Known for their time-travelling to certain eras, exuberant settings, exquisite costumes, and knotty storytelling, British dramas tend to keep viewers intrigued and waiting for years for their sequels.
Apart from other notable British dramas coming in 2025, like Virdee, Blue Lights, Riot Women, Ludwig, Get Millie Back, Cold Water, and Out There, we have some of the much-heralded drama series in line for the forthcoming year.
The Night Manager (BBC, Prime Video)
The Tom Hiddleston led show is set for a comeback in 2025 with no confirmed release date yet. The BBC One series would resume from what started off as an undercover mission for Jonathan Pine (Tom Hiddleston), an ex-British soldier as a hotel manager to bring down an arms dealer.
The show’s production started off earlier this year, with confirmation of photos from Hiddleston on Instagram in October 2024. He would be seen alongside Olivia Colman (playing the role of Angela Burr) as Foreign Office task force manager, and Alistair Petrie (playing the role of Lord Sandy Langbourne) as Roper’s associate.
Expectations are high for its new season since it was quite popular with the audience, with 91 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes and an 8 rating on IMDb.
King and Conqueror (BBC, CBS Studios)
Another BBC One show is coming to the screens for which its fanbase cannot wait. After having its trailer released recently, King and Conqueror is set to release in 2025. The series started production in Iceland in 2024 with a narrative taking us decades back.
The show stars James Norton (playing the legendary role of Harold of Wessex) and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (playing the role of William, Duke of Normandy) with an eight-part historic storyline about the fate of a country defined by a clash.
BBC has all the rights for releases in the United Kingdom while the outside distribution is meant for Paramount Global Content Distribution, authorised by BBC.
Malice (Prime Video)
Nobody can imagine a name like Jack Whitehall when it comes to a psychological thriller, but it shows the actor's versatility and that he can fit well here. With The X-files legend, David Duchovny and Game of Thrones actor, Carice van Houten in the star-studded cast, the show aims to highlight the world of a wealthy family with the infiltration of an outsider.
The six-episode thriller series just wrapped up its production in Greece and London. The story opens when Jack Whitehall (as the outsider named Adam Haeley) comes to unfold the family’s dark secrets, betrayal and manipulation games.
Duchovny plays the role of Jamie Tanner while van Houten plays his wife Nat Tanner. Other cast members include Harry Giby, Christine Adams, Raza Jaffery, and Jade Khan.
The show is a co-production between Expectation Entertainment and Tailspin Films for Amazon Prime Video.
A Thousand Blows (Disney +)
Peaky Blinders creator and writer Steven Knight is set to give a big blow with the UK star and co-producer for the show, Stephen Graham in one of the biggest Disney +’s titles for the coming year. A Thousand Blows would shed light on the illegal boxing life in the Victorian era based on real-life story and characters.
Stephen Graham also worked with Steven Knight in Peaky Blinders and is excited to work with him again. The Crown star, Erin Doherty, would be seen as the leader of an all-female gang.
The six-part series is set to release on 21 February 2025 on Disney +. US viewers would be able to watch it on Hulu.
Death in Paradise (BBC)
Death in Paradise season 14 is expected for premiere in Winter 2025 on BBC One and BBC iPlayer. However, one of the underrated shows that many Americans are unaware of would now open with a new lead character this time.
The previous lead character of Death in Paradise, Ralf Little, would be replaced by Don Gilet as the new detective, Mervin Wilson. Don Warrington would play the role of Commissioner Selwyn Patterson.
The most-wanted fusion of murder mysteries and plot twists, a beautiful backdrop of clear blue skies and shining seas and a ting of comedy are worth the wait. The series was massively contingent on these elements for its success back in 2011.
Its previous season managed to secure a 7.8 rating on IMDb with 85 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes.
Beyond Paradise (BBC)
This British mystery series is coming with its third season in April 2025. Co-created by Robert Thorogood and Tony Jordan, it was last aired in April 2024.
Season 2 ended when finally the wedding day of Humphrey (played by Kris Marshall) and Martha (played by Sally Bretton) arrived. The plot twist that viewers weren’t expecting was when Anne cancelled the wedding arrangements.
Other stars in the crime drama series include Zahra Ahmadi as the detective, Dylan Llewellyn as the constable, Felicity Montagu in the role of Margo Martins, and Martha’s mother by Barbara Flynn.
Its previous season secured a rating of 7.4 on IMDb while with scant reviews, Rotten Tomatoes did not reveal any score.
Doctor Who (BBC)
According to the news, Doctor Who is coming to shine on screens in May 2025. The classic British science fiction series got its production wrapped for the latest season in May 2024.
The exciting stories of Doctor Who, a mysterious alien having the ability to travel through time and make human friends along the journey, have kept the audience at their edges with its exotic relevance in modern times since its inception in 1963.
The new Doctor Who is Ncuti Gatwa. Its new teaser shows off a new human companion, Belinda Chandra (played by Varatha Sedu). However, the task would be to bring her back to Earth with some robots and cartoon characters also in sight.
The writer and executive producer is Russell T Davies. All rights are reserved by BBC for its first airing while Disney + for international opening.
Its previous season has a rating of 6.2 on IMDB and a 100 per cent score on Rotten Tomatoes where most of the critics credit this success on the shoulders of Gatwa, considering it much better than David Tennant’s.
A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder (BBC)
A teen mystery series is coming back with its second season, continuing with the story of Pip and Ravi Singh. Emma Myers would reprise the role of Pip and Zain Iqbal would be seen as Ravi Singh.
The six-episode series is based on the sequel of the book named ‘Good Girl, Bad Blood’, focusing on the aftermath of Andie Bell’s case-solving. The story revolves around Pip trying to stay away from more cases but when a key witness of the case, Jamie Reynolds goes missing, the suspense intensifies.
Its previous season gained a rating of 6.8 on IMDb while an 82 per cent score on Rotten Tomatoes. The series would open on BBC iPlayer and BBC Three with co-production of Netflix and ZDFneo.
Unforgotten (ITV)
We can never get enough of the crime thrillers involving intricate case investigations. Unforgotten is a highly acclaimed drama with an emotional depth; thanks to the multi-award-winning screenwriter Chris Lang who is the creator and writer of the series.
It took a long time to come back to the screens, still, its addiction stays. Sanjeev Bhaskar will reprise the role of DI Sunil ‘Sunny’ Khan with Sinead Keenan as DCI Jess James. Other star cast includes Jordan Long, Catalonia Main, and Pippa Nixon.
With six episodes, each one hour long, Unforgotten would hit ITV between January and March 2025. It is co-produced by Mainstreet in Masterpiece and BBC Studios.
Unforgotten bagged a rating of 8.4 on IMDb and a score of 91 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes.
The Madame Blanc Mysteries (Channel 5 and Acorn TV)
Hallelujah! Another crime drama series will be back with the same cast but new stories in its fourth season. The charming locations and characters are the much-raved characteristics of the series that make it stand out in 2025.
The series creator, Sally Lindsay is playing the titular role as an antique dealer. She lives in the serene town of Cheshire, England and would be seen ready to solve individual mysteries alongside the conundrum of her husband’s death.
Its previous season gained a rating of 7.1 on IMDb and an 88 per cent score of Popcorn Meter on Rotten Tomatoes.