{"id":357471,"date":"2026-01-07T18:13:11","date_gmt":"2026-01-07T18:13:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/357471\/"},"modified":"2026-01-07T18:13:11","modified_gmt":"2026-01-07T18:13:11","slug":"best-tv-shows-to-look-forward-to-in-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/357471\/","title":{"rendered":"Best TV shows to look forward to in 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

With more content than ever to sift through in the streaming era, no one wants to feel like a slave to the algorithm. Here are the best new and returning shows to bookmark in 2026 so you don\u2019t end up wasting your time on shoddy box sets.<\/p>\n

New TV shows in 2026
\n\u2018A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms\u2019<\/p>\n

Release date: January 19
Where to watch: Sky Atlantic and NOW
Starring: Peter Claffey, Dexter Sol Ansell, Bertie Carvel<\/p>\n

Fancy another Game Of Thrones <\/a>spin-off? Set a century before events in the main series, this one centres on the Westeros adventures of wandering knight Dunk (Claffey) and his child squire Egg (Ansell). It\u2019s already been renewed for a second season, so you can afford to get fully invested.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2018Steal\u2019<\/p>\n

Release date: January 21
Where to watch: Prime Video
Starring: Sophie Turner, Archie Madekwe, Jacob Fortune-Lloyd<\/p>\n

There\u2019s nothing small fry about this six-part heist thriller. Turner and Madekwe play a couple of finance execs who are forced to transfer a billion-pound pension fund to a violent gang who invade their office. Getting to the bottom of this morally bankrupt crime should be a lot of fun.<\/p>\n

\"SophieSophie Turner in \u2018Steal\u2019. CREDIT: Prime Video<\/p>\n

\u2018The Beauty\u2019<\/p>\n

Release date: January 22
Where to watch: Disney+
Starring: Evan Peters, Ashton Kutcher, Rebecca Hall<\/p>\n

Co-created by TV impresario Ryan Murphy, this body-horror series set in the fashion world centres on a miracle drug that claims to produce physical perfection. Murphy\u2019s output can be hit and miss \u2013 hello, All\u2019s Fair! \u2013 but his dark and campy style is a good fit for a timely Ozempic satire.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2018How To Get To Heaven From Belfast\u2019<\/p>\n

Release date: February TBC
Where to watch: Netflix
Starring: Ro\u00eds\u00edn Gallagher, Sin\u00e9ad Keenan, Caoilfhionn Dunne<\/p>\n

Lisa McGee\u2019s follow-up to Derry Girls<\/a> is a comedy-thriller about three lifelong friends who team up to find out who \u2013 or what \u2013 killed the fourth member of their childhood gang. According to McGee, it\u2019s \u201can Irish odyssey full of twists, turns and arguments about eyelash extensions\u201d. Let\u2019s hope a \u201cwee English fella\u201d isn\u2019t to blame.<\/p>\n

\"RoisinRoisin Gallagher, Caoilfhionn Dunne & Sinead Keenan in \u2018How To Get To Heaven From Belfast\u2019. CREDIT: Netflix<\/p>\n

\u2018Rooster\u2019<\/p>\n

Release date: March TBC
Where to watch: Sky Atlantic and NOW
Starring: Steve Carell, Charly Clive, Danielle Deadwyler<\/p>\n

Co-created by Bill Lawrence (Scrubs, Ted Lasso), this 10-episode comedy centres on an author who has a complex relationship with his college student daughter. If anyone can conjure up laughs from the ever-cringe generation gap, it\u2019s surely Steve Carell, who also serves as an executive producer.<\/p>\n

\"SteveSteve Carell in \u2018Rooster\u2019. CREDIT: HBO<\/p>\n

\u2018Half Man\u2019<\/p>\n

Release date: March TBC
Where to watch: BBC iPlayer
Starring: Richard Gadd, Jamie Bell, Bilal Hasna<\/p>\n

Richard Gadd\u2019s follow-up to his landmark stalking drama Baby Reindeer<\/a> is a more expansive story set in Glasgow. He and Jamie Bell star as estranged brothers whose violent reunion sparks memories of a tempestuous relationship that spans from their teenage years to the present day. With Gadd writing every episode, it won\u2019t pull any punches.<\/p>\n

