I should probably weigh in on this! Here are some of my favourites - mostly from the last year or two.
The Bletchley Circle. There were two series of this, and it stopped in 2014. But it's probably quite close in tone to Foyle's War. It's set in a post-WWII London and "Bletchley" refers to Bletchley Park, where cryptographers were working to break intercepted Nazi codes. (If you've seen The Imitation Game, you'll know something of this story - although the TV movie Breaking the Code is probably better if you can find it anywhere.) Endeavour is also well worth watching. This is a prequel to Inspector Morse with Shaun Evans a terrific young Morse. It's set in sixties Oxford and is nicely done, with the police a little "free-er" in those days. I've mentioned before, but my two favourite British detective serials currently are Happy Valley and Line of Duty. There are two series of Happy Valley so far, and it's set in a small northern English town with a really well drawn female lead character. The dialogue is fantastic and the performances are first rate. I believe it's on Netflix in the US. There have been three series of Line of Duty so far, and each has been a terrific ride. The series is about police corruption with a team of investigators targeting a particular individual in each series. We never know quite how implicated the targeted person really is, and the performances are exceptional throughout. The third series has some of the boldest interview scenes I've seen since watching Homicide Life on the Streets. Wiki tells me that series one is on Hulu, but I'm not sure about the rest. Really worth tracking down though. The Fall has already been mentioned and is a dark look a serial killer in Belfast with two standout leads. The third series I believe will be on Netflix any day now if not sooner in the US. Another series you should be able to find on Netflix is the one-off River. It stars the Swedish actor Stellan Skarsgård as Det River, a man with deep psychological issues. I won't say too much more, because it reveals too much. If you want to see a different side of the UK, then Shetland is at one extreme. It's set in the northern most islands of Britain, the Shetland Islands. The series are based on characters in a series of books by Ann Cleaves, and feature Jimmy Perez (his ancestors were Spanish - washed up on the shores of the islands after the Armada!) investigating murders on the islands. Of course in reality are rarely murders on such islands, but that doesn't stop crime series set in Sweden or Iceland either. In a similar vein, Hinterland features a Welsh detective in rural Wales. The series is actually shot in both English and Welsh, with different versions airing on the Welsh language channel S4C and the BBC. Luther is of course worth watching, but has nothing in common with something like Foyles' War except it's British. It's completely mad, and I love it! Idris Elba is fantastic (Stringer Bell from The Wire). For something a bit different, try to seek out the French series Spiral (Engrenages) which features business, the judiciary and politicians all linked in a series of crime stories. Really well told and some great characters. Finally, there are lots of Scandinavean series you should check out too that are becoming much more available. Yes, you'll have to read subtitles (closed-captions) to follow them, but it forces you to concentrate more! The Bridge is a great place to start. I know it's been remade at least twice (UK and France - aka The Tunnel, and across the US-Mexico border), but watch the original. This year we also had Trapped set in Iceland and great fun. There is obviously also The Killing (not the US version) and various versions of Wallander. There are probably loads I've forgotten, but hopefully something to get you started. Adam On 20 Nov 2016 00:37, "Kevin M." <[email protected]> wrote: > It's hardly a new series, but "Lovejoy" starring Ian "Deadwood" McShane is > a favorite of mine. > > On Fri, Nov 18, 2016 at 9:02 AM <[email protected]> wrote: > >> Nobody's a "Luther" fan in here? :) >> >> Doug Fields >> Tampa, FL >> >> -------- Original Message -------- >> Subject: Re: [TV orNotTV] British Mystery >> From: Jay Lewis <[email protected]> >> Date: Fri, November 18, 2016 9:15 am >> To: [email protected] >> >> I won't say it's OMG-the-greatest-EVARRRR, but I quite enjoyed Jonathan >> Creek. I guess it really isn't a "detective" show but the main >> characters(s) do solve crimes. More of a 'Murder, Show Wrote' vibe as I >> think of it. >> >> F*rom:* [email protected] [mailto:[email protected] >> <[email protected]>] *On Behalf Of *PGage >> *Sent:* Thursday, November 17, 2016 8:39 PM >> *To:* [email protected] >> *Subject:* [TV orNotTV] British Mystery >> >> I am looking for recommendations for a good British detective television >> show. >> >> >> -- ----- My 5YO nephew needs a wheelchair van. Please donate/visit: >> http://www.bit.do/GetJackAVan or http://www.facebook.com/GetJackAVan >> >> -- >> -- >> TV or Not TV .... 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