Serie TV ambientate a Londra | Le mie preferite 

Do you love TV series? I do,although sometimes it  is not easy to find the time. These are my  favorite TV shows and they’re all British….and set in LONDON!  Let’s take a look at the TV shows and movies set in London that can be watched on various streaming platforms.

TV Show set in London | My favorite ones

Sherlock

Really loved Sherlock Holmes! Luckyly enough I did find this on Netflix and binged on it. Literally. I’m so happy I’ve had the chance to come across this. Actors really just fit their roles so well. Chemistry between Martian Freeman and Benedict Cumberbatch it just works. And of course you gotta love the conflict  between Sherlock & Moriarty and Sherlock and Mycroft.  The way they took Sherlock Holmes and modernized it is just captivating. At first, I thought nothing of it but then I began to watch the first episode, and that’s where you get into it, right from the beginning. Some scenes tough have been filmed in Cardiff, many of the more important scenes were shot in London. Holmes and Watson give their address as 221b Baker Street, but exterior shots were actually filmed in North Gower Street, where filming is a lot easier because it is not that busy!

The Crown

Anathor marathon for you! The biographical drama spans three series and narrates the lives of Queen Elizabeth II (Claire Foy in seasons 1 and 2, Olivia Colman in season 3) and Prince Philip beginning with their wedding in 1947. Needless to say, this TV dram The show has won many awards and great critical praise. Many scenes appeared to be filmed in London, and some have been, but majority of them (like the Palace and Downing Street) are actually recreated in the studio at Elstree Studios, just north of London. Season 4 is scheduled for the end of 2020, and they already have a season 5, the last one. So you have time to catch up, and believe me it’s worth it. Personally I loved the Queen played by Foy more, but in any case it remains a great themed TV Show.

Whitechapel

It’s a ITV series Whitechapel is a but OTT sometiems, but still a truly good one. Rupert Penry-Jones play an East End detective investigating a list of gruesome crimes, with helpful help from Steve Pemberton’s tour guide. The first series focuses on a killer that is actually doubling Jack the Ripper, secod serie is all about the Krays and from season 3 we get new murders and cases covered. It is pretty engaging and really cool if you are into this kind of series, plus is filmed in east London, which I reckon is the perfect place for this kind of shows.

Luther 

OK everybody, I’m already going to reveal my favorite one here! Glued to the TV to see the latest series, broadcasted by the BBC in just 5 days, a whole week, every night. Another gritty crime drama about a cop who’s not afraid to break the rules, and you will see that straight away. This four-series BBC show has something to it, something I cant really name,  that makes viewing compelling , especially if you like Shoreditch area, where most of the scenes were shot. In addition, Ruth Wilson and Idris Elba  are a fabulous “couple” on set. Idris Elba  is a true east-londoner, with a cockney accent that couldn’t have not been left out, is nothing short of brilliant. John Luther is a not-so-smart but unpredictable detective chief inspector whose dedication to his cases can sometimes cause problems.

Who should watch it? If you  fancy  intrigued  London drama then this is for  you.

Spooks

What is it? Don’t be fooled by the title: this is not a series about ghosts. Spooks follows the work and life of a group of MI5 officers, a set of super lock-and-key offices in Thames House’s headquarters,in London of course. It is a series with intense scenes and excellent script supported by excellent actors. This is also a TV series that has had so much popularity, perhaps unexpected, but almost unprecedented, almost. The finals of each season were followed by more than 7 million people, in short, not bad. And there will be a reason.

Should you watch it? Yes, if you love the spying genre, police-style kinda-thing, and of course if you have the curiosity to see how MI5 works and let your mind wander off. For me it’s an interesting series, very.

Call The Midwife

And now we really change the theme here. “Call the midwife”, this is the title, probably  doesn’t  need many explanations. The series  tells the life of a group of midwives. Set in London, of course. The show was a huge success and so much so that it is still broadcasting  on TV. Not that I love the hospital genre normally, but this is set in the 50s and 60s, so it’s not the kind of real-life hospital drama that we know very well with other TV series.  The first  7 series and the Christmas specials  are all available on Netflix, ideal for a weekend marathon.

Silk

What is it? Ex-Doctor Who and BBC writer/director Peter Moffat has created another masterpiece, Silk is brilliant. Located in the leafy suburbs of the Temple area (east London) area known to law firms of “important” lawyers, Silk follows the adventures of Shoe Lane Chambers in a unique vision in this hunt for dodgy caracthers, companies that do un-legal things and strange trades, all seen from the eyes of the legal world. It has very beautiful scenes of the area, scenes that show several buildings of great beauty.

Should you watch it? What do you think, that Suits  is the only legal drama worth watching? Well, you better think again. You don’t have to be in the legal world to watch it, just passionate about the drama-legal genre, have an interest in unsolved crimes and have free time. It can be done, don’t you think?

Ab Fab

Here talking about this because this TV series is a legend here in the UK. What is it? It began way back in 1992 and at that time it was not common to have two women so transgressive and open-minded in a TV series. But the two main caracthers reflect so many women so much, that it was inevitable for this show to become so poplular. It follows the  story  of Edina Monsoon and her best friend Patsy Stone, as they try (and often fail) to keep up with the young 20-year-olds with whom they work in their Public Relations agency and magazine office.

Is it for you? Yes, if you want to laugh as if there is no tomorrow, yes if you want to catch up and then enjoy the movie that came out in 2016! Yes, if you are a woman and you want to see yourself in many of their scenes where you think “I would like to dig a hole and crawl in it so that nobody could me, now!”.

You might be interested in reading: “LONDON & FOOD, 10 BOOKS YOU MUST HAVE“

The Bodyguard

Guess what, I didn’t like this one that much. But I add it to the list of those that deserve to be watched because I just think that at the time my head was too busy to follow it, it is instead some sort of masterpiece. Here we go back talking about intense stuff. Apolitical thriller with Richard Madden (Game of Thrones’s Robb Stark) captured  the British people in 2018, broadcasted on TV, it is now available online. Madden’s character plays head-bodyguard,who is in charge of protecting a high-profile British politician (a woman).  The show follows the couple as they navigate a particularly complicated political landscape,with twists and some references to real life. I mean, every now and then you wonder, “What if this really happens?” And maybe it does, but we don’t know. That’s why, perhaps, this TV show has been so successful: it allows us to see what we may just imagine. Don’t miss it if you love the political-drama genre with a baseline story  that touches the soul.

My Family

Last but certainly there are many other great TV shows. What is it? There was a reason why this sitcom was at one point the most watched  television series  in Britain. Set in Chiswick,  west London,My Family follows the exploits of the Harper family as they make their way through the family’s messy life, going through dramas and comic events that we all have in our lives. The incredible cast worked together exceptionally, reflecting many family dramas in the families of the majority of british people, so much that 11 seasons have been produced. Available online and great to watch to understand the famous British sense of humor.

The show happily portrays the middle-class family life of a normal family in London. Watch it with your parents if you still live with them, because they will stop telling you that you only make trouble after seeing the protagonist’s story!

Hope you liked my list, surely you have your fav ones, but maybe this list helped you to pick a new one 🙂