2021 may have been a stellar year on the small screen, as we welcomed back much-hyped series such as “Succession” and delved into new, bingeable fare such as “Squid Game,” but all signs suggest the next 12 months are shaping up to be even better.
Like last year, many of these shows are coming out of the U.K. So prolific is the island state in the realm of television and streaming that last year’s Emmy Awards were nicknamed the “British Emmys” after talent from across the pond dominated eight out of 12 categories.
With COVID-19 apparently not going anywhere and warm summer nights still months away, nothing sounds more appealing right now than curling up in front of a screen to watch some quality shows.
So read on for Variety’s top picks for television and streaming in 2022…
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'Doctor Who' Specials - BBC
Starring: Jodie Whittaker, Aisling Bea, John Bishop
What better way to kick off 2022 than with a return to “Doctor Who,” starring Jodie Whittaker in one of her final outings as the Time Lord?
In the New Year’s Day special, Whittaker finds herself uniting with Sarah (Aisling Bea), the owner of an ELF storage unit, and Sarah’s customer Nick (Adjani Salmon) as they battle the Daleks in a terrifying time loop.
A second special is set to air in the spring, followed by Whittaker’s final outing as the Doctor in fall 2022, after which showrunner Chris Chibnall will hand the reins over to Russell T. Davies and an as yet unnamed fourteenth incarnation of the Doctor.
Airing: Jan. 1, 2022, followed by specials in the spring and fall of 2022
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'The Essex Serpent' - Apple TV Plus
Image Credit: Apple TV Plus Starring: Claire Danes, Tom Hiddleston, Clémence Poésy
Based on the novel of the same name by Sarah Perry, “The Essex Serpent” tells the story of Cora (played by “Homeland’s” Claire Danes), a Victorian-era widow looking for a fresh start following her escape from an abusive marriage.
Cora relocates to a small Essex village plagued by a local superstition about a mythical serpent. There she encounters Will (“Loki’s” Tom Hiddleston), a community leader trying to contain rumors about the beast.
Produced by SeeSaw Films (“The Power of the Dog”), the series is directed by Clio Barnard (“The Selfish Giant”) and written by Anna Symon (“Deep Water”).
Streaming: 2022 (exact date TBA)
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'Welcome to Wrexham' - Disney Plus
Image Credit: Disney Plus Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Rob McElhenney
With shades of “Ted Lasso,” this docu-series follows “Deadpool” star Ryan Reynolds and “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” actor and writer Rob McElhenney as they acquire a small British soccer club, Wrexham AFC, located in a market town in Wales.
As well as a crash course in soccer club management for Reynolds and McElhenney, the two also hope to bring “hope and change” to the Welsh town.
Streaming: 2022 (exact date TBA)
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'Bridgerton' Season 2 - Netflix
Image Credit: Netflix Starring: Phoebe Dynevor, Nicola Coughlan
While fans including Kim Kardashian were devastated to learn that the Duke (played by Regé-Jean Page) wouldn’t be returning for season 2 of the Shonda Rhymes-produced period drama, anticipation is nevertheless building for the return of the Bridgerton siblings, led by Daphne (Phoebe Dynevor).
Especially since this season will see the introduction of newcomer Kate Sharma (Simone Ashley) — one of Variety’s 10 Brits to Watch — who is set to enjoy a romance with Daphne’s brother Anthony (Jonathan Bailey).
Streaming: March 25 2022
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'Call My Agent' - Amazon Prime Video / Sundance Now
Image Credit: AP Starring: Jack Davenport, Jim Broadbent, Maggie Steed, Prasanna Puwanarajah
Inspired by the French comedy of the same name, “Call My Agent” follows the trials and tribulations of a group of British talent agents as they struggle to balance their own dramas with that of their clients.
The series is known for its top drawer cameos and actors lined up for the British version include “Harry Potter’s” Helena Bonham Carter, “Bridgerton” star Phoebe Dynevor, David Oyelowo (“The Water Man”) and “The Crown’s” Dominic West.
The Headline Pictures, BRON and Turbine Studios production is adapted by John Morton (“W1A”) who is also directing the first two episodes.
The show will stream on Prime Video in the U.K., Australia, New Zealand, Latin America and the Nordics and on Sundance Now in the U.S.
Streaming: 2022 (exact date TBA)
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'Trigger Point' - ITV
Image Credit: ITV Starring: Vicky McClure, Adrian Lester
“Line of Duty” dream team Jed Mercurio and Vicky McClure reunite for this ITV drama about a bomb disposal unit.
Written by Mercurio, the six-part thriller sees McClure star as bomb disposal expert Lana alongside Adrian Lester (“The Day After Tomorrow”) as her colleague Joel, the duo having bonded during a military tour of Afghanistan.
Lana and Joel’s mission soon becomes personal as they hunt down a bomber they believe is targeting their squad.
