London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Sep 25, 2026

The 10 Best British Shows to Watch If You Loved Bridgerton

The 10 Best British Shows to Watch If You Loved Bridgerton

Bridgerton’s first season may have only made its Netflix debut back in December, but it’s already become the streaming giant’s most-watched original series ever, reaching 82 million households around the world during its first 28 days online.

It’s not hard to see why: With its combination of salacious, gossipy story lines courtesy of TV mastermind Shonda Rhimes and its sumptuous, high-budget period trappings-not to mention its long-overdue use of color-conscious casting-Bridgerton has all the makings of the perfect binge-watch.

And while Bridgerton fans can rest safe in the knowledge that a second season is already in the works, what is there to watch in the meantime? Fret not! A plethora of British delights is streamable these days, if you know where to look. We’ve picked 10 shows that tick all of your Bridgerton boxes, with detailed period sets, costumes, and that quintessential stiff upper lip. Check out the list below for upcoming, new, and recent shows to watch if you loved Bridgerton.

Victoria




Fans who thrilled in The Crown’s travails of Queen Elizabeth II will also undoubtedly find themselves fascinated with this series about her ancestor Queen Victoria. Three seasons of Victoria have aired, and showrunner Daisy Goodwin has said there will be five altogether, taking the story all the way up to the death of Queen Victoria. -Emma Specter

Gentleman Jack




How to Watch: Stream on Amazon

If you like your period British dramas with a side of lesbian intrigue, Gentleman Jack is the show for you. The HBO/BBC production takes place in West Yorkshire, England, in 1832 and features Suranne Jones as Anne Lister, a landowner fighting to save her ancestral home (and indulging in then taboo romances along the way). Based on a true story, this show makes the perfect rainy-Sunday binge-watch, with a second season debuting later this year. -E.S.

Belgravia




How to Watch: Stream on Amazon

Few British period TV shows have received the same kind of feverish anticipation as Belgravia ahead of its release last April, thanks in no small part to its reuniting of the team behind the beloved Downton Abbey. Based on a 2016 novel by the show’s creator, Julian Fellowes, Belgravia follows the lives and loves of both the aristocrats and servants who populate a well-heeled London borough in the 19th century, hitting the perfect Bridgerton sweet spot between soap opera and prestige drama. -Liam Hess

Gunpowder




How to Watch: Stream on Amazon

This BBC miniseries starring Game of Thrones’s Kit Harington-who also produced the show-takes place three centuries before Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation, during a much more violent time for the royal family. The show is based on the real-life 17th-century Gunpowder Plot, in which a group of English Catholics tried to blow up the House of Lords and kill the King of England. Another opportunity to see Harington onscreen is just a perk. -E.S.

Poldark




How to Watch: Stream on Amazon

If you ever found yourself wishing that things got a little steamier on Bridgerton, PBS’s Poldark has a smoldering ex–Revolutionary War soldier returning home, where the next battle is for his heart. But seriously, Poldark manages to be both cheesy and well written and acted (it’s Masterpiece, after all)-the best of both worlds. -E.S.

A Very English Scandal




How to Watch: Stream on Amazon

If you’re looking for a story packed with gossipy intrigue, A Very English Scandal has all of that and a side of social commentary too. Created by Russell T Davies, the highly respected producer behind Queer as Folk, the Doctor Who reboot, and most recently HBO’s It’s a Sin, this one-off series stars Hugh Grant and Ben Whishaw. Retelling the true story of British member of parliament Jeremy Thorpe and the furor caused by his bungled assassination attempt of his male lover, it’s Grant’s darkly comic (and Emmy-nominated) turn as the disgraced politician that steals the show. -L.H.

Call the Midwife




How to Watch: Stream on Netflix

Call the Midwife takes place in London in the 1950s and ’60s at the beginning of Elizabeth II’s reign and follows a group of nurse-midwives. If that sounds like a sleepy premise, it isn’t what you think. The show, now in its ninth season, is incredibly emotionally gripping, as it follows the nurses while they head into impoverished parts of the city to try to help other women. -E.S.

Grantchester




How to Watch: Stream on Amazon

Set in a similar era to Call the Midwife, Grantchester has not just a hunky lead (James Norton) as its draw, though that is certainly a major reason to tune in. Norton plays a Cambridgeshire clergyman who ends up solving murders in the bucolic village where he is a vicar. Grantchester has a uniquely high crime rate and a very hip jazz club-a combination you never knew you wanted. -E.S.

All Creatures Great and Small




How to Watch: Stream on Amazon

Produced by the BBC and now available to view on PBS, All Creatures Great and Small is a charming interwar drama about a vet working in the Yorkshire Dales, with a perfectly escapist love story that will appeal to anyone who found themselves a little sappy watching Bridgerton’s romantic plotlines. As Vogue’s Marley Marius wrote last month, “it would make for pleasant viewing any year, but with, well, everything going on, the show’s verdant landscapes and uncomplicated ethics feel especially welcome this winter.” -L.H.

