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15 best British TV crime dramas of all time (so far)

By Alexandria Ingham

From left: Martin Compston, Adrian Dunbar, Vicky McClure from Line of Duty. Photo Credit: Des Willie/Courtesy of Acorn TV.
From left: Martin Compston, Adrian Dunbar, Vicky McClure from Line of Duty. Photo Credit: Des Willie/Courtesy of Acorn TV. /
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14. Hinterland

Number of seasons: 3 seasons

Created by: Ed Talfan and Ed Thomas

Starring: Richard Harringon, Mail Harries, Alex Harries, Hannah Daniel, and Aneirin Hughes

What it’s about: Set in Aberystwyth, Ceredigion, Wales, Hinterland follows a team of detectives on cases throughout the area. It follows DCI Tom Mathias, who starts his first day in Aberystwyth with a mysterious disappearance. Each season focuses on one story.

Why it’s the best If you love Shetland, you’re going to adore Hinterland. You’re just switching the Scottish countryside for the English one. We get a gritty drama that was filmed twice so there was a Welsh option and an English option to air. It was also done on an extremely tight budget, but you’d never be able to tell.

This is one of those shows that sticks to a story per season. It allows for multiple twists and turns along the way, as we see our favorite detectives at work.

13. Foyle’s War

Number of seasons: 8 seasons

Created by: Anthony Horowitz

Starring: Michael Kitchen, Honeysuckle Weeks, and Anthony Howell

What it’s about: This is one of the period British TV dramas, set during and shortly after World War II. It follows Chief Superintendent Christopher Foyle, a widower who will do everything he can to solve his cases. It’s not so easy when many of them involve the black market and profiteering. His focus is usually on those who want to take advantage of the war.

Why it’s the best It’s not often a TV crime drama is placed during the Second World War. Usually, this period is focused on how people come together and the lives after the occupation in some of the islands of Britain. Foyle’s War gives us a look at the underbelly of the country.

It’s unusually filmed, too. Each episode is 90-100 minutes long, making it feel like a movie rather than a TV show.

While the show was canceled after five seasons, uproar from the British public brought it back for three more seasons. We got to see life after the war with the Cold War espionage era.

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