\"RichardRichard Gadd and Jamie Bell in \u2018Half Man\u2019. CREDIT: BBC<\/p>\n

\u2018Blade Runner 2099\u2019<\/p>\n

Release date: 2026 TBC
Where to watch: Prime Video
Starring: Michelle Yeoh, Hunter Schafer, Tom Burke<\/p>\n

Conceived as a sequel to 1982\u2019s Blade Runner<\/a> and 2017\u2019s Blade Runner 2049<\/a>, this live-action series has been in the pipeline for over five years. Michelle Yeoh stars as a replicant nearing the end of her life: a promising premise for a sci-fi franchise that has always been rooted in pathos.<\/p>\n

\u2018Something Very Bad Is Going To Happen\u2019<\/p>\n

Release date: 2026 TBC
Where to watch: Netflix
Starring: Camila Morrone, Adam DiMarco, Jennifer Jason Leigh<\/p>\n

Exec-produced by Stranger Things <\/a>creators the Duffer Brothers, this horror series from Haley Z. Boston (Guillermo Del Toro\u2019s Cabinet Of Curiosities) is being billed as \u201ctwisted\u201d and \u201cterrifying\u201d. It follows a bride and groom whose lives go seriously awry in the week before their wedding. Don\u2019t expect anyone to catch the bouquet.<\/p>\n

\u2018Hamburg Days\u2019<\/p>\n

Release date: TBC
Where to watch: BBC iPlayer
Starring: TBC<\/p>\n

Based on the memoir of German artist Klaus Voormann, this biographical drama tells the story of The Beatles\u2019<\/a> formative trips to Hamburg in the early \u201960s. Succession<\/a> alum Jamie Carragher (no, not that one) serves as head writer, while the BBC has issued an open casting call for actors to play the Fab Four. If done well, this could be the archetypal rock \u2018n\u2019 roll origin story.<\/p>\n

\u2018First Day On Earth\u2019<\/p>\n

Release date: TBC
Where to watch: BBC iPlayer
Starring: Michaela Coel<\/p>\n

In the first TV series she has written and created since 2020\u2019s multi-Emmy-winning I May Destroy You<\/a>, Michaela Coel stars as a flailing novelist who heads to Ghana, the country of her heritage, to reconnect with her father. According to Coel, what follows is a \u201cwild odyssey\u201d, so consider us seated.<\/p>\n

\"MichaelaMichaela Coel. CREDIT: BBC\/Spencer Hewett<\/p>\n

Returning TV shows in 2026
\n\u2018Industry\u2019<\/p>\n

Season: four
Release date: January 12
Where to watch: BBC iPlayer
Starring: Marisa Abela, Kit Harington, Myha\u2019la<\/p>\n

Like the super-slippery finance world it drills into, Industry<\/a> never stands still. This fourth season is being billed as a \u201chigh-stakes, globetrotting cat-and-mouse game\u201d involving a \u201cnew fintech darling\u201d who disrupts London\u2019s investment scene. The eight new episodes are being rolled out weekly: a sure sign that Industry\u2019s stock is still rising.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2018Paradise\u2019<\/p>\n

Season: two
Release date: February 23
Where to watch: Disney+
Starring: Sterling K. Brown, Julianne Nicholson, Sarah Shahi<\/p>\n

Set three years after a global catastrophe sent the human race into underground bunkers, this post-apocalyptic thriller was one of 2025\u2019s best new shows. Season two follows Sterling K. Brown\u2019s stoic secret agent Xavier as he searches for his missing wife in the outside world. Set the dial to treacherous \u2013 very treacherous.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2018Scrubs\u2019<\/p>\n

Release date: February 25 (US air date, UK still TBC)
Where to watch: ABC (US, UK still TBC)
Starring: Zach Braff, Donald Faison, Sarah Chalke<\/p>\n

After a 17-year hiatus, the brilliantly surreal medical sitcom returns with most of its key cast members and OG showrunner Bill Lawrence at the helm. The revival series will comprise nine episodes: a sensible way to bring back an old-school network comedy in the highly competitive streaming era.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2018The Boys\u2019<\/p>\n