Airing: Jan. 2022 (exact date TBA)
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'Pistol' - Disney Plus
Starring: Maisie Williams, Anson Boon, Iris Law
Based on the autobiography “Lonely Boy: Tales From a Sex Pistol” by the band’s guitarist Steve Jones, the upcoming miniseries follows the Sex Pistols as they rise from humble beginnings to the punk rock hall of fame.
The series was the subject of legal proceedings earlier this year after the band’s frontman, Johnny Rotten, sued Jones and drummer Paul Cook over an agreement to license Sex Pistols music for the series, which is directed by Danny Boyle (“Slumdog Millionaire”).
Rotten lost the lawsuit, allowing Jones and Cook to license the music for the show, which stars “Game of Thrones'” Maisie Williams as punk fashion icon Jordan and “The Witcher” star Emma Appleton as the ill-fated Nancy Spungeon, who was allegedly stabbed to death by Pistols bassist Sid Vicious before he overdosed a few months later.
Streaming: 2022 (exact date TBC)
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'Slow Horses' - Apple TV Plus
Image Credit: AP Starring: Gary Oldman, Kristin Scott Thomas, Jack Lowden
Based on the spy series of the same name by Mick Herron and adapted by “Veep” writer Will Smith, “Slow Horses” sees Gary Oldman star as Jackson Lamb, an MI5 spy exiled to Slough House, where MI5’s spies are retired after making career-derailing mistakes.
Kristin Scott Thomas (“The English Patient”) joins as Diana Taverner, a high-ranking MI5 exec, while “Small Axe’s” Jack Lowden portrays a lower-ranking agent hoping to elevate himself out of Slough House.
“Snowpiercer” director James Hawes is helming the first season, which is based on the first two novels in the “Slow Horses” series.
Streaming: 2022 (exact date TBC)
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'The Crown' Season 5 - Netflix
Image Credit: Netflix Starring: Imelda Staunton, Dominic West, Elizabeth Debicki
“The Crown” returns with a new cast for season 5, with Imelda Staunton (“Harry Potter”) taking over from Olivia Colman as Queen Elizabeth II, Dominic West replacing Josh O’Connor as Prince Charles and Elizabeth Debicki following in Emma Corrin’s footsteps as Diana, Princess of Wales.
The hotly-anticipated new season will follow the British royal family through the 1990s, no doubt including the Queen’s so-called “annus horribilis” in 1992, during which three of her four children separated from their partners and Windsor Castle caught fire.
With “The Kite Runner” star Khalid Abdalla set to play Diana’s boyfriend Dodi Al Fayed, the playboy heir who died alongside the princess in a Parisian car crash in 1997, the series is also likely to deal with the lead-up to and possibly the aftermath of Diana’s death.
As Variety revealed in November, West’s son Senan is set to play Prince William.
Streaming: Nov. 2022
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'Dodger' - CBBC/iPlayer
Image Credit: BBC Starring: Christopher Eccleston, Frances Barber
Former “Doctor Who” Time Lord Christopher Eccleston leads the cast of this “Oliver Twist” prequel, which is set before the events of Charles Dickens’ novel.
Eccleston stars as prolific Victorian criminal Fagin, who takes a gang of young pickpockets under his wing, including the eponymous Dodger, played by Billy Jenkins (Jenkins previously appeared as a child version of Prince Charles in “The Crown”).
The family drama is created and written by Rhys Thomas (“Shooting Stars”) who also appears in the series, which is produced by Universal International Studios.
Airing/streaming: Early 2022 (exact date TBA)
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'This Sceptred Isle' - Sky
Image Credit: Sky Starring: Kenneth Branagh, Ophelia Lovibond
This all-too-real political drama series, co-written and directed by Michael Winterbottom (with Julian Jarrold taking over directing duties after Winterbottom fell ill), details the first few months of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom.
Produced by Passenger and Revolution Films, the five-part series depicts Prime Minister Boris Johnson (played by “Tenet’s” Kenneth Branagh) as he struggles to deal with the first wave of the pandemic before succumbing to the virus himself. As Johnson battles for his life in an intensive care unit, the country is being ravaged by COVID-19 and Johnson’s wife Carrie is at home expecting the couple’s first child.
Although a dramatization, the writers and producers have based the series on first-hand accounts of people in Johnson’s inner circle and at the heart of the pandemic, from the department of health to SAGE (the scientific advisory group for emergencies, which has been one of Johnson’s chief advisors since March 2020) as well as hospitals and doctors.
Airing: Fall 2022
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'After Life' Season 3 - Netflix
Image Credit: Natalie Seery Starring: Ricky Gervais
Ricky Gervais returns in this much-loved dark comedy depicting a journalist, Tony (played by Gervais), who is struggling to cope after his wife dies of breast cancer.
After losing his elderly father in season 2 and with his job at the local newspaper at risk, life looks bleak for Tony save for a potential relationship with Emma (Ashley Jensen), his father’s care home nurse.
Most importantly, Tony’s beloved German Shepherd Brandy is confirmed to return in season 3.
