Search results
Oct 3, 2022 · Thankfully, television, film, and now streaming are full of great period dramas, so we thought it would be fun to gather up some of the best British period dramas of all time – spanning numerous time periods and genres for people of varied interests.
May 16, 2024 · From Queen Charlotte to Peaky Blinders, here are the best TV period dramas that deliver thrills, chills, and lots of romance.
- 1 min
- Cady Lang
- Downton Abbey. Hugh Bonneville, Laura Carmichael, Jim Carter. 723 votes. Immerse yourself in the lives of the Crawley family and their servants as they navigate the tumultuous early 20th century.
- Pride and Prejudice. Colin Firth, Jennifer Ehle, Crispin Bonham-Carter. 234 votes. Adapted from Jane Austen's beloved novel, this stunning miniseries captures the spirit and charm of the original tale.
- Call The Midwife. Jenny Agutter, Annabelle Apsion, Linda Bassett. 444 votes. Set in the 1950s and 1960s, this heartwarming series touches on social issues and the resilience of midwives and nuns working in London's impoverished East End.
- The Crown. Imelda Staunton, Jonathan Pryce, Lesley Manville. 525 votes. Jump into the world of royalty with this riveting depiction of Queen Elizabeth II's reign.
- Bleak House (2005) - Available on Hulu
- Persuasion (1995) - Available to Purchase on Prime Video
- Pride and Prejudice (1995) - Available on Hulu, HBO Max, and BritBox
- North and South (2004) - Available on BritBox and Hoopla
- The Barchester Chronicles
- Peaky Blinders (2013–2022) - Available on Netflix
- The Way We Live Now (2001) - Available on BritBox and Hoopla
- Upstairs, Downstairs (1971) - Available on BritBox and Acorn TV
- Great Expectations (1999) - Available on BritBox
- Madame Bovary (2000) - Available on BritBox
Charles Dickens was known for his gritty tales of life spent in Victorian London, but nowhere are the depths of depravity and the heights of ambition revealed so candidly than in Bleak House, BBC's 2005 adaptation of his famous novel starring Gillian Anderson (The X-Files, Hannibal), and Charles Dance (Game of Thrones). This adaptation received 10 ...
Before Ciaran Hinds gave tour-de-force performances in Game of Thrones and The Terror, he played the dashing Wentworth to Amanda Root's Anne, two star-crossed lovers torn apart by the brutal rules of British society. They are separated for nearly a decade, and in that time, Wentworth becomes a model seaman in the British Navy and Anne's once-wealth...
Pride and Prejudice may be the most renowned of Jane Austen's novels, but the 1995 BBC adaptation is the most renowned version on the big or small screen. Other versions have tried and failed to capture the electric chemistry of Colin Firth in a career-defining role as the aloof Mr. Darcy and Jennifer Ehle as the fiery Elizabeth Bennet. One hidden ...
When the daughter of a middle-class clergyman leaves her comfortable life in the South of England for the industrial North, she doesn't expect to find anything alluring among its smokestacks and cotton mills. Once pulled into the frenetic pace of the northern city of Milton, she encounters John Thornton, whom she perceives as a ruthless mill owner....
When the widower Reverend Harding, who both serves the people of Barchester as a clergyman and as the warden of the hospital, is accused of cheating pensioners, he's almost run out of his parish. When a young surgeon takes it upon himself to expose the Reverend, matters are only made worse by the fact that he's also fallen in love with the Reverend...
Somewhere amidst the whimsical Austen and dreary Dickens sits Peaky Blinders, a no-holds-barred gritty period drama set in Birmingham, England shortly before the first World War. It focuses on rivalries between several gangster families, foremost among them the Shelbys. RELATED:The 10 Best Episodes Of Peaky Blinders (According To IMDb) The real Pea...
Augustus Melmotte, a Jewish financier from Austria, arrives in London determined to make himself a proper English gentleman. He upends the current financial markets and all of London society in his pursuit, and his lofty ascent and downward spiral are set against the backdrop of avarice and corruption. Melmotte (David Suchet) is a character that is...
Before there was Downton Abbey and the dramatic chronicles of the Crawley family and their servant staff in the English countryside, there was Upstairs, Downstairs, a deft look at the goings-on of the Bellamy family upstairs along with their downstairs staff at 165 Eaton Place. Amidst the socio-political and historical events of the Edwardian Era, ...
One of Charles Dickens's most famous novels, Great Expectations comes to vivid life in this masterful BBC adaptation about a young orphan boy named Pip (Ioan Gruffudd, Fantastic Four, Horatio Hornblower)achieves great fortune under mysterious circumstances. RELATED: 10 Underrated Period Drama TV Series & Movies, Ranked In love with his childhood pl...
Britain's most famous adulteress is brought to sensual life by Frances O'Connor in Madame Bovary. The classic novel by Gustave Flaubert was salacious enough to be banned from the French Court in 1857 for obscenity, earning it a scandalous reputation much like its heroine. Featuring the talents of some of Britain's greatest thespians, Greg Wise (Sen...
- Kayleena Pierce-Bohen
1. Upstairs, Downstairs. 1971–1975 68 eps TV-14. 8.4 (3.6K) Rate. TV Series. The lives and fortunes of the Bellamy family and their below-stairs servant staff at 165 Eaton Place play out against the social, political and historical backdrop of Edwardian London from 1903 to 1930. Stars Gordon Jackson David Langton Jean Marsh. 2. The Bretts.
People also ask
What are the best British period dramas?
Why are BBC period dramas so popular?
What is the best romantic British period drama of all time?
Where can I watch British period dramas?
Check out our list of lavish, dramatic, and addictive period dramas to watch with PBS Passport, an added member benefit.