Parade’s End




How to Watch: Stream on Amazon

Based on the novel by Ford Madox Ford, the BBC’s Parade’s End is heart-wrenching, romantic, and suspenseful. Viewers who prefer period detail in their television fare can take in the gnarly battle scenes and beautiful dinner parties, studded by star performances from Benedict Cumberbatch and Rebecca Hall. With a script written by Tom Stoppard, every element of this World War I–era love triangle is perfectly paced, to climactic effect. Bring tissues. -E.S.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Vistry Cuts Profit Outlook as Losses Deepen and Private Home Sales Weaken
Reported Assaults on Great Britain’s Railways Rise Sharply
Far-Right Activist Daniel Thomas Arrested After Channel Dinghy Slashing
Ukrainians in Britain Face Greater Homelessness Risk as Host Payments Are Cut
Scottish Drug Deaths Rise as Synthetic Opioids Spread
UK Diesel Prices Approach Record High as Energy Costs Intensify
UK Food and Drink Trade Deficit Widens to Record £21 Billion
Britain’s Largest Planned AI Supercomputer Delayed by Power Grid Constraints
NHS Boards Impose Minimum Waits of Up to Two Years for ADHD and Autism Assessments
Police Arrest Far-Right Activist After Migrant Dinghy Slashed in English Channel
Synthetic Opioids Drive Renewed Rise in Scotland’s Drug Deaths
Reported Assaults on Britain’s Railways Rise 20% in a Year
Vistry Cuts Profit Forecast as Losses Weigh on UK Housebuilder
TikTok Drops Appeal and Accepts £12.7 Million UK Data Protection Fine
Russell Group Urges UK Government to Drop Proposed International Student Levy
Legal & General Plans to Cut 1,000 Jobs by Mid-2027
UK Health Bill Would Remove Independent Governors From NHS Foundation Trusts
BMA Raises Patient Safety Concerns Over Advanced Practitioners Filling Doctor Rotas
UK’s Largest AI Supercomputer Delayed by Power Supply Constraints
NHS Orders Security Cameras in Neonatal Units Following Thirlwall Inquiry
Post-Brexit Trade Barriers Cost UK Economy Up to £6.5 Billion a Year, Analysis Says
UK Parliament Launches Inquiry Into Bank of England Monetary Policy Independence
Global Bond Selloff and Higher Oil Prices Narrow UK Budget Options
UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham Addresses UN and Holds First Meeting With Donald Trump
Royal Navy Commandos Complete Maritime Operations Training With US Navy SEALs
Vistry Profit Warning Adds to Concerns Over UK Housebuilding Conditions
UK Commits £343 Million to Major Expansion of Community Mental Health Services
Five Eyes Partners Back UK-Led Campaign Against Global Fraud Networks
UK Businesses Gain Full Access to £13 Trillion CPTPP Trading Bloc
UK Allocates Nearly £10 Billion for Council, Social and Affordable Housing
Chancellor John Healey Unveils Deregulation Drive to Accelerate UK Investment and Growth
Prime Minister Andy Burnham Sets Out Post-Brexit Foreign Policy Vision at United Nations
UK Reassesses Chagos Arrangements as Burnham Seeks New Path on Diego Garcia
Key Trends to Watch
Government’s “Buy British” Procurement Push Targets More Domestic Jobs and Industrial Capacity
Scotland Launches Four-Year Flood Resilience Programme With New Community Funding
Low-Income Renters Face Record Gap Between Housing Support and Private Rents
UK and US Test Torpedo Launch From British Undersea Drone in Defence Technology Milestone
Britain Pushes Artificial Intelligence Security Onto United Nations Security Council Agenda
Treasury Committee Defends Office for Budget Responsibility Independence Amid Fiscal Pressure
Scotland Records Eleven Per Cent Rise in Drug-Use Deaths as Cocaine and Nitazenes Drive Concern
Welsh Government Sets Four-Year Programme Around Health, Living Costs, Jobs and Housing
Study Finds Most People With High Blood Pressure in England Remain Undiagnosed
Britain Plans First National Workplace Health System to Tackle Economic Inactivity
England to Introduce Vocational GCSEs in Major Secondary Education Reform
UK Elevates Climate and Nature Risks to National Security Priority
Andy Burnham and Donald Trump Put Trade at Centre of First Major Bilateral Meeting
Andy Burnham and Ursula von der Leyen Push Ahead With Closer UK-European Union Economic Ties
UK Government Borrowing Jumps to Eighteen Point Three Billion Pounds Ahead of October Budget
Piddington Residents Back Symbolic Independence Vote Over Asylum Accommodation Plan
×