The Best British TV series of 2026 (so far)

There have been a lot of great American TV shows in 2026. The likes of The Beauty (stream it in Apps > Disney+), Rooster (Sky Atlantic on demand) and The Pitt (Apps > HBO Max) have been widely praised on both sides of the Atlantic.

But it has also been a banner year for British TV in 2026. It might seem deeply un-British to shout about our success, but our little country has more than held its own with outstanding scripted dramas and comedies, plus edge-of-your-seat reality TV. 

We’re here to fly the flag for the best British TV series of 2026 so far, all of which are available to stream on Virgin TV. Let’s get into it.

Stream series 1 now in Apps > Netflix

The start of January saw the latest Agatha Christie screen adaptation for sofa sleuths, from Broadchurch creator Chris Chibnall. Set in England in 1925, the three-part series stars BAFTA Rising Star Award winner Mia McKenna-Bruce (How To Have Sex) as Lady Eileen “Bundle” Brent, a young detective who’s determined to get to the bottom of a chilling murder disguised as a practical joke gone wrong. Helena Bonham Carter (One Life), Martin Freeman (The Responder), Corey Mylchreest (Queen Charlotte), Ed Bluemel (Sex Education) and Nabhaan Rizwan (KAOS) form a stellar supporting cast.

Stream series 1 now in Apps > BBC iPlayer

Stefan Golaszewski, the writer behind acclaimed series Him & Her, Mum and Marriage, returned in April this year with a powerful love story about a couple whose hope is tested as they endure multiple miscarriages. Starring Paapa Essiedu (The Capture) and Siobhán Cullen (Bodkin), Babies showed an often-untold tale about the heartbreak of pregnancy loss, while also revealing a relationship rich in humour, warmth and unwavering love. It’s unflinching and deeply raw at times, but the series comes from the writer’s own lived experiences, and it wowed audiences and critics alike.

Stream series 1 now in Apps > Prime Video

Created by and starring Riz Ahmed (Sound Of Metal), one of Britain’s hottest properties right now, Bait is a hilarious, genre-bending comedy about an actor who tumbles into an existential crisis when he finds out he’s in contention to be the new James Bond and lands in the middle of a media storm. It’s loosely based on Ahmed’s own experiences and, at the time of writing, it holds a remarkable 97% on Rotten Tomatoes. The whole series is great, but a special shout-out to the hilarious Guz Khan (Man Like Mobeen), who might just steal the show.

Stream series 1 now in Apps > ITVX

Shaun Evans (Endeavour) is at the heart of this twisty spy thriller that’ll have you on the edge of your seat. John Hughes (Evans) is an MI5 agent struggling to navigate the fast-changing world of espionage, as well as the secrecy that it forces upon his personal life. But after receiving intel that a terrorist attack is planned on UK soil, Hughes must uncover the truth behind the plot, all while under investigation by his superiors. It’s gripping stuff, and perfect for a pre-bed binge or a lazy Sunday afternoon.

Stream series 1 now in Apps > BBC iPlayer

Dawn French leading a new sitcom is a cause for celebration in itself. Throw in the facts that Can You Keep A Secret? is very funny, it’s from the producer of This Country and the director of Ghosts, and it also stars Mark Heap – frankly one of British comedy’s MVPs – and it should warrant a national holiday. French stars as a recently widowed woman who confesses to her adult son Harry (Craig Roberts) that his dad (Heap) isn’t really dead – it was simply to claim a tidy sum from the life insurance. Shaped by writer Simon Mayhew-Archer’s own experience with his dad’s Parkinson’s disease, it’s a joy.

Stream series 1 now in Apps > Channel 4

As David Baddiel observes in the show, there have been so many programmes about dogs, but very few about cats – which is surprising, when you consider the internet you’re currently reading this on is probably 70% cat pictures and videos. This warm and frequently amusing factual series attempts to put that right as it explores our fascination with felines, speaking to famous folk, meeting cat influencers and their owners and even attending the cat equivalent of Crufts. Baddiel also deals with the sadder part of cat ownership: how you say goodbye to a beloved kitty.

