One of, if not the most talked about show of the year came back in March with the release of Jack Thorne's powerful drama Adolescence on Netflix.
More highlights from the past year included the Oscar-nominated film Nickel Boys, Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan's hotly anticipated return to television with Pluribus and the deeply affecting documentary Brianna: A Mother's Story.
To cater to all kinds of fans, we've broken it down into Dramas (from Untamed to Down Cemetery Road), Sci-Fi and Fantasy series (not just Pluribus but much, much more), Documentaries (including Caroline Flack: Search for the Truth and Grenfell: Uncovered) and, finally, Films.
From an award-winning exploration of teen disaffection to the harrowing story of a shooting, these dramas had everyone talking this year.
25. Suspect: The Shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes
Electrician Jean Charles de Menezes was making his way to work in the wake of the 7/7 terrorist attacks when he was shot and killed by Metropolitan Police officers. The catalogue of failings that led up to the events of 22 July 2005 (covered brilliantly by BBC Two documentary 7/7: the London Bombings, still available on iPlayer) is dramatised in this unflinching four-part drama, including the actions of key figures Ian Blair (Conleth Hill), Brian Paddick (Russell Tovey) and Cressida Dick (Emily Mortimer). It’s startling how quickly fiction became fact following the tragedy and how – 20 years on – many inaccuracies still percolate. Hopefully, this drama has gone some way to definitively righting those wrongs. – Frances Taylor
When young primary schoolteacher Cushla (Lola Petticrew) meets charismatic but married barrister Michael (Tom Cullen), they’re instantly attracted. But she’s Catholic, he’s Protestant and this is Northern Ireland in 1975. From the start this love affair is doomed. Adapted from Louise Kennedy’s novel, Trespasses portrays the unbearable stress of living under intense divisions with an ever-present threat of violent retribution. With strong support from Gillian Anderson as Cushla’s drunken, flinty mother and Martin McCann as her brother, it packs a heck of a dramatic punch. – Jane Rackham
23. Smoke
This drama based on real events is a – forgive us – slow burn, since the revelation at the close of episode two turns the humdrum detective drama on its head. Taron Egerton and Dennis Lehane (the star and creator of the excellent Black Bird) reunite here with Egerton as Dave Gudsen, an arson investigator hunting down serial fire-setters in the Pacific North West. With Jurnee Smollett and Rafe Spall as Gudsen’s reluctant co-investigators, a darkly twisting, handsomely filmed drama keeps finding new ways for its imperfect characters to surprise us. – Jacke Seale
The aftermath of the Second World War is a high time for lovers of crime, as morals often seem as grey as the rubble-strewn streets. Amid scarcity come those seeking to profit, and down these roads of supposed peace walk people, considered to be heroes, who are harbouring secrets from their years spent in conflict. Into this morally murky world comes the likeable Gabriel Book (Mark Gatiss), who very much embodies a sense of duality. He’s a London bookshop owner with a sideline in sleuthing, and a married man (Polly Walker plays his wife Trottie) who’s gay at a time when homosexuality was illegal. This last detail is a smart touch, allowing a subtle, poignant exploration of his private life. – David Brown
21. Hacks
This may be the funniest comedy you’ve never heard of. Hacks has won Emmys, Golden Globes and many fans, but still goes unnoticed on this side of the pond. Jean Smart is sublime as Deborah Vance – a stand-up comedian whose star was on the wane until she was paired with young writer Ava Daniels (Hannah Einbinder). The end of season three saw Deborah finally having achieved her ambition of hosting a late-night chat show. Ava’s career is also soaring, having secured the position of head writer on the show. So, what could possibly go wrong in season four? Well, quite a lot – given Ava’s trying to play Deborah at her own wily game. A game Deborah has been playing for 50 years, and never loses. – Frances Taylor
Another belting season of the thriller based on Lee Child’s novels. As ex-military police officer Jack Reacher (Alan Ritchson) infiltrates a criminal organisation, his exploits include a swim through raging surf, an assassination using office equipment and a punch-up with a henchman who is even bigger than Reacher. It’s the usual satisfying action, punctuated with superb one-liners and a dash of romance: this year, with DEA agent Susan Duffy, played with some finesse by British actor Sonya Cassidy. – Jack Seale
19. Nine Bodies in a Mexican Morgue
Lost meets And Then There Were None in this crime drama from Anthony Horowitz, an undoubted master of his craft. Here, he crashes a plane in the Mexican jungle and starts to pick off the survivors, dispatching them at the hands of a killer who could well be one of the passengers. It’s a traditional murder mystery set-up that, if written by Agatha Christie, would be crammed with cut-glass accents and Art Deco glamour. But in setting his story in such a grimy, hostile environment, it feels as though Horowitz is reminding viewers that, despite whodunnits essentially being one big guessing game, murder itself shouldn’t always be presented so palatably. – David Brown
A perfectly cast Jon Hamm is the anti-hero of an entertaining comedy drama that begins with thrusting, hunky finance guy “Coop” (Hamm) losing his wife, job and status, but still trying to keep up appearances with his super-rich pals in upstate New York. He needs money and secretly hates his friends… so he starts burgling their mansions, stealing expensive trinkets they won’t miss. Mainly a satire on the vulgarity of people who have more money than they can spend, the show never quite hates its characters, who are all more damaged than they first appear – but the outrageous intrigue keeps on coming. – Jack Seale
17. Untamed
