If there’s one place television producers love to look when trying to fill the schedules of the future with new commissions, it’s the past.
Historical events, from wars and disasters to periods of great social and political change, have always been a rich vein tapped by writers, along with the lives and times of notable figures from our history.
The BBC is at it again with the 1066 drama King & Conqueror, and it doesn’t feel like history is going to stop inspiring new shows any time soon.
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What are the best historical dramas you should go back and watch? It’s probably a question with more than ten answers, but if you had to choose, what would be in your top ten? Let us know in the comments below.
Downtown Abbey: The Grand Finale
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10. Downton Abbey (2010-15)
Perhaps not the most cerebral title on this list, but there is a reason the soapy upstairs-downstairs period drama from Julian Fellowes won the hearts of a nation before conquering America too — it’s deliciously watchable. The good, the bad and the ugly are all operating in Downton, meaning there’s never a dull moment, and plenty of opportunities to shock and surprise the audience. ITVX
Paul Giamatti and Tom Wilkinson in John Adams
9. John Adams (2008)
British audiences may not have come across this excellent HBO miniseries starring Paul Giamatti as the first vice-president and the second president of the US. The drama offers a beautifully crafted character study of a man of great principles attempting to live and govern through a time of tumultuous politics and revolution. Giamatti delivers one of the performances of his career in a bold and engrossing historical portrait. Sky/Now
Peaky Blinders with Cillian Murphy
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8. Peaky Blinders (2013-22)
Set in the interwar period against the backdrop of industrial Birmingham, Steven Knight’s Peaky Blinders manages to fuse a period drama with modern stylish TV aesthetics and a ripping soundtrack. Following the fortunes of the Shelby crime family, led by the charismatic Tommy (Cillian Murphy), the drama has brilliantly drawn characters and deep and dark themes of love, loss and family. iPlayer/Netflix
Cosmo Jarvis and Nestor Carbonell in Shogun
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7. Shogun (2024)
Richard Chamberlain starred in the hit 1980 miniseries of James Clavell’s novel about feudal Japan, but the 2024 reboot took the story to a different level with a fabulous new interpretation of the source material. The ambitious show, which is largely told in Japanese, is a thrilling and deeply authentic drama that brings alive 17th-century Japan through an excellent script, great performances and beautiful cinematography. It’s no wonder it swept the board at the Emmys and picked up Golden Globes too. Disney+
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6. War & Peace (2016)
A sumptuous BBC adaptation of Leo Tolstoy’s literary classic, this stars James Norton as Prince Andrei Bolkonsky, a dissatisfied aristocrat who has become deeply cynical about St Petersburg society. Brought to life by an excellent Andrew Davies script and some fine supporting performances from Paul Dano as Pierre and Jim Broadbent as Andrei’s father, this slick production draws viewers deep into 19th-century Russia as complex relationships and internal conflicts unwind. iPlayer
The Crown, with Claire Foy and Matt Smith
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5. The Crown (2016-23)
The show that put Netflix on the map as a serious player in the high-quality global drama market, Peter Morgan’s six-series epic, which tells a fictionalised version of Queen Elizabeth II’s reign, is a tremendous feat in drama. It cycles through three principal casts (one for each epoch of the Queen), and the blurred lines between truth and fiction that made the show controversial with some audiences made it irresistible viewing for others. Netflix
Damian Lewis heads up Easy Company in Band of Brothers
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4. Band of Brothers (2001)
The ten-part series telling the story of Easy Company of the US Army 101st Airborne Division was created by Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg and based on the historian Stephen E Ambrose’s 1992 book. It’s television that brings alive the horrors of war by following the same group from their training in 1942 all the way through to the end of the Second World War. The show remains one of the most powerful depictions of war committed to the small screen. Sky/Now
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Averting apocalypse: Stellan Skarsgard and Jared Harris in Chernobyl
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3. Chernobyl (2019)
Before Craig Mazin went on to create the huge hit The Last of Us, he made this drama based on several perspectives as the Chernobyl nuclear disaster unfolded in the Soviet Union in 1986. The gripping miniseries manages the rare feat of depicting the micro and the macro, from the people on the ground and in the control room that fateful night to the politicians and bureaucrats attempting to protect themselves and their careers on the national and international stage. Sky/Now
Mark Rylance as Thomas Cromwell in Wolf Hall
BBC
2. Wolf Hall (2015/2024)
2 Wolf Hall 2015/2024
The BBC adaptation of Hilary Mantel’s novels, the series follows the rise of Thomas Cromwell, the son of a blacksmith, as he becomes the right-hand man of Henry VIII. Directed by Peter Kosminsky, with remarkable performances from Damian Lewis as Henry VIII, Mark Rylance as Cromwell and Claire Foy as Anne Boleyn among a large ensemble cast, the drama is an example of British television at its very best. iPlayer
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I, Claudius with Derek Jacobi, John Hurt and George Baker
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1. I, Claudius (1976)
Based on the novels of Robert Graves, this series is one of the classic BBC shows, and one that has stood the test of time. Narrated by an elderly Claudius (played with gentle brilliance by Derek Jacobi), the series across 12 parts tells the story of the early days of the Roman Empire. Featuring performances from a who’s who of British acting talent (John Hurt as Caligula and Siân Phillips as Livia are two great examples), this is a historical drama of such substance and quality that you can watch it again and again. Rent