Stream series 1 now in Apps > Paramount+

This British series based on Hollie Overton’s novel Baby Doll follows twin sisters Lily and Abby, whose lives are shattered when Lily is abducted from their quiet English town by a beloved local teacher. After years of abuse in captivity, Lily escapes, but discovers the world she longed to return to has moved on without her. A stellar cast includes Alfie Allen (Game Of Thrones) and Jill Halfpenny (The Cuckoo). While the critics loved it, it’s one of the shows on this list that feels a bit like a hidden gem, so don’t delay – get streaming.

Stream series 1 now in Apps > Netflix

Ever since Derry Girls wrapped in 2022, we’ve been wondering what was next for its creator, Lisa McGee. The answer: this raucous comedy thriller that’ll blow your socks off. The eight-parter follows the misadventures of three best friends, who return to their hometown following the death of an estranged member of their childhood gang. When some weird events unfold at the wake, the group sets off on an odyssey to uncover the truth about their past. Bonkers and bingeable, it stars Roísín Gallagher (The Dry), Sinéad Keenan (Unforgotten) and Caoilfhionn Dunne (A Thousand Blows).

Stream series 4 now in Apps > Prime Video. Series 1-3 also available

It’s no understatement to say that Industry – the outrageous drama set in the cutthroat world of London finance – remains the best show on TV that is somehow still a little under the radar. At its centre is the relationship between hardworking and brilliant grifter Harper Stern (Myha’la) and overlooked heiress Yasmin Kara-Hanani (Marisa Abela), frenemies whose lives would never have crossed were it not for the trading room floor. In series 4, with their graduate programme a distant memory, the pair are drawn into a high-stakes, globetrotting cat-and-mouse game. As shocking as it has always been.

Stream series 2 now in Apps > Prime Video. Series 1 also available

Who’d have thought that the show where you’re not allowed to crack a smile would turn out to be the funniest thing on TV? A simple premise – you laugh, you’re out – has attracted some of the nation’s greatest comics to Last One Laughing UK. After a joyful first series, the difficult second album proved to be anything but, largely down to another quality line-up of comedians including Alan Carr, Gbemisola Ikumelo, Diane Morgan, David Mitchell, Romesh Ranganathan and Sam Campbell. A Halloween special follows later this year, with a third series already in the works.

Stream it now in Apps > BBC iPlayer

Adapted for TV by Jack Thorne (Adolescence, His Dark Materials), the acclaimed four-part series – incredibly – heralded the first time that William Golding’s popular book about schoolboys stranded on an island with no adults has been made for the small screen. Not surprisingly, its cast is made up of young newcomers, with each episode titled after a character at the core of the story. Tapping into similar themes like loss of innocence and boyhood masculinity that Thorne did so devastatingly in Adolescence, it’s a difficult but essential watch.

Stream series 1 in TLC on demand

This revival probably wasn’t on your 2026 bingo card. Mock The Week’s original BBC run ended in 2022, but it returned in February for a new series on TLC. Dara Ó Briain is again on hosting duties, and there’s now an expanded runtime and new rounds, including “You Think That’s Bad?” where panellists try to outdo each other with their anecdotes of woe. Guests included Russell Howard, Katherine Ryan, Sara Pascoe, Hugh Dennis, and regular team captain Rhys James. Series 23 (or series 2 if you’re just counting TLC ones) is due in September.

Stream series 2 now in Apps > BBC iPlayer. Series 1 also available

The 2016 adaptation of John le Carré’s spy thriller starring Tom Hiddleston, Hugh Laurie and Olivia Colman was one of the best TV shows in recent memory, but it wrapped up the story in quite a neat bow. So, the return of Hiddleston’s former military officer and hotel night manager Jonathan Pine 10 years later was quite the surprise. But boy, when it returned at the start of 2026, it really stuck the landing. Rather than rehashing the first series, it took Hiddleston’s former British intelligence operative to the brink, with betrayal at every turn and some truly shocking moments you definitely don’t want spoiled.

Stream series 1 in Sky One on demand

It did feel as if a lot of people wanted Saturday Night Live UK to fail on arrival. Maybe it’s the perfect example of how US and British audiences differ, but the idea of this American institution working on our side of the pond seemed ludicrous to some. Yet it has been a massive success, mixing a peerless cast including Hammed Animashaun, George Fouracres, Ania Magliano, Al Nash and Jack Shep (AKA Princess Diana) with excellent guest hosts like Tina Fey, Riz Ahmed and Jack Whitehall, who have thrown themselves into everything.