Streaming: Jan. 14, 2022
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'Suspicion' - Apple TV Plus
Image Credit: AP Starring: Uma Thurman, Kunal Nayyar, Noah Emmerich, Georgina Campbell, Elizabeth Henstridge
Based on Israeli series “False Flag,” this U.S.-U.K. adaptation sees Uma Thurman star as a prominent businesswoman whose son is kidnapped from a New York hotel.
Four British citizens who happen to be staying at the hotel at the same time soon find themselves deemed the prime suspects, caught in a cat-and-mouse chase with law enforcement agencies that stretches across the Atlantic as they try to prove their innocence.
Rob Williams (“Man in the High Castle”) serves as showrunner for the series, which was produced in the U.K. and filmed in the U.S. and U.K.
Streaming: Feb. 4 2022
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'The Capture' Season 2 - BBC
Image Credit: NBCUniversal Starring: Holliday Grainger, Papaa Essiedu
After unravelling a case in which a solider is accused of a terrible crime in Season 1, DI Rachel Carey (“Cinderella’s” Holliday Grainger) is back for a second season, again finding herself in the middle of a new conspiracy.
This time, an ambitious and idealistic politician called Isaac Turner (played by “I May Destroy You’s” Papaa Essiedu) is somehow involved and Carey must contend with deepfake technology, invisible assassins, Big Tech and a corrupt Establishment — not to mention untrustworthy colleagues — as she faces a race against time to solve the case.
Creator Ben Chanan returns as showrunner for the Heyday Television production, which is part of Universal International Studios, a division of Universal Studio Group.
Airing: 2022 (exact date TBA)
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'Chivalry' - Channel 4
Image Credit: AP Starring: Steve Coogan, Sarah Solemani, Wanda Sykes, Sienna Miller
Steve Coogan (“Philomena”) and Sarah Solemani (“Bridget Jones’s Baby”) tackle sexual politics and the #MeToo movement in this comedy drama series.
Solemani plays an indie filmmaker, Bobby Sohrabi, who takes over as director of a “problematic” movie produced by Steve Coogan’s character Cameron O’Neill as he struggles to avoid being canceled.
“American Sniper’s” Sienna Miller plays Lark, the lead actor in O’Neill’s movie, while Wanda Sykes (“Blackish”) stars as the studio executive who parachutes Sohrabi in to take over the production.
The series will also feature a number of celebrity cameos, including Paul Rudd and Amy Landecker.
Airing: 2022 (exact date TBA)
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'The Devil's Hour' - Amazon Prime Video
Image Credit: Amazon Prime Video Starring: Jessica Raine, Peter Capaldi
Inspired by the superstition that the middle of the night is when the barrier between the human and supernatural worlds is at its thinnest, this creepy new series from newcomer Tom Moran stars Jessica Raine as a mother, Lucy, who finds herself waking up every night at the same time — 3.33 am — with terrifying visions.
As her son becomes increasingly withdrawn and emotionless, Lucy finds her name embroiled in a series of brutal murders — and realizes her nightmares may be connected.
The series is directed by Johnny Allan (“The Irregulars”) and Isabelle Sieb (“Vigil”) while Hartswood’s Steven Moffat and Sue Vertue (“Sherlock”) executive produce.
Streaming: 2022 (exact date TBA)
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'The Split' Season 3 - BBC/BBC America
Image Credit: BBC Starring: Nicola Walker, Stephen Mangan
The Defoe family return for season 3 of the divorce drama created by Abi Morgan (“Shame”).
Billed as “the most dramatic and heart-breaking [season] to date,” by the BBC, the third instalment of the series will see Hannah (“Spooks” star Nicola Walker) have to deal with her own divorce from Nathan (“Episodes'” Stephen Mangan) in addition to plenty of ongoing family drama alongside her sisters Nina (Annabel Scholey) and Rose (Fiona Button), as well as their mother Ruth (“Vanity Fair’s” Deborah Findlay).
As well as writing the series, Morgan steps behind the camera this season, directing one episode. Dee Koppang O’Leary directs the remainder.
In the U.K. the show will be available on BBC One and iPlayer. In the U.S. it will stream on BBC America followed by AMC Networks’ streaming service Sundance Now.
Airing: 2022 (exact date TBA)
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'Funny Woman' - Sky
Image Credit: Sky Starring: Gemma Arterton, Rupert Everett
Gemma Arterton stars as Barbara Parker, a beauty pageant queen turned comedian in this 1960s-set series based on the novel “Funny Girl” by Nick Hornby (“High Fidelity”). Inspired by her idol Lucille Ball, Parker moves to “Swinging Sixties” London and struggles to make her mark in the male-dominated world of comedy. Soon, however, she lands a role in an era-defining British comedy series and becomes a surprise hit with audiences.
Rupert Everett (“My Best Friend’s Wedding”) joins as Barbara’s agent Brian Debehnam, David Threlfall (“Shameless”) will play Barbara’s father, George, while Tom Bateman (“Murder on the Orient Express”) appears as her “dangerously charming” co-star Clive.
Airing: 2022 (exact date TBA)