THE JOURNAL
Mr Paul Mescal and Ms Daisy Edgar-Jones in Normal People. Photograph by Mr Enda Bowe/BBC
During a tumultuous 12 months, television helped keep us just about sane. It kept us informed with news bulletins and government briefings. It kept things in perspective with gripping drama and satirical takes. Communal viewing, be it baking contests, box-set dramas or late nights squinting at CNN graphics, kept us connected during lockdown. If you haven’t already, these are the series we strongly recommend you catch up on.
Mr Daniel Levy, Ms Catherine O’Hara, Ms Annie Murphy and Mr Eugene Levy in Schitt’s Creek. Photograph by Channel 4
01.
Schitt’s Creek
CBC/Netflix, January
The delicious Canadian sitcom about newly skint millionaires struggling with small-town life finally got its dues at autumn’s Primetime Emmys, where its sixth and final season swept the board in record-breaking fashion. It turned a whole new fan base onto the giddy pleasures of this warm but waspish, fashion-forward but meme-friendly gem.
02.
Sex Education
Netflix, January
The horny high-schooler dramedy continued its heartfelt yet hilarious run of form with its superb second series. Every character came to life, every gag landed, every scene with Ms Gillian Anderson was pure joy.
03.
High Fidelity
Hulu, February
The film starring Messrs John Cusack and Jack Black relocated Mr Nick Hornby’s novel about an unlucky-in-love, list-obsessed record store owner from London to Chicago. This 10-part TV rom-com reboot shifted the action to Brooklyn, but, more importantly, gender-flipped it to star Ms Zoë Kravitz. Low-key cool, funny and far better than it had any right to be.
Mr Charlie Cooper and Ms Daisy May Cooper in This Country. Photograph by Mr Jack Barnes, courtesy of BBC
04.
This Country
BBC/Amazon/iTunes, February
What the actual f***? The Cotswolds comedy by siblings Ms Daisy May and Mr Charlie Cooper has deservedly been hailed as the best mockumentary British sitcom since The Office. Its third and final series hilariously captured the banality of rural life – and viewers’ hearts with it.
05.
Devs
BBC/Hulu, March
Mr Alex Garland’s meditative tech thriller gripped from the dark twists at the end of its first episode. Mr Nick “Ron Swanson” Offerman played against type as a quantum computing billionaire with an ambitious secret project. Packed with haunting ideas and gorgeous to look at – the show, that is, not Mr Offerman. Sorry, dude. Nice beard, though.
06.
Dave
BBC/FX, March
Rapper-cum-comedian Mr Dave Burd, aka Lil Dicky, plays a lightly fictionalised version of himself in this cringe-com about a nerdy white suburbanite convinced he’s destined to become one of the greatest hip-hop stars of all time. Come for the juvenile jokes, stay for the hidden depths.
Mr Amit Rahav and Ms Shira Haas in Unorthodox. Photograph by Ms Anika Molnar, courtesy of Netflix
07.
Unorthodox
Netflix, March
This captivating coming-of-age drama followed Esther “Esty” Shapiro (mesmerising Israeli actress Ms Shira Haas), a 19-year-old Jewish woman who leaves her arranged marriage in New York’s Hasidic community and flees to Berlin to start a new, secular life. A stunning story of rebellion, freedom and escape.
08.
Normal People
BBC/Hulu, April
Dragging the art of TV literary adaptation into the 21st century by its lapels, this exquisite rendering of Ms Sally Rooney’s novel about teen first love struck an emotional chord with viewers of all ages. Mr Paul Mescal and Ms Daisy Edgar-Jones delivered star-making turns as the intense Irish millennials. It made a meme of a certain gold chain, too.
09.
I May Destroy You
BBC/HBO, June
The multi-talented Ms Michaela Coel miraculously turned her own rape trauma into this genre-defying triumph. Her vibrant comedy-drama was astonishingly bold, brilliantly assured and darkly funny, exploring issues of sexual consent from multiple viewpoints. And that ending? Wow.
Ms Jordan Kristine Seamon and Mr Benjamin L Taylor II in We Are Who We Are. Photograph by Fremantle, courtesy of BBC
10.
We Are Who We Are
BBC/Sky/HBO, August
Filmmaker Mr Luca Guadagnino of Call Me By Your Name fame made his TV debut with this poetic coming-of-age drama, set on an American airbase in Italy. It’s a handsomely shot, immersive portrait of friendship, first love and all the hormone-addled angst of teenhood.
11.
I Hate Suzie
Sky/HBO, August
Playwright (and Succession writer) Ms Lucy Prebble co-created this scabrously witty, wild ride of a drama with her friend and muse Ms Billie Piper. It follows a former child star whose life veers off the rails when her phone is hacked and compromising pics are leaked.
12.
The Boys
Amazon, September
For the first time in more than a decade, there were no new Marvel films this year. Who needs them when the second series of this twisty vigilante thriller was such a sharp takedown of the superhero genre? Watchmen for the Trump age.
Ms Anya Taylor-Joy in The Queen’s Gambit. Photograph by Mr Phil Bray, courtesy of Netflix
13.
The Queen’s Gambit
Netflix, October
There was a huge resurgence of interest in chess in the autumn, especially among young women, and a 10-fold increase in sales of chess sets. Why? Solely down to this stylishly compelling drama, starring the mesmerising Ms Anya Taylor-Joy as a troubled orphan who becomes a pill-popping, world-beating prodigy.
14.
Small Axe
BBC/Amazon, November
Auteur Mr Steve McQueen’s five-part anthology series, which told true stories of London’s Caribbean community during the 1960s and 1970s, wasn’t so much a TV show as a series of mini-movies. The likes of Mr John Boyega and Ms Letitia Wright were outstanding in these sumptuous, searing, lovingly crafted films.
15.
Industry
BBC/HBO, November
Skins meets This Life? A millennial Mad Men? Billions: Yoof Edition? Whatever you call it, this sexy, druggy, soapy drama about graduates competing for jobs at a top City investment bank made The Apprentice look relaxing. The first episode, directed by Ms Lena Dunham, set the zippy standard.