Stream series 1 now in Apps > BBC iPlayer

Detectorists creator/star Mackenzie Crook made a welcome return with his surrealist new comedy. Eccentric widower Michael (Detectorists’ Pearce Quigley), bored with his humdrum life working in a hardware store, decides to follow the advice his father (Michael Palin) gave him by trying to create Homunculi, magical spirits that predict the future. It has wit, wonder and whimsy, and it’s a series that intertwines live action with imaginative animation. Crook co-stars along with Sophie Willan (Alma’s Not Normal), Jon Pointing (Big Boys) and Lauren Patel (Waterloo Road). One more series has been promised.

Stream series 1 now in Apps > Prime Video

Sophie Turner (Joan) is just your average office worker until her life is changed forever when she’s caught up in a tense heist in this thriller series. Zara (Turner) and her co-worker Luke (Archie Madekwe, Saltburn) are having a seemingly ordinary day at their investment company – until a gang of armed thieves storm their office and demands access to billions of pounds of people’s pensions. DCI Rhys (Jacob Fortune-Lloyd, Bodies) is sent to save the day, but first he must move past his own gambling addiction as competing interests start to surface. Compelling viewing.

Stream series 4 now in Apps > BBC iPlayer. Series 1-3 also available

After Alan Carr stole the show in The Celebrity Traitors (full series also on BBC iPlayer now), there was a real fear that the civilian OG show could feel a bit flat. After all, how could a bunch of unknowns compete with Carr murdering Ceila Imrie and Paloma Faith? But the strength of The Traitors is reinvention, which it immediately did with the Secret Traitor, a Welsh agent of chaos named Fiona who tried to blow the game up. Then there was Harriet, a kamikaze traitor hunter who decided to blow herself up. Plus, secret family relationships. Secret couples. A traitor trained by the FBI (lol). It had it all.

Stream series 1 now in Apps > BBC iPlayer

The long-awaited follow-up to mockumentaries Twenty Twelve and W1A sees Hugh Bonneville reprise his role as Ian Fletcher, this time as Director of Integrity as part of an Oversight Team to deliver a seamless and – for legal purposes – unnamed football tournament in the USA, Canada and Mexico that is happening in 2026. What could go wrong? Hugh Skinner (Fleabag) is back as the hapless Will Humphries – now Ian’s PA – while David Tennant also returns to dryly narrate proceedings. Look out for some side-splitting celebrity cameos.

Stream series 1 now in Sky Atlantic on demand

Starring Kelly Reilly (Yellowstone) and Rafe Spall (The English), this brooding Sky Original is set in the fictional Welsh town of Morfa Halen, a tight-knit community precariously nestled between towering mountains and a fast-encroaching sea that threatens its very existence. An intimate and cinematic story, Under Salt Marsh takes audiences into the heart of a community bound by nature and fractured by an unthinkable crime.

Stream series 1 now in Apps > BBC iPlayer

This six-episode series from Dennis Kelly, whose CV includes the seminal comedy Pulling, the powerful lockdown drama Together and the ambitious and stylish conspiracy thriller Utopia, is simply mesmerising. Dan (Josh Finan) is a philosopher who begins teaching a class in prison but begins to unearth his own buried trauma, causing him to obsessively worry that he belongs behind bars like his father. We’ll be floored if this doesn’t scoop the awards it so clearly deserves.

Stream it now in Apps > Channel 4

Channel 4’s first screen adaptation of Barbara Taylor-Bradford’s bestselling novel set the record for the network’s highest-ever audience for a single show. Now, the rags-to-riches revenge romp has been reimagined with Vera star Brenda Blethyn. The series follows impoverished maid Emma Harte – played by both Blethyn and Jessica Reynolds (House Of Guinness) – who embarks on a dizzying journey to become the 20th century’s richest woman. Emmett J Scanlan (How To Get To Heaven From Belfast), Lenny Rush (Am I Being Unreasonable?) and Jo Joyner (The Wives) also star.

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