Season: five
Release date: April 8
Where to watch: Prime Video
Starring: Karl Urban, Jack Quaid, Chace Crawford<\/p>\n

According to creator Eric Kripke, The Boys<\/a>\u2018 fifth and final season is rooted in \u201ca true underground resistance against a fascist government, which definitely has no comparison or parallel to anything going on anywhere in the world.\u201d Ahem. Expect TV\u2019s smartest and sweariest superhero series to land plenty of timely jabs as it bids a frenetic farewell.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2018Euphoria\u2019<\/p>\n

Season: three
Release date: April TBC
Where to watch: Sky Atlantic and NOW
Starring: Zendaya, Jacob Elordi, Sydney Sweeney<\/p>\n

Season three of Gen Z\u2019s defining teen drama begins with a five-year time jump. Creator Sam Levinson has revealed that Rue (Zendaya) is now living in Mexico, while Cassie (Sweeney) and Nate (Elordi) are shacked up in the suburbs. This being Euphoria<\/a>, though, no one will stay settled for long.<\/p>\n

\"ZendayaZendaya in \u2018Euphoria\u2019 season three first look. CREDIT: HBO<\/p>\n

\u2018Malcolm In The Middle: Life\u2019s Still Unfair\u2019<\/p>\n

Release date: April 10
Where to watch: Disney+
Starring: Frankie Muniz, Bryan Cranston, Jane Kaczmarek<\/p>\n

Another revival series, but a laser-focused one. The four 30-minute episodes take place 20 years after the original sitcom and follow Frankie Muniz\u2019s Malcolm, who now has a daughter of his own, as he attends his parents\u2019 40th wedding anniversary party. Let the oddly heartwarming chaos commence.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\u2018Mobland\u2019<\/p>\n

Season: two
Release date: TBC
Where to watch: Paramount+
Starring: Tom Hardy, Pierce Brosnan, Helen Mirren<\/p>\n

Creator Ronan Bennett and exec producer Guy Ritchie won\u2019t be short of ideas for season two of their gritty gangster thriller. After all, the great thing about feuding crime families is that they never stop feuding. All the key players are back, joined by new cast members Johnny Flynn (Stardust) and Ophelia Lovibond (Trying).<\/p>\n

\"MobLand\"Pierce Brosnan and Tom Hardy in \u2018MobLand\u2019. CREDIT: Paramount<\/p>\n

\u2018Buffy The Vampire Slayer: New Sunnydale\u2019<\/p>\n

Release date: TBC
Where to watch: Disney+
Starring: Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ryan Kiera Armstrong, Jack Cutmore-Scott<\/p>\n

Bringing back a TV show as beloved as Buffy is a risk, but the early signs are encouraging. Oscar winner Chlo\u00e9 Zhao (Nomadland, Hamnet) is directing the pilot and Sarah Michelle Gellar has emphasised that it\u2019s not a reboot but a \u201ccontinuation\u201d. Is it too soon to ask for another musical episode?<\/p>\n

\u2018House Of The Dragon\u2019<\/p>\n

Season: three
Release date: 2026 TBC
Where to watch: Sky Atlantic and NOW
Starring: Matt Smith, Emma D\u2019Arcy, Olivia Cooke<\/p>\n

According to Matt Smith, the gripping Game Of Thrones spin-off will return in August, a full two years since its second season concluded. That\u2019s quite a hiatus, but don\u2019t be surprised if the intricate mix of scheming, shifting loyalties and subterfuge reels you in again pretty quickly. What\u2019s more, a fourth season is already in the works.<\/p>\n

\"MattMatt Smith in \u2018House Of The Dragon\u2019 season three. CREDIT: HBO<\/p>\n

\u2018The Bear\u2019<\/p>\n

Season: five
Release date: 2026 TBC
Where to watch: Sky Atlantic and NOW
Starring: Jeremy Allen White, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Ayo Edebiri<\/p>\n

Season four of the culinary dramedy ended with Jeremy Allen White\u2019s Carmy stepping away from the kitchen so he could work on himself. Could personal growth keep him from cooking for the entirety of season five? Expect plenty of the show\u2019s usual spicy beef either way.<\/p>\n

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