Eric Bana is ostensibly the lead star of this hit mystery thriller, but special agent Kyle Turner would be diminished were he to be deprived of his backdrop, as the vastness of Yosemite National Park also makes for an impressive key player in events. This expansive patch in California’s Sierra Nevada mountains may be a familiar sight to Turner, but there’s a sense throughout this easy-on-the-eye whodunnit that, no matter how hard he tries to enforce the law, those surroundings will remain both wild and brutish – which doesn’t bode well when there’s a murder case to unpick. – David Brown
The formidable Jimmy McGovern has tackled many difficult social issues in his work. This time it’s about the devastating aftermath of sex abuse perpetrated on a 12-year-old boy by his uncle. There’s shocking scenes of painful conversations and depictions of self-hatred, disgust and despair as a powerful cast – Bobby Schofield, Anna Friel and Anna Maxwell-Martin giving realistic performances – struggle to process what happened. But it also asks us to think deeply about the subject and question whether the abuser, who refers to himself as “a piece of s**t”, deserves any form of forgiveness. – Jane Rackham
15. House of Guinness
Peaky Blinders, A Thousand Blows, This Town… and now Steven Knight does it again with this gritty saga about the Irish brewing dynasty. It has everything: a cracking cast (James Norton, Louis Partridge), darkly lit cinematography, a good storyline that’s as compulsive as Succession and a steampunk soundtrack that’ll knock your socks off. We are in Dublin in 1868 where the head of the unbelievably wealthy Guinness family has just died, leaving his four children to fight over their inheritance, with the help of the ruthless brewery foreman (Norton) who oozes sex appeal alongside inherent violence. – Jane Rackham
When it comes to depicting the thrill of fame and its accompanying anxieties, few dramas do it better than this high-quality Australian export. It has remained frustratingly under the radar over the course of its three-series run, but do seek it out, for while its setting in Australian commercial newsrooms of the 1980s may seem far removed from the lived experience of many, all human frailties are here. This final run sees the self-worth of News at Six anchorman Dale Jennings (Sam Reid) hit the floor, thanks to damning audience feedback. With his boss Lindsay exhibiting a sadistic dereliction in his duty of care, it’s left to fellow host Helen Norville (Anna Torv) to come to the aid of her TV rival. – David Brown
13. Squid Game (Netflix)
After an odd second season that replaced the deadly children’s games with a mass shoot-out, the Korean megahit – about a secret contest that gradually eliminates its players until only one remains, and by “eliminate” we really mean they die – returns to basics for its third and final run. Seong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae) is once again trying to win a colossal cash prize, while subverting the game from the inside in the hope of destroying it. Throw in the curveball of one of the other contestants being heavily pregnant and you have a swansong that successfully refreshes the formula, persistently outflanking viewers who think they know what’s coming – before delivering a final shot that you’ll be thinking about for a while afterwards. – Jack Seale
Having been hyped, lauded and pilloried depending on whether that year’s episodes were stunningly brilliant or merely very good, Christopher Storer’s intense drama triumphs anew in its fourth season, mainly because these episodes are less intense and less about the startup Chicago restaurant. Yes it’s still set in The Bear, a high-end eaterie struggling to flourish and run by chef Carmy (Jeremy Allen White), but this new Bear is driven more by emotion than such fripperies as whether a filet mignon will arrive at a table on time. Storer has created an extended family of characters who care about each other deeply – and, more than ever, we feel the same. – Jack Seale
11. This City Is Ours
If you initially gave an episode or two of this drama a go but decided not to stick with it, I wouldn’t have blamed you. It was easy to write off as slightly throwaway gangland fare (a “Scouse Sopranos” was the reductive phrase bandied about) but persevere and you’re rewarded with a knotty patchwork of flawed antiheroes. Oh, and a fun dance routine (who didn’t try and re-create The House of Bamboo in their kitchen?). Sean Bean and Julie Graham star as the heads of the Phelan family and their organised crime ring. But it’s James Nelson-Joyce as Michael who shines brightest (the actor’s star rose and rose this year), as he grapples with his murky past – and present – while trying to make a better life for himself and partner Diana (Hannah Onslow). – Frances Taylor
Police canteen worker Alison (Rose Ayling-Ellis) is asked by the CID to use her lip-reading skills to decipher surveillance conversations of a gang plotting a high-stakes heist. But, although Alison is smart, she becomes so embroiled in the investigation she puts herself at risk. Catherine Moulton’s ground-breaking script depicts the thoughtless attitude of others towards deaf people, while partial subtitles, that gradually start to make sense as Alison pieces the sentences together, help us understand the daily challenges faced by the deaf community. A crime story with an edifying aspect, told by a strong cast that also includes Andrew Buchan. – Jane Rackham
9. Death Valley
Comfort-blanket TV of a high quality, thanks to its casting of Timothy Spall as John Chapel, a retired actor and one-time television detective, now living as a kind of reclusive Droopy in Wales. Keen to utilise his observation skills is DS Janie Mallowan (Gwyneth Keyworth) who, following a shooting, leans into her line in droll self-deprecation to draw him out of his shell. John, however, sees himself as slumming it while in her company, as though a classically trained actor solving mysteries with the police is equivalent to an Olympic athlete running in an egg-and-spoon race. – David Brown
