyond Paradise and The Brokenwood Mysteries are new to me. I will definately look them up.
    We had a channel here in Colorado that played 3 hours of Escape to the Country every week day for two years. This ended on January 1. Yes, it was hard.

    1. 3 hours of Escape to the Country? Joy! Yes, check out the ones you don’t know. FYI–we watched the first new Harry Wild the other night and I’d forgotten there is definitely some language in that one. Not a ton, but it’s there.

  9. After many years, I finally persuaded the hubby to take a chance on Masterpiece, and now he is completely hooked on “All Creatures” and “Grantchester.” (I wish he had tried “Poldark”!) “Mr. Bates” was heartbreaking, and I do hope more and more of those wronged subpostmasters find restitution. At least the wheels of justice seem to be turning more quickly since the series first aired in the UK back in January. Public opinion has helped! A personal favorite is “Call the Midwife.” We are going to wait and see with “Miss Scarlet,” as we will miss the Duke.

  10. I love British shows! Sister Boniface is on PBS. I have seen Midsummer Murders up to season 24. So not most recent episodes.

    Mainly watch PBS, PRIME and Roku. Pluto TV has Britbox for free too.

    Escape to the County is good too.Like the newest shows.

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