British & Foreign Mystery & Police Shows Updated!
I find it to be more work and less relaxing to watch police dramas, but I have mostly exhausted all the British comedies and supernatural shows. And while these shows are more work, they are extremely entertaining and well done. I absolutely love British actors and actresses.
So, what a gift it is to have Brenda Blethyn as Vera in over a dozen series of the show!
My new additions to the list of excellent police dramas, mostly British, and all great:
Vera – (Britbox) – Generally 4 episodes a season, over an hour an episode, this is an excellent police drama, great cast.
Under the Vines – (Acorn) – she’s Mrs. Rafter from The Rafters!
Beyond Paradise – (Britbox) spin-off of Death in Paradise, this is just as good!
Arctic Circle – (Amazon) Finnish police drama, excellent acting and gripping story. Amazing scenery as well. Season 2 is on another channel that I do not yet subscribe to.
One Lane Bridge – (Acorn) This is from New Zealand and is an excellent supernatural/police drama combo. Two seasons are here, one is on Sundance which I do not subscribe to.
The Stranger – (Netflix) gripping police drama and you do not need my British streaming channels!
My Life is Murder – (Acorn) This Australian cozy mystery stars Lucy Lawless and was one that grew on my quickly. Great show!
The Law According to Lidia Poët – (Netflix) – great lawyer type drama, and it is a period piece which I do not usually like, but this one is good!
Update 9/20/23
Cannes Confidential – (Acorn) Cute, Fench, cozy-ish.
McDonald & Dobbs – (BritBox) a cozy mystery that is very charming!
Balthazar – (Prime Video) – French with subtitles, well done mystery with a handsome coroner who is so smart!
Marcella – (Netflix) She is a great op, albeit nuts!
Honorable mention to the most charming show ever, The Larkins, on Acorn, season two was just released. Family comedy drama-ish, this should not be missed. The series is the most recent adaptation of H. E. Bates novel The Darling Buds of May, and I hear the others are also very good, the last one introduced us to a new actress, Catherine Zeta Jones!
The below is a reprint of my last article before this update, with all the other recommendations I have, and they are all fantastic! 
NEW FINDS!
Slow Horses (Apple) – Excellent drama around MI5 Agents! With Gary Oldman as well!
Screw (Prime) – stars Jamie-Lee O’Donnell of Derry Girls fame. This prison drama is very good!
Recipes For Love and Murder (ACORN) – another cozy mystery/murder show. Set in South Africa, this show is utterly charming!
Darby & Joan (ACORN) – a cozy mystery, Aussie and excellent!
Midsomer Murders (ACORN) – over 20 seasons, very enjoyable watching cozy mysteries.
Alert – I subscribe to Acorn TV and BritBox streaming services where the majority of these programs are available. Most of the US streaming services have some excellent non-US programming so don’t miss those if you don’t have the British channels. PS PBS has a lot of some of the same British shows as an alternative!
Foreign (British+) Police Plus Dramas from overseas are excellent! I find it better produced than the options on America TV. I do not like drama, after all, drama is what we live through every day! But I ran out of shows, and started on police dramas and others. I get FB recommendations from groups that I am part of and they are spot on. There are some fantastic shows outside of the US!
PS, I love recommendations from folks who can pass along shows that they think are great!
The following shows receive my highest recommendation. They are all terrific!
George Gently– (Acorn) The show is set in the 60’s, but was filmed in the 2000’s. Besides the interesting historical perspective, George is a cop who likes to see justice down. I love this show.
Stay Close – (Netflix) – one season, gripping and enjoyable crime drama!
New Tricks – (BritBox) – a currently employed Detective forms a team with three retired detectives and they solve old crimes. 12 great seasons!
Senora Volpe – (Acorn) Emilia Fox is good, the series is very short so far, and great tv watching. Plus, it’s in Italy!
Line of Duty – (BritBox) one case covered over each season. Excellent television show, and exhausting, hard not to binge entire seasons!
Bodyguard – (Netflix) The handsome Richard Madden (Cinderella, etc.) is terrific in this, and Keeley Hawkes from the Durrells is also very good in this gripping government/police vs. terrorism drama set in London.
Sherlock – (HBOMax) – Benedict Cumberbatch is amazing.
Lupin – (Netflix) Fantastic!
Pine Gap – (Netflix) Australian spy drama. Very enjoyable.
Doctor Foster – not a police drama, but excellent family drama!
No Offence – (Acorn) Police drama, I was hooked within minutes through all three seasons!
Scott & Bailey – (BritBox) – excellent police drama mixed with life drama!
Cozy Mysteries!
-There is an additional genre of crime/police dramas that I consider less serious, and all with a certain amount of comedy. They are highly entertaining, and when the heavy drama gets to be too much, I fall back on these extremely pleasant and entertaining shows!
Agatha Raisin – (Acorn) – murders weekly in the Cotswold! Funny and entertaining, season four is here!
The Madame Blanc Mysteries – (Acorn) – You know her from Mt. Pleasant, you know him from Benidorm, and guess who is from Mrs. Brown’s Boys! I totally enjoyed this show.
Death in Paradise – (BritBox) – One murder per episode. The writing must be good, as I really feel for all the characters. And so many Brits appear throughout the 10 seasons! SPIN-OFF COMING!
Shakespeare & Hathaway – (BritBox) – Charming PI’s, solving one mystery per episode. Easy to binge and enjoy! She was the Principal in Ackley Bridge.
**Good Kharma Hospital** – (Acorn) – great hospital drama, showcases India. Binge-worthy! You’ll recognize Dr. Fonseca from New Tricks and At Home with the Braithwaites!
There are at least 12 shows in my police/crime/drama queue. I will keep adding and updating this post as I start to view them all!
Other British Categories With Great Recommendations:
Panel Shows – not something done in the US, but done brilliantly in the UK!
Please leave a comment if you have any non-US shows that you absolutely loved! I will report back!
Thank you for this list. I am a fan of British mysteries and some of these are new to me. I am looking forward to checking them out.
Have you watched The Brokenwood Mysteries (Acorn TV)? It’s murder mysteries, but more comedy than drama. It is set in New Zealand and has a great cast of quirky reoccurring characters. I absolutely love it!!
Thanks