The true story of how Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe was returning to Britain after visiting her parents in Iran with her young daughter when the Revolutionary Guard detained her at the airport. No reason was given, although it was suggested that she was a spy. In fact, Nazanin was being held to force Britain to pay Iran a decades-old debt. It would be six years before her family was reunited. This drama brilliantly evokes the fear, helplessness and frustration felt by Nazanin (Narges Rashidi) and her British husband Richard (Joseph Fiennes) as she was kept in solitary confinement, and then moved, blindfolded, from one prison to another while, back in Britain, he campaigned for her release. It’s an inhumane, immoral and very harrowing story. – Jane Rackham
7. Dept Q
In the perfect marriage of actor and character, Matthew Goode stars as a gifted police detective with a biting wit and buried trauma, who operates out of a dank Edinburgh basement alongside a ragtag bunch of colleagues. Tasked with investigating cold cases, Goode’s DCI Carl Morck soon finds himself allied with Syrian-born civilian employee Akram Salim (a scene-stealing Alexej Manvelov) and eager-to-please DC Rose Dickson (Leah Byrne), as they probe the disappearance of an ambitious prosecutor. The series channels the same underdogs-against-the-system vibe of Slow Horses, but adds some flavoursome gothic flourishes of its own. – David Brown
A drama led by Emma Thompson and Ruth Wilson, based on the debut novel by Slow Horses creator Mick Herron? No prizes for guessing that this would be excellent. A mysterious explosion near the Oxford home of art restorer Sarah (Wilson) brings her into the orbit of jaded private investigator Zoë (Thompson). Once it’s clear they’ve stumbled upon a dangerous government conspiracy, they need to improvise furiously, and maybe even bond a little, to survive. Witty, ambitious and bursting with hilarious or terrifying supporting characters, this is simply a treat. – Jack Seale
5. A Thousand Blows
Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight once again draws on the exploits of a real-life criminal gang. This time it’s a late Victorian all-female pickpocket crew led by fierce Mary Carr (Erin Doherty). When she meets Jamaican immigrant Hezekiah Moscow (Malachi Kirby) and gets him to take up bare-knuckle boxing, it puts them on a collision course with local champ Sugar (Stephen Graham). It’s stuffed with sharp dialogue, thrilling fights and a tender ear for the woes of the disenfranchised. – Jack Seale
All is rosy in the world of tech specialist Roddy Ho (Christopher Chung). Yes, the man who’s normally as sensitive as a malware infection has somehow got himself a girlfriend, and fellow spook Shirley (Aimee-Ffion Edwards) is trying to convince their boss Jackson Lamb (Gary Oldman) that the situation is not as it seems. Such is the set-up for this fifth outing for the Slough House spies, which, as it unfolds, also takes in a killing spree at a shopping precinct and an acrimonious London mayoral race. As ever, the series pulls off the high-wire feat of treating drama and comedy as equals, without stinting on either thrills or laughs. – David Brown
3. Blue Lights
Each series of the top-drawer Northern Irish police drama widens the scope, with this third run zooming out from street gangs and sectarian tensions to focus on those who really hold power in the Belfast of 2025. There are also changes within the team itself, including the promotion of cupcake-baking Stevie O’Neill (Martin McCann), who’s now elevated to the rank of sergeant. But remaining a key feature throughout are the life-or-death situations in which the officers often find themselves. No matter how primed viewers now believe themselves to be, these stand-offs always feel fraught with unpredictability and as tense as a clenched fist. – David Brown
Sheridan Smith delivers a tour de force performance as Ann Ming, the mother who campaigned for decades to change the double jeopardy law so her daughter Julie Hogg’s acquitted killer could be tried again for the crime. This is no dry legal/courtroom drama, however. Much of the focus is on the traumatic months and years after Julie’s brutal murder in 1989. It starts with Ann’s discovery of her daughter’s body and the police’s inept investigations, followed by the harrowing years of injustice the family endured in the courts. While you will cheer on Ann’s fortitude and resilience, this will tear you apart. – Jane Rackham
1. Adolescence
Radio Times' reviewers don’t always agree, but when it came to deciding what should take the top spot in ranking our dramas of the year, we were unanimous. Away from the adulation and the awards (Stephen Graham, Erin Doherty and Owen Cooper all won Emmys, the last becoming the youngest ever male recipient), this Netflix series had a profound real-world impact. It brought pertinent topics to the fore, including knife crime, violence and misogyny among today’s teenagers, with discussion reaching the police and government. The show’s creator and writer Jack Thorne was invited to speak at Parliament, while Keir Starmer called for the four-part drama to be shown in schools.
It's been a sensational year for sci-fi and fantasy.
But, amid a sea of reboots, sequels and prequels, we were also treated to some very welcome original stories in the sci-fi and fantasy space, most notably from Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul creator Vince Gilligan, who casually stepped up and dropped one of the best shows of the year with his genre-bending series Pluribus.
Of course, there have been some tragedies, with The Wheel of Time being cancelled after its best season yet (no, we're not over it).
It's time to look back on the TV that made us laugh, cry and dream this year. Here are our top 25 sci-fi and fantasy series of 2025!
25. From season 3
The audience for this hidden gem on MGM+ has grown massively each season – and for good reason.
In its third season, the series has become increasingly bizarre, with the introduction of The Man in Yellow - but it's impossible to look away. – Louise Griffin
While the latest season may have been overshadowed by discussions about the BBC's deal with Disney, there was no faulting the performances in Doctor Who season 15.
