Finished Doc Martin & Ballykissangel...what next?

March 1, 2013 12:56 PM

I really enjoy British TV dramas, with two of my favorites being Ballykissangel and Doc Martin, the latter of which I recently finished. What other British shows would you recommend in this same vein - that is, lighthearted hour-long dramas with a dash of comedy?

No detective shows, please. As in the two mentioned above, rural settings with quirky characters are a plus. I love Downton Abbey but am not really looking for period-pieces. Ideally available on Netflix (streaming or disc), Amazon Prime Video, or elsewhere online.

posted by iamisaid to Media & Arts (19 answers total)

Hamish Macbeth. But I guess that's sort of a detective show. It isn't really though, as though the title character is a policemen, it's no more a detective show than Doc Martin is a medical show.
posted by GuyZero at 1:01 PM on March 1, 2013 [1 favorite]

It's quite a bit older(at least to start with), but have you watched All Creatures Great and Small? That's available streaming on netflix. Lovely show.
posted by selfnoise at 1:02 PM on March 1, 2013 [4 favorites]

Also, The Vicar of Dibley. But that's pretty much all comedy. Like Father Ted.
posted by GuyZero at 1:02 PM on March 1, 2013 [5 favorites]

I was also going to recommend "All Creatures Great and Small". Also "Kingdom," which is sort of like "Doc Martin," but with a lawyer instead of a doctor.
posted by Jahaza at 1:06 PM on March 1, 2013 [3 favorites]

Monarch of the Glen!!! It's amazing.
posted by hotelechozulu at 1:17 PM on March 1, 2013 [6 favorites]

Previous and previouslier (and I suspect there are more threads than that if you ever run out!)
posted by humph at 1:19 PM on March 1, 2013 [2 favorites]

Stella! Stella Stella Stella! It's like Ballykissangel but set in Wales. It's excellent.
posted by DarlingBri at 1:26 PM on March 1, 2013 [1 favorite]

I don't think The Indian Doctor is in any of those replies (it's quite recent) so I'll recommend it for being a sweet drama set in a fictional Welsh village in the 1950s.

I rarely watch period pieces but will confess to taping it daily to watch late at night with a cup of tea and a biscuit. Pinny and curlers optional.
posted by humph at 1:29 PM on March 1, 2013

"Lark Rise to Candleford".....Brendan Coyle before Downton Abbey. Definitely worth a look
posted by Ginesthoi at 1:34 PM on March 1, 2013 [4 favorites]

Last of the Summer Wine, featuring (among others) Peter Sallis of Wallace and Gromit fame.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 1:40 PM on March 1, 2013

I came to nth Lark Rise to Candleford.

Sort of "Little House on the Prairie" but in England.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 1:48 PM on March 1, 2013 [2 favorites]

Kingdom, with the sublime Stephen Fry.
posted by emilypdx at 4:23 PM on March 1, 2013 [3 favorites]

Yes, Kingdom is excellent! It does have a few sad parts, so be forewarned. Very funny, and Stephen Fry is perfect as usual.
posted by belau at 5:49 PM on March 1, 2013 [1 favorite]

And now for the something completely different, Gavin & Stacey, a Welsh/English comedy that is quirky and smart and charming.
posted by shoesietart at 8:54 PM on March 1, 2013 [1 favorite]

I went through a Lovejoy phase. I don't think that counts as a detective show though it does have procedural elements to it. Ian McShane is great in it.
posted by Noon Under the Trees at 9:30 PM on March 1, 2013 [1 favorite]

Monarch of the Glen, of course, which is widely seen as a coat-tail redress of Ballykissangel. The first two seasons are the best, but it remains enjoyable to the end, even if you're less invested in some of the characters.

In another vein, I think that Midsomer Murders is very much in the same sort of mode, with the sleepy English village of yore being the constant setting for what is otherwise a police procedural with modest ambitions. The only thing is that the village constantly changes (the policemen don't).
posted by dhartung at 11:59 PM on March 1, 2013

The Darling Buds of May ran for 3 years and had a very popular following in the 90's.
posted by arzakh at 5:08 AM on March 2, 2013

William and Mary (which stars Martin Clunes from Doc Martin)

At Home With The Braithwaites (also starring Julie Graham from William and Mary above)

Jam & Jerusalem, which is a bit like Doc Martin centred on female characters

Heartbeat is about a police station, but not really a detective procedural at all (its spin-off The Royal is a proper medical drama though, just with the same sort of light tone).

(I can't tell if these are available in your area, because I keep getting redirected to my regional homepage when I try to check, sorry).
posted by rollick at 5:26 PM on March 2, 2013 [1 favorite]

I watched all of "Kingdom" in about a week and a half, thanks to the suggestion here. I really, really enjoyed it, and was so sad that there wasn't a fourth series, a fifth, more!

Also, my husband and I have greatly enjoyed "Lark Rise to Candleford". It's my husband's one weakness--he's re-watched the series about four times now.
posted by Savannah at 5:29 PM on March 16, 2013