Binge-Worthy TV Shows, Series, Miniseries & Sitcoms
UPDATED October 2021
The luxury of streaming your favourite TV show, series or sitcom – is that if you fancy watching ‘one more episode’, you can simply press play. Gone are the days of waiting a week for the next episode to air, because once the full season is available to you, you can binge-watch your favourite binge-worthy tv shows till the cows come home.
The most popular streaming services in Ireland are Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, Disney Plus, and NOW TV. But just in case you don’t have a streaming service, to begin with, here are streaming platforms like firestick to get you started on your ‘binge-worthy tv shows’ journey.
And don’t forget about the catch-up streaming services of your favourite TV channels too, for example here in Ireland we have; RTÉ Player, TG4, Virgin Media, All 4 and if you live in the North of Ireland; BBC iPlayer.
For example my some of my highlights from RTÉ Player include these brilliant Irish series; The Young Offenders, Normal People, Pure Mule, Love/Hate, The Tommy Tiernan Show, First Dates, Room to Improve and Home of the Year. But always make sure they have all the episodes available online before you get stuck in!
On the other hand All 4 is the largest and best free streaming and TV catch-up service around – with hundreds of box sets to choose from. And so it rightly deserves to have a number of its shows and series highlighted in this ‘binge-worthy TV shows’ list below.
This ultimate list of over 40 binge-worthy TV shows and series is just a taste of what’s on offer. I’ve tried, tested and thoroughly enjoyed each one, often for very different reasons. From comedy series to crime driven dramas, you are sure to find a show that, like a good book, you won’t want to put down, or in this case turn off!
If reality games and shows are your thing and you’re not too pushed on IMDB ratings, give the following a go:
- The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.
- Married at First Sight (UK and Australia).
- The Circle UK.
Remember to check in with The Life of Stuff for more TV and Film recommendations. And check back on this guide too – because the more brilliant binge-worthy TV shows I watch the more it’ll be updated!
Table of Contents
Binge-Worthy TV Shows on ALL 4
It’s a Sin
About: British Drama Serial. “Drama from Russell T Davies about five friends living and loving in the shadow of AIDS.” channel4
Number of Episodes: 5 | Years: 2021 | IMDB: 9.1
Father Ted
About: Sitcom. “Classic sitcom about three dysfunctional priests and their long-suffering housekeeper.” channel4
Number of Seasons: 3 | Years: 1995 – 1998 | IMDB: 8.6
Shameless
About: British Comedy Series. “Paul Abbott’s classic drama about the rollercoaster lives and loves of the Gallagher clan.” channel4
Number of Seasons: 11 | Years: 2004 – 2013 | IMDB: 8.6
The Great Pottery Throw-Down
About: British Television Competition. “Twelve of Britain’s best home potters compete to be crowned best at the wheel.” channel4
Number of Seasons: 4 | Years: 2015 – Present | IMDB: 8.5
Black Books
About: British Sitcom. “Bafta-winning sitcom about a foul tempered and wildly eccentric bookshop owner.” channel4
Number of Seasons: 3 | Years: 2000 – 2004 | IMDB: 8.5
Grand Designs
About: British Architectural Homebuilding Series. “Kevin McCloud follows intrepid individuals trying to design and build their dream home.” channel4
Number of Seasons: 21 | Years: 1999 – Present | IMDB: 8.5
Derry Girls
About: Northern Irish Sitcom. “Candid, family-centred comedy set during The Troubles in Northern Ireland.” channel4
Number of Seasons: 2 | Years: 2018 – present | IMDB: 8.4
Queer as Folk
About: British TV Series. “Set in and around the Manchester ‘scene’, this groundbreaking Channel 4 drama, written by Russell T Davies, documents the lives and loves of young gay men Stuart, Vince and Nathan” channel4
Number of Seasons: 2 | Years: 1999 – 2000 | IMDB: 8.2
Catastrophe
About: British TV Series. “Sharon Horgan and Rob Delaney write and star in the multi-award-winning comedy.” channel4
Number of Seasons: 4 | Years: 2015 – 2019 | IMDB: 8.2
The End of the F***ing World
About: Dark Comedy Drama. “Channel 4’s BAFTA Award-winning, darkly comic drama series” channel4
Number of Seasons: 2 | Years: 2017 – 2019 | IMDB: 8.1
Binge-Worthy TV Shows on Netflix
Breaking Bad
About: American Crime. “A terminally ill chemistry teacher teams with a former student to manufacture crystal meth to secure his family’s future” netflix
Number of Seasons: 5 | Years: 2008-2013 | IMDB: 9.5
Our Planet
About: Nature Documentary with David Attenborough. “Experience our planet’s natural beauty and examine how climate change impacts all living creatures in this ambitious documentary of spectacular scope” netflix
Number of Episodes: 8 | Years: 2019 | IMDB: 9.3
Peaky Blinders
About: British Crime. “A notorious gang in 1919 Birmingham, England, is led by the fierce Tommy Shelby, a crime boss set on moving up in the world no matter the cost.” netflix
Number of Seasons: 5 | Years: 2013 – Present | IMDB: 8.8
Line of Duty
About: British Crime Drama. “Drama series following the investigations of AC-12, a controversial police anti-corruption unit.” IMDB
Watch seasons 1-5 on Netflix or RTÉ Player. Season 6 on BBC.
Number of Seasons: 6 | Years: 2012 – Present | IMDB: 8.7
Stranger Things
About: American Horror. “Strange things are afoot in Hawkins, Indiana, where a young boy’s sudden disappearance unearths a young girl with otherworldly powers.” netflix
Number of Seasons: 3 | Years: 2016 – Present | IMDB: 8.7
House of Cards
About: American Political Thriller. “A ruthless politician will stop at nothing to conquer Washington, D.C., in the Emmy and Golden Globe-winning political drama.” netflix
Number of Seasons: 6 | Years: 2018 – 2018 | IMDB: 8.7
Cobra Kai
About: American Action Fiction. “Decades after the tournament that changed their lives, the rivalry between Johnny and Daniel reignites in this sequel to the “Karate Kid” films..” netflix
Number of Seasons: 4 | Years: 2018 – Present | IMDB: 8.6
Queen’s Gambit
About: Drama. “In a 1950s orphanage, a young girl reveals an astonishing talent for chess and begins an unlikely journey to stardom while grappling with addiction.” netflix
Number of Episodes: 7 | Years: 2020 | IMDB: 8.6
Schitt’s Creek
About: Canadian Sitcom. ‘After their business manager loots their family fortune, the Rose family relocates to the town of Schitt’s Creek’ netflix
Number of Seasons: 6 | Years: 2015 – 2020 | IMDB: 8.5
The Office (UK)
About: ‘Cult’ Comedy Series. “Set as a dysfunctional paper company, this caustic British mockumentary follows the day-to-day troubles of the firm’s uninspired desk jockeys.” netflix
Number of Seasons: 2 | Years: 2001 – 2003 | IMDB: 8.5
After Life
About: Comedy, Drama. “Struggling to come to terms with his wife’s death, a writer for a newspaper adopts a gruff new persona in an effort to push away those trying to help.” netflix
Number of Seasons: 2 | Years: 2019 – present| IMDB: 8.4
RuPaul’s Drag Race
About: American Reality Competition Series. “Queens compete for $100,000 and the title of America’s Next Drag Superstar in this Emmy-winning show hosted by the mother of all drag mothers, RuPaul.” netflix
Number of Seasons: 13 | Years: 2009 – present| IMDB: 8.4
Ozark
About: American Crime Drama. “A financial adviser drags his family from Chicago to the Missouri Ozarks, where he must launder $500 million in five years to appease a drug boss.” netflix
Number of Seasons: 3 | Years: 2017 – present | IMDB: 8.4
Homeland
About: Political Thriller. “A U.S. Marine returns home after spending eight years being held prisoner by Al Qaeda, while an unstable CIA agent suspects him of being a terrorist.” netflix
Number of Seasons: 8 | Years: 2011 – 2020 | IMDB: 8.3
Squid Game
About: South Korean Survival Drama Series. “Hoping to win easy money, a broke and desperate Gi-hun agrees to take part in an enigmatic game. Not long into the first round, unforeseen horrors unfold” netflix
Number of Seasons: 1 | Years: 2021 | IMDB: 8.3
Bodyguard
About: Political Thriller. “After helping thwart a terrorist attack, a war veteran is assigned to protect a politician who was a main proponent of the very conflict he fought in.” netflix
Number of Seasons: 1 | Years: 2018 | IMDB: 8.1
Unorthodox
About: German-American Drama. “A Hasidic Jewish woman in Brooklyn flees to Berlin from an arranged marriage and is taken in by a group of musicians — until her past comes calling.” netflix
Number of Episodes: 4 | Years: 2020 | IMDB: 8
Sweet Tooth
About: American Fantasy Drama. “On a perilous adventure across a post-apocalyptic world, a lovable boy who’s half-human and half-deer searches for a new beginning with a gruff protector.” netflix
Number of Seasons: 1 | Years: 2021 – Present | IMDB: 7.9
The Sinner
About: American Crime Mystery. “In a small New York town, a haunted detective hunts for answers about perplexing crimes while wrestling with his own demons.” netflix
Number of Seasons: 3 | Years: 2017 – present | IMDB: 7.9
Midnight Mass
About: American Supernatural Horror Miniseries. “The arrival of a charismatic young priest brings glorious miracles, ominous mysteries and renewed religious fervor to a dying town desperate to believe.” netflix
Number of Seasons: 1 | Years: 2021 | IMDB: 7.8
The Alienist
About: American Period Crime Drama. The Alienist series is based on the 1994 novel of the same name by Caleb Car. It can be pretty gruesome so not for the faint hearted.
Number of Seasons: 2 | Years: 2018 – 2020 | IMDB: 7.7
Bridgeton
About: Period Drama. “The eight close-knit siblings of the Bridgerton family look for love and happiness in London high society. Inspired by Julia Quinn’s bestselling novels.” netflix
Number of Seasons: 1 | Years: 2020 – present | IMDB: 7.4
Emily in Paris
About: Comedy Drama. “After landing her dream job in Paris, Chicago marketing exec Emily Cooper embraces her adventurous new life while juggling work, friends and romance.” netflix
Number of Seasons: 1 | Years: 2020 – present | IMDB: 7.1
Binge-Worthy TV Shows on Amazon Prime Video
The Boys
About: Superhero TV Series. “THE BOYS is an irreverent take on what happens when superheroes, who are as popular as celebrities, as influential as politicians and as revered as Gods, abuse their superpowers rather than use them for good. It’s the powerless against the super powerful as The Boys embark on a heroic quest to expose the truth about “The Seven,” and their formidable Vought backing.” primevideo
Number of Seasons: 3 | Years: 2019 – Present | IMDB: 8.7
Fleabag
About: Comedy Drama. “Meet Fleabag. She’s not talking to all of us – she’s talking to you. So why don’t you pop your top off and come right in?” primevideo
Number of Seasons: 2 | Years: 2016 – 2019 | IMDB: 8.7
This is Us
About: American Drama. “From the writers and directors of Crazy, Stupid, Love, comes a smart, modern, dramedy that will challenge your everyday presumptions about the people you think you know” primevideo
Number of Seasons: 5 | Years: 2016 – present | IMDB: 8.7
The Handmaid’s Tale
About: American Dystopian Tragedy. “The Handmaid’s Tale starring Elisabeth Moss and based on Margaret Atwood’s classic novel about life in the dystopia of Gilead, a totalitarian society in what was formerly part of the United States” primevideo
Number of Seasons: 3 | Years: 2017 – present | IMDB: 8.4
Goliath
About: Legal Drama. “Once a powerful lawyer, Billy McBride is now burned out and washed up, spending more time in a bar than a courtroom. When he reluctantly agrees to pursue a wrongful death lawsuit against the biggest client of the massive law firm he helped to create, Billy and his ragtag team uncover a vast and deadly conspiracy, pitting them all in a life or death trial against the ultimate Goliath” primevideo
Number of Seasons: 3 | Years: 2016 – present | IMDB: 8.2
Nine Perfect Strangers
About: American Drama Miniseries. “”Nine Perfect Strangers” follows nine very different people who arrive at Tranquillum House, a mysterious wellness retreat that promises “total transformation”. Once there, the guests fall under the spell of the enigmatic Masha, who will stop at nothing to heal them. As the days unfold, however, Masha’s unorthodox methods threaten to push this combustible group over the edge.” primevideo
Number of Episodes: 8 | Years: 2021 | IMDB: 7.1
Binge-Worthy TV Shows on Disney Plus
The Mandalorian
About: American Space Western. “After the fall of the Galactic Empire, lawlessness has spread throughout the galaxy.” disneyplus
Number of Seasons: 2 | Years: 2019 – present | IMDB: 8.8
Hostile Planet
About: Nature Documentary. “Hosted by survivalist and adventurer Bear Grylls, “Hostile Planet” zooms in on the world’s most extreme environments to reveal the animal kingdom’s most epic stories of survival on this fast and continuously changing planet.” disneyplus
Number of Seasons: 1 | Years: 2019 | IMDB: 8.3
Gordon Ramsay Uncharted
About: Travel, Culture and Cuisine. “Gordon Ramsay travels the globe on an epic adventure in search of culinary inspiration.” disneyplus
Number of Seasons: 1 | Years: 2019 – present | IMDB: 7.9
WandaVision
About: Marvel Comics Miniseries. “Marvel Studios presents “WandaVision,” a blend of classic television and the Marvel Cinematic Universe in which Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) and Vision (Paul Bettany)—two super-powered beings living idealized suburban lives—begin to suspect that everything is not as it seems” disneyplus
Number of Seasons: 1 | Years: 2021 – present | IMDB: 7.6
Binge-Worthy TV Shows on NOW TV
Chernobyl
Type: Historical Drama. “Jared Harris, Emily Watson and Stellan Skarsgard star in a powerful Sky original about those who sacrificed it all to save Europe from disaster” nowtv
Number of Episodes: 5 | Years: 2019 | IMDB: 9.4
Game of Thrones
About: Epic Fantasy Drama. “The all-conquering, multi-Emmy-winning adaptation of George R R Martin’s rich yet brutal fantasy saga.” nowtv
Number of Seasons: 8 | Years: 2011 – 2019 | IMDB: 9.3
True Detective
About: Crime Drama. “HBO’s critically acclaimed and multi-award-winning crime anthology series. Hollywood heavy hitters star in captivating crime narratives, featuring some of the finest production values on television.” nowtv
Number of Seasons: 3 | Years: 2014 – 2019 | IMDB: 9
Dexter
About: Crime Drama. “Crime drama about a blood spatter pattern analyst for the Miami police force who’s the ultimate nice guy – and also a serial killer. The series follows Dexter as he balances his twin lives.” nowtv
Number of Seasons: 8 | Years: 2006 – 2013 | IMDB: 8.6
Binge-Worthy TV Shows on Apple TV
Ted Lasso
About: Comedy Drama Series. “Jason Sudeikis plays Ted Lasso, a small-time college football coach from Kansas hired to coach a professional soccer team in England, despite having no experience coaching soccer.” appletv
Number of Seasons: 2 | Years: 2020 – Present | IMDB: 8.8
Earth at Night in Colour
About: Nature Documentary. “Narrated by Tom Hiddleston and filmed across six continents, this docuseries uses cutting-edge camera technology to capture animals’ nocturnal lives, revealing new behaviors filmed in full color like never before.” appletv
Number of Episodes: 6 | Years: 2020 | IMDB: 8.3
Defending Jacob
About: Crime Drama. A family’s lives are irreparably disrupted when the son is accused of murdering a fellow classmate in this dramatic legal thriller. Chris Evans, Michelle Dockery and Jaedan Martell star in the adaptation of William Landay’s bestselling novel.” appletv
Number of Episodes: 8 | Years: 2020 | IMDB: 7.9
Home Before Dark
About: American Mystery Drama. A mystery inspired by the reporting of a real nine-year-old journalist. When a young girl and her family move back to the small town her father left behind, her pursuit of the truth leads to the unearthing of a long-buried cold case” appletv
Number of Seasons: 1 | Years: 2020 – present | IMDB: 7.5
Dickinson
About: American Historical Comedy Drama. Hailee Steinfield stars as Emily Dickinson. Poet. Daughter. Total rebel. In this coming-of-age story, Emily’s determined to become the world’s greatest poet.” appletv
Number of Seasons: 1 | Years: 2019 – present | IMDB: 7.3
The Mosquito Coast
About: American Drama Series. “Adapted from the best selling novel, “The Mosquito Coast” is a gripping adventure and layered character drama series following the dangerous journey of a radical idealist and brilliant inventor, Allie Fox (Justin Theroux), who uproots his family for Mexico when they suddenly find themselves on the run from the US government..” appletv
Number of Seasons: 1 | Years: 2021 – present | IMDB: 7.0
Feature photos by Erik Mclean
Images of TV show posters sourced from imdb.com
If you liked this guide to ‘binge-worthy TV shows’, here’s some further reading:
- 10 Beautiful Cultural and Educational Movies for Small Children
- Top 15 Horror Movies from 2006 – 2020. 15 Years 15 Horror Movies
PIN: The Ultimate Guide to Brilliant Binge-Worthy TV Shows
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She's a mother, wife, dog and home owner - a travel writing, creative, design and imagery driven, art and music lovin', sustainable living, coffee (and sometimes whiskey) drinking Irish woman.
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