Thankfully, we got a little bit more from Millie Gibson's Ruby Sunday after her slightly abrupt departure in the last season, but the main surprise came from the last episode, which saw Gatwa's Doctor regenerate into none other than returning star Billie Piper. What does it all mean? You'll have to wait until Christmas 2026 to find out! – Louise Griffin
23. Peacemaker season 2
Chris Smith, aka Peacemaker, is one of the stranger superheroes – a violent killer with a silver helmet and no superpowers, who has an eagle for a best friend. Despite those setbacks, in the first series of his eponymous TV show he still managed to save the world from alien invasion. Surely now he’ll be taken seriously? No such luck.
In other hands it could be daft, crude television, but series lead (and former wrestler) John Cena sells Peacemaker’s turmoil with a surprisingly understated performance. – Huw Fullerton
Set in hell’s Pentagram City, Hazbin Hotel follows Charlie Morningstar and her desperate attempt to prove that sinners can be redeemed. Initially easy to dismiss as just another adult animation, Hazbin Hotel has surprised its critics by having depth beyond its crude language and innuendos.
What would have been restricted as a live-action show is boundless as an animation, able to express multifaceted concepts of morality and redemption without limitations. Combined with the star power of names such as Keith David and Stephanie Beatriz, Vivienne Medrano’s creation has exceeded expectations and promises to maintain its momentum until the end. – Em Flint.
21. Ironheart
Ironheart is an unfairly overlooked gem in the Marvel Cinematic Universe; if it passed you by over the summer, endeavour to catch up at the soonest opportunity.
Dominique Thorne returns as Wakanda Forever’s Riri Williams, who is dragged back to her Chicago hometown, where she quickly becomes entangled with a dangerous gang of super criminals. Series creator Chinaka Hodge proceeds to deliver a story with a strong emotional hook and plenty of suspense as the MCU’s magic and tech-based corners dramatically collide.
In terms of world-building, Ironheart also boasts a compelling new villain in The Hood (played by Anthony Ramos), plus a long-demanded character in a brief-yet-impactful cameo. – David Craig
20. Murderbot
A sci-fi comedy that looks to tap into our fears about AI stars Alexander Skarsgard as the titular “Murderbot” – not that anyone else knows this is its name.
Everyone else is a fallible, emotional human, whereas Murderbot has the face and skin of a human but is a powerful, self-interested machine underneath. The show takes this idea and uses it for what you might call “voiceover comedy”: the main character is deceiving everyone, and we get to hear its thoughts via Skarsgard’s narration. – Jack Seale
The Boys – which imagines a world where superheroes are real, but as venal and selfish as any Hollywood bigshot – will soon conclude with its eagerly awaited fifth series.
Marie Moreau (Jaz Sinclair) and her friends escape the creepy lab of the last series and investigate a new conspiracy. Expect the usual lashings of blood, sex and violence, with even more crossover with The Boys. – Huw Fullerton
18. Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3
From messing around with the Star Trek canon, to giving us fairytale episodes and murder mystery episodes, Strange New Worlds season 3 didn't hold back – and it was all the better for it.
It might not be everyone's cup of tea, and only looks to get weirder in future seasons, as we await season 4's puppet episode (yep, really). But you'll find yourself genuinely intrigued by this loveable band of misfits and all their personal dramas - and it's a welcome reminder that sci-fi can and should be just a bit silly. – Louise Griffin
Initially marketed as no more than a gritty thriller with the murder of a President at its core, Paradise is a wonderful Trojan horse of a series. The series proved why some of the best TV plot details should be kept as a secret and while underground bunkers and towns aren’t a new sci-fi device by any means, Paradise weaves in an action-packed Washington-related element that only notches up the tension.
16. Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man
Where to watch: Disney+
Hudson Thames provides the voice of Peter, a friendly geek who is about to become a vigilante. There’s more about his high-school life than in some versions of the tale, but he’s soon slinging webs and foiling muggers. – Jack Seale
Based on Capcom’s popular action-adventure game franchise of the same name, this new animated series introduces viewers to Dante, a handsome and witty but troubled demon hunter.
Dante, voiced by Johnny Yong Bosch, might be humanity’s only hope against the mysterious White Rabbit (Hoon Lee), who wishes to summon fearsome demons from a terrible other realm. The retro anime-style visuals and a slight emo vibe help give the show its unique texture. – Jack Seale
14. Wednesday season 2
Even in a school of outcasts, Wednesday Addams (Jenna Ortega) remains a determined outsider, so the last thing she’d want to be is beloved. Yet following the launch of season 1 of this delightfully offbeat gothic drama back in November 2022, that’s what she became. Her dance moves were imitated, those fashion choices scrutinised, her stubbornness celebrated. So, it’s interesting to see season 2 opting to imitate life, with Wednesday, having saved Nevermore Academy the previous term, seen here returning as the idol of many.
And the fact that Catherine Zeta-Jones is also on screen more as saturnine matriarch Morticia means that the spiky dynamics of the Addams family females are spotlighted almost as much as the now-obligatory mystery, which, this time, finds Wednesday pursuing a cloaked stalker. – David Brown
This is TV's most impressive space opera, a grand sweep of a show that manages to take its central story seriously while peppering its scenes with nuggets of dark wit. The crux of it is that a mathematician, Hari Seldon (Jared Harris), has perfected a technique that predicts the future of the despotic Empire, which used to run every planet in sight but now shares power with Seldon's Foundation.
Fans of classic Scandi drama will be amused to see the role recast, with Mikael Persbrandt from Beck giving way to Pilou Asbaek from Borgen. Anyway, we're soon having the usual weighty discussions and brittle arguments in beautiful locations, as smug clone emperor Brother Day (Lee Pace) ignores the impending apocalypse and concentrates on his new hobby: he's got a pet camel. – Jack Seale
12. Daredevil: Born Again
Once on Netflix but now residing in the home of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Disney+, it’s taken blind lawyer/vigilante Matt Murdock/ Daredevil a while to make his comeback.
Where to watch: Prime Video
The crash-bang action is artfully offset by some sly jokes about what it’s like to be, or to raise, a teenager. – Jack Seale
10. Severance season 2
A high-concept drama, but one that is still hanging together as it returns for a long-awaited second series. Adam Scott is Mark, an employee of a mysterious company that puts its staff through a procedure, the result of which is that in the office they remember nothing about their lives outside, and vice versa.
But now that divide has fractured, Mark and his colleagues are closer to sniffing out a grand conspiracy. Smart writing and Ben Stiller’s angular, innovative direction keeps you forever on your toes. – Jack Seale
9. Stranger Things season 5
After nine years, the fantasy phenomenon enters its endgame, releasing four episodes in November before the final entries drop on Netflix between Christmas and New Year. Stranger Things is such a huge hit, with so many die-hard fans, it’s hard to imagine how they’ll wrap up all the plot threads while also creating a satisfying conclusion.
With psychic baddie Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower) still out there, it’s down to Hawkins’ finest – including telekinetic teen Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) – to track him down. Assuming he doesn’t track them down first. – Huw Fullerton
Two seasons in, Solo Leveling's protagonist has levelled up exponentially, and the same is also true of the show itself. Sung Jinwoo's quest to become the world's strongest hunter has taken anime by storm, sweeping the Crunchyroll Anime Awards this year thanks to its relentless action and thrilling lore, all served up in a gorgeously animated package.
7. Black Mirror season 7
Where to watch: Netflix
What seems initially like a regular Black Mirror story ticking off modern malaises (digital subscription services, intrusive adverts and online content that demeans both the creator and the viewer are all dealt with) steadily becomes something much more serious and sad; devastatingly so as the story moves towards a horrible, logical conclusion.
Where to watch: Prime Video
Based on the sprawling fantasy novels by Robert Jordan, the Prime Video series faced reasonable criticism in its first two instalments from fans, before finally hitting its stride in season 3 with Rand Al'Thor's (Josha Stradowski) journey to the Aiel Waste to prove himself as the Car'a'carn.
5. It: Welcome to Derry
Where to watch: Sky/NOW
Taking place in the early 1960s, prior to the timeframe of those films, it transports us back to Derry, Maine. When a boy goes missing, his group of friends, played by a brilliant young cast, investigate, but the evil clown Pennywise (Bill Skarsgård reprises his role and executive-produces) soon taps into their worst nightmares.
The opening episode does not go where you think it will at all – proving there are still plenty of new shocks to be had within a story you thought you knew – Laura Rutkowski
4. The Last of Us season 2
“Based on a video game” flashing up at the start of a TV show doesn’t usually inspire much confidence, but The Last of Us is a definite exception to that rule. When the first series was released in 2023, the story – which saw a grizzled smuggler transporting a teen across a post-apocalyptic America – struck a chord with viewers, as did the terrifying, fungus-infected zombies they faced along the way.
It’s a credit to the performances that in a world of mushroom zombies, it’s the human relationships that hold your attention – Huw Fullerton
It’s 2120, and just two years before the events of 1979 film Alien, in creator Noah Lawley’s (Fargo, Legion) prequel series. It disregards the events of Prometheus and Alien: Covenant, and takes place mainly on Earth, which is ruled by five large corporations. It is a place where cyborgs (humans with biological and artificial parts) and synthetics (humanoid robots with artificial intelligence) live among humans.
Seeing it in its crowd-pleasing, hissing glory is worth the watch alone. Wendy (Sydney Chandler) and her fellow hybrids investigate the crash site, driven by the need to find her brother, a medic called Hermit (Alex Lawther) - Laura Rutkowski
2. Pluribus
Years after blessing us with Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, TV titan Vince Gilligan returned with his new genre-bending offering, Pluribus - and, by George, he's done it again!
With underlying messages about love and loss, about humanity and loneliness, about AI and technology, and what it means to be an individual in this increasingly confusing world, Pluribus is exactly what the doctor ordered – Louise Griffin
1. Andor season 2
When it arrived in 2022, there were low expectations for this Star Wars series, a prequel to a spin-off (2016’s movie Rogue One) based on a relatively minor character. But this spy-v-spy thriller version of a galaxy far, far away quickly won viewers over. Season 2 only upped the ante as we followed rebel agent Cassian Andor (Diego Luna), working for the nascent Rebellion while the fascist Empire tried to crush dissent.
Despite the Star Wars sheen, this is grown-up, smart storytelling with plenty of real-world parallels – and not a lightsaber in sight – Huw Fullerton
Whether it's Disney+ taking a closer look at the untimely death of Caroline Flack, or Netflix examining injustice in the US, there have been plenty of thought-provoking series and films.
25. The Truth About Jussie Smollett
Where to watch: Netflix
Where to watch: Netflix
23. Bad Influence: The Dark Side of Kidfluencing
Where to watch: Netflix
Where to watch: Netflix
Just one problem: the police were following the robbers from the start. A three-part documentary makes good use of one of the gang, Lee Wenham, as the main interviewee, going into more detail than most shows would about the thieves' backgrounds, giving the cops their own episode, and setting us up for a thrilling outcome. – Jack Seale
21. Katie Piper: Locked Up in Louisiana
Ever since the acid attack that changed her life, Katie Piper has wanted to understand why people commit violent acts and admits she felt like killing the man responsible. She's spending a month inside a women’s jail in New Orleans where she hears that 75 per cent of the 120 inmates suffered domestic abuse before they committed their crime. It’s disturbing viewing and you may question the life sentences they face. "We all have a choice," says Piper, "but sometimes the choice is me or them." – Jane Rackham
Nobody knows what goes on when a jury retires to deliberate a case, other than those who are in the room. This returning documentary series, stripped throughout the week, gives us an inkling. It replicates a real murder case, using actors speaking from court transcripts in front of 12 ordinary people – like a real jury they’re of all ages, opinions and walks of life – to observe the judicial process and see whether they reach the same verdict as the original decision-makers.
19. Educating Yorkshire
Where to watch: Channel4.com
As Channel 4 again wire his corridors and classrooms with fixed cameras and radio mics, the staff face a new set of challenges, from an attendance crisis to rising pupil anxiety. – David Butcher
If you saw the hit Netflix doc The Tinder Swindler, you’ll recognise Cecilie Fjellhøy as one of the victims of an arch fraudster who targeted single women. She returns for a series that continues to explore the dark world of "romance fraud" – con merchants who roam dating apps looking for marks, convincing them that love is in the air before hitting their victims with requests for loans that will never be repaid.
17. Attack on London: Hunting the 7/7 bombers
Where to watch: Netflix
An already traumatised city was further destabilised by a separate terrorist cell attempting to perpetrate a very similar set of atrocities a fortnight later, creating a pressure-cooker environment in which an innocent man, de Menezes, was shot dead by police. Those who were in London at the time, including survivors of the 7/7 attacks, are on hand to provide first-hand witness statements. – Jack Seale
After last year's BBC Two documentary Boybands Forever, this three-part series was always going to be the follow-up. In charting the highs and lows of being in a 1990s girl band, Melanie Blatt of All Saints is the most candid (episode one would be blander without her anecdotes; some are funny, others horrific), while members of Eternal, Atomic Kitten and Mis-Teeq are among those recounting spats, successes and sinister press stories (the tabloid headlines are appalling).
It's a detailed but not encyclopaedic take on the decade (B*Witched, who had four number one singles, fail to get a mention), and despite any analysis of 90s girl bands inevitably revolving around the Spice Girls’ orbit, frustratingly and intriguingly, producers haven’t secured any of the five to take part. There are at least a few nice nuggets from the man who put them together: music manager Chris Herbert relays how watching Friends made him want to apply that same formula to creating a girl group. – Frances Taylor
15. Call Her Alex
Alex Cooper, the podcaster behind the cultural juggernaut Call Her Daddy, puts herself in front of the camera as she charts her meteoric rise to fame – which didn't come without its setbacks.
Where to watch: Netflix
Did she fall overboard? Possibly, but she’s never been found and there have been multiple reported sightings of her on land, stretching across three decades. The programme sifts through the theories, the suspects and the efforts that have been made to find Bradley – so far, in vain. – Jack Seale
13. Boyzone: No Matter What
Boyzone didn't feature in BBC Two's documentary about '90s boybands, but they got a dedicated three- part retrospective detailing the tensions and traumas that went on behind the squeaky-clean scenes. Laid bare is the behaviour of the band's former manager Louis Walsh. He is never shy of a soundbite, but is particularly boorish here as he relays – without remorse – how he'd make up stories for the tabloids: one even involving an escape from a fictional plane crash. "I never felt guilty," he shrugs. "I was doing my job. And I’d do it all again." – Frances Taylor
What a sobering hour of television this is. Idris Elba sets out his goal of finding "real, practical solutions" to the deeply distressing rise in knife crime around the UK – although until austerity's funding cuts in youth provision and community support are reversed (in the process easing the pressure on the NHS, education and penal systems), it’s hard to see either being possible.
11. Number One on the Call Sheet
Where to watch: Apple TV
Told through candid interviews and exclusive access, the stars discuss their breakthrough moments in Hollywood, featuring Denzel Washington, Jamie Foxx and Will Smith as well as Angela Bassett, Viola Davis and Halle Berry to name a few.
Where to watch: NOW/Sky Documentaries
Many already know the harrowing details of the case, but this documentary does a stellar job at taking the viewer through the heartbreaking hour-by-hour process that their loved ones endured with the police, naturally looking to them for help in searching for the sisters. Failing in the initial search, the case takes on another horrifying note as it's discovered that police officers had taken pictures of Bibaa and Nicole's bodies whilst supposedly protecting the crime scene.
Chronicling the resulting parallel investigations and the race to catch their killer, feelings of anger and sympathy are bound to wash over viewers in waves. The real standout of this series is the inspiring and heartbreaking interview with the sisters' mother Mina, who continues the fight to bring about institutional change. There's sadly enough within this travesty to fill three episodes easily and will emotionally linger with you long after watching. – Morgan Cormack
9. Flintoff
"It's like a reset – I'm trying to find out what I am now." Andrew 'Freddie' Flintoff has made limited media appearances since he suffered life-altering injuries while filming Top Gear in 2022. This feature-length biography sees him tackle his new reality directly, as the England cricket legend tries to come to terms with permanently looking different – and perhaps feeling different for ever, too.
Where to watch: ITVX
All the women were shattered to learn that everything they thought they knew about the person they had shared their hearts and their beds with was false… because these men were undercover cops. This astonishing three-part documentary charts how Helen, Alison and Lisa turned detective to reveal a shocking chapter in police history, which the Met has since described as "abusive, deceitful, manipulative and wrong". – Jane Rackham
7. Unknown Number: The High School Catfish
Very rarely does a documentary force me to rewind multiple times to ensure I gathered everything correctly, but Unknown Number: The High School Catfish is a complete beast of its own.
But it's the reveal of who was behind the 15-month tirade that'll leave you with a pit in your stomach. – Katelyn Mensah
When four young adults were stabbed to death in a student house near the University of Idaho, a small community was devastated and soon become the subject of incessant speculation from online "sleuths".
5. No Other Land
Where to watch: Channel4.com
Like the excellent Ukrainian film 20 Days in Mariupol, which won the Oscar last year, this is less a neatly contained film than a snapshot of an ongoing moment. It’s plain and personal, with a conscious lack of grandstanding: just Adra and his Jerusalem-based co-director Yuval Abraham presenting the situation from ground level. Their film closes in 2023; in real life, their work continues. – Calum Baker
Winning Strictly Come Dancing and hosting Love Island were amongst the many things Caroline Flack was known and loved for. Tragically in February 2020, she took her own life. At the time, she was facing prosecution for allegedly assaulting her boyfriend, and despite the CPS recommending she receive a caution, the day before she died, she discovered she was to be prosecuted.
3. Grenfell: Uncovered
Where to watch: Netflix
It's no easy feat to map out a wide-spanning and emotionally raw story like this one in a way that will both educate and illicit emotion, but it's one that this 100-minute documentary achieves with marked poignancy. Toeing the line between highlighting staggering systemic failings and figures, this film also importantly weaves in personal tragedy and the stories of the bereaved, the survivors, and the firefighters who attended to the fire on the night of 14th June 2017.
It's through their brave interviews that we get the essential human stories of Grenfell, stripped of technical scientific terms and replaced with the kind of emotion that will floor you. By no means an "easy" or "light" watch, Grenfell: Uncovered may feel like too much to bear for many viewers. But in reality, it serves nobody to look away from the facts and stories at the heart of this documentary – which stands to be the most important one of the year. – Morgan Cormack
2. Brianna: A Mother's Story
The murder of Brianna Ghey in 2023 was incomprehensible. She was 16 and lost her life in the most horrendous and brutal manner at the hands of unfathomably young perpetrators. Scarlett Jenkinson and Eddie Ratcliffe were both aged 15 when they killed her. As we see through snippets of social media videos in this affecting documentary, Brianna and Scarlett had been pally. They’d met at school and did the usual teenage stuff together: colouring their hair, going to McDonald’s. The fact that Brianna believed Scarlett to be a friend is a detail that Brianna's mother Esther Ghey understandably finds especially painful.
It's hard to hear the details of this case, particularly the extent of the injuries inflicted on Brianna and to read the depraved text messages between Ratcliffe and Jenkinson. In the wake of her daughter’s death, Esther has been campaigning vigorously for changes she hopes can help protect young minds. "If I can make something positive out of what’s happened to her," she said. "Then it keeps her memory alive." – Frances Taylor
1. The Perfect Neighbor
The Perfect Neighbor is a chilling tale about how a long-running neighbourhood dispute turned fatal. Told completely through police bodycam footage and 911 audio logs, the documentary explores the horrific incident of a mother, Ajike Owens, being killed by her neighbour, Susan Lorincz. Lorincz's freedom spurred protests in the small community in Florida, who ultimately got justice upon her arrest and incarceration.
It's been another excellent year for new film releases in the UK – and as you can see from our top 25 below, a very eclectic one too.
Meanwhile, it's also been a spectacular year when it comes to horror, with first Sinners and then Weapons capturing the imaginations of the cinema-going public with bold, original new takes on the genre before Guillermo del Toro delivered his version of one of the most iconic of all horror tales: Frankenstein.
But what came out at number one? Scroll down our list to find out. And bear in mind that we only considered films that are currently available to watch at home – so a couple of big-hitters weren't eligible.
25. Mr Burton
The formative years of Richard Burton come into focus in this absorbing drama that charts the actor’s relationship with the man from whom he took his stage name.
Richly atmospheric, this is an engrossing study; Jones is masterful and there’s eye-catching support from Lesley Manville as his landlady, but Lawtey is the true star of the piece. – Terry Staunton
Kim A Snyder’s provocative, compelling and deeply troubling movie follows American librarians forced to unite against attempts by right-leaning Christian Republicans to ban books that they claim indoctrinate children on matters of race and sexuality.
23. The Order
Where to watch: Prime Video
Based on real events in the 1980s, Justin Kurzel’s film follows procedural tropes but is elevated by its central performances. Law is at the top of his game as the seasoned fed, while Nicholas Hoult is unsettling and charismatic as his white-power nemesis. – Terry Staunton
22. A Complete Unknown
Walk the Line director James Mangold’s immersive, engaging Bob Dylan biopic may not all be true, but it has a real feel for the period and the impact of the musician who arrived in New York in 1961 to meet his idol Woody Guthrie.
Where to watch: NOW
As he sets about uncovering the truth, his colleagues (played by Naomie Harris, Tom Burke, Marisa Abela and Regé-Jean Page) get caught in the crosshairs. The film flew somewhat under the radar on release, but is well worth checking out, if only for the brilliantly executed dinner-table scenes that bookend the action. – Josh Winning
20. The Phoenician Scheme
Wes Anderson creates another enchanting world for his latest, typically idiosyncratic caper. Benicio Del Toro stars as mid-20th-century tycoon Zsa-zsa Korda, who decides to leave his estate to his only daughter (Mia Threapleton). Meanwhile, Zsa-zsa is forced to confront various colourful characters as he tries to get a long-standing business scheme under way.
Where to watch: Rent/buy
Neeson, his expression forever stuck between hangdog and befuddled, smoothly picks up where Leslie Nielsen left off while love interest Pamela Anderson matches him beat for beat. Simply a pleasure, from start to end. – Calum Baker
18. A House of Dynamite
White House officials face a terrifying race against time as an unprovoked nuclear missile is launched towards the US in this pulsating drama. It begins in the government's Situation Room, as Captain Olivia Walker (Rebecca Ferguson) attempts to handle the situation and keep a lid on her emotions.
With the nerve-jangling action spanning just 18 minutes, the story then rewinds to replay events from other perspectives, including the Secretary of Defense (Jared Harris) and the President (Idris Elba). Directed with taut precision by Kathryn Bigelow (Zero Dark Thirty, The Hurt Locker), and working from a rock-solid script by former newsman Noah Oppenheim, the film perfectly demonstrates that, ultimately, it's people who must make the key, fateful decisions. Powerful and thought-provoking. – James Mottram
17. Steve
Cillian Murphy is at the top of his game as the titular head teacher of a residential reform school in this dark drama laced with judicious humour. Already self-medicating to manage emotional and mental difficulties in his private life, Steve’s world falls further into a tailspin when he and his deputy (a terrific Tracey Ullman) learn the school has lost its funding and will close in six months, the bombshell dropped on a busy day that coincides with visits from the local MP (Roger Allam) and a TV news crew.
Where to watch: Apple TV+
This illuminating documentary uses interviews and archive footage to recount the eight days of protests that followed. Coming out shortly after 2025’s Deaf Awareness Week, it’s an engaging and empowering film that uses ingenious sound design to evoke the deaf experience, while shining a much-deserved light on this little-known but impactful youth movement. – Laura Rutkowski
15. Memoir of a Snail
This delightfully dark and quirky adult animated film follows the tragi-comic life of a snail-loving girl who learns how to come out of her shell.
Where to watch: Rent/buy
Set 19 years after a crippling war, it posits a United States under totalitarian rule where national pride is inspired via a televised cross-country walking competition between 50 young men, representing each US state. The winner is promised wish-fulfilling riches, but there is no finishing line, no rest breaks and anyone not keeping up with the pace will receive three warnings, then instant execution.
Cooper Hoffman (Licorice Pizza) and David Jonsson (Alien: Romulus) give marvellous performances as the initial rivals whose evolving friendship is the beating heart of an often agonising horror, directed by Francis Lawrence – who knows his way around survival-of-the-fittest dystopia, with three Hunger Games films to his name. – Jeremy Aspinall
13. Nosferatu
Director Robert Eggers (The Lighthouse) continues his mastery of gothic horror with this reimagining of the 1922 silent classic. Newlywed Ellen becomes the dark, erotic obsession of vampire Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgård).
Where to watch: Rent/buy
The non-linear structure – we follow events from six unique perspectives – allows the film to explore the complex ways people's psyches are affected by broken communities, traumatic events and surrounding public storms, and each chapter gradually teases more information about the bizarre events engulfing the town. The result is a propulsive, perfectly paced thriller that leaves things tantalisingly mysterious until a late reveal
11. Sorry, Baby
Where to watch: Mubi
Split into a jumbled series of chapters, the film concentrates on Agnes’s everyday life as she receives support from an old friend (Naomi Ackie) and a sweet-natured neighbour (Lucas Hedges). Dotted with deadpan line readings, there’s a wryness to the drama and a care to its imagery that work to offset the underlying sense of melancholy. – Tom Dawson
Oscar-nominated for best picture, this true story is set in Rio de Janeiro in the early 1970s and follows the Paiva family – former congressman Rubens (Selton Mello), wife Eunice (Fernanda Torres) and their five children.
9. The Girl with the Needle
Where to watch: Mubi
In 1919 Copenhagen, impoverished Karoline (Vic Carmen Sonne) endures a series of crushing misfortunes before falling in with shady Dagmar (Trine Dyrholm), who runs an illegal adoption agency. Both leads are mesmerising at the centre of this nightmarish and visually astonishing journey. Though steeped in misery, the material never becomes a slog thanks to von Horn’s inventive execution. – Emma Simmonds
Having previously staged star-studded murder mysteries at a cosy mansion and a lavish private island, Rian Johnson’s third Knives Out film unfolds against the backdrop of a small Catholic parish in upstate New York. This time, Daniel Craig’s Southern sleuth Benoit Blanc is tasked with solving the murder of a priest (Josh Brolin), whose increasingly warped fire-and-brimstone sermons have seen him brush up against Josh O’Connor’s younger clergyman.
Craig is reliably entertaining as Blanc, while O’Connor and Glenn Close provide stand-out support from the ensemble cast. With a typically convoluted but satisfying narrative powering things along, it all adds up to what might be the best entry so far in this hugely likeable series. – Patrick Cremona
7. A Real Pain
Jesse Eisenberg writes, directs and stars in this touching comedy drama, loosely inspired by his own family history. He plays an uptight New Yorker who embarks on a tour of Poland with his cousin (Kieran Culkin), intending to honour their late grandmother, who survived the Holocaust.
Where to watