Television series in the UK have largely been hit and miss over the past five years. Shows have been marred by shallow storylines, formulaic a-villain-an-episode formats, plus scientific and historical inaccuracies. Let’s face it, real life in England can be pretty drab but suddenly characters were infused with impossible glamour and improbable good looks.
Series such as Spooks: Code 9 and Demons crashed and burned by the middle of their first seasons and you could almost hear the collective sigh of relief when the rapidly deteriorating Robin Hood was canceled after season three.
As UK television producers slowly woke up to the fact that the tables had turned and the US now had the upper hand when it came to powerful, quality television, five must-see shows emerged from the UK.
Merlin
The BBC’s Merlin takes us right back to the origin of the age old English legend. Magic has been outlawed by King Uther of Camelot as the young magician Merlin arrives to start his apprenticeship with the court physician Gaius. Not realising who he is, Merlin starts a fight with the arrogant and bullying Prince Arthur and eventually lands up as his manservant. Slowly, over the first two seasons, Merlin learns of his destiny and of how he must protect Arthur at all costs. He struggles at times to understand and accept the world around him and must save Arthur’s life repeatedly while keeping his magical abilities hidden.
Merlin stars Colin Morgan as Merlin and Bradley James as Prince Arthur. The are also some very famous names in the cast with Anthony Head (Buffy The Vampire Slayer) as King Uther, Richard Wilson (One Foot In The Grave) as Gaius, and John Hurt (Nineteen Eighty-Four) as the voice of the dragon Kilgharrah.
The BBC announced in a press release in early December that Merlin has been renewed for a third season and the first season of Merlin will be available on DVD in the US from April 20, 2010.
Article comments
1 - Scott Deitche
The In-Betweeners has been the biggest surprise for me. It's easily one of the funniest shows on TV, either side of the Atlantic.
On the flip side, Demons was pure crap.
Good call on Being Human.
2 - David Gregory
How difficult it must have been to select just five! Here are my top three that you might enjoy.
Shameless
One Man and his Dog
Skins
3 - Emm
Hey Scott and David. Thanks for your comments!
David - I was specifically focusing on newer stuff that had been released in the past two years David, hence why I hadn't included any of those.
Scott - I hadn't even heard of In-Betweeners - will check it out!
4 - Lisa McKay
Happy to hear that Being Human has been renewed. We'd been enjoying that one. The writers' strike that ground American TV to a halt in 2007-2008 forced us to pay more attention to BBC America, which has since become one of our favorite cable channels.
5 - Mindy Peterman
Thanks for the suggestions. I'm always looking for quirky British television shows. Being Human sounds like the best of the lot. I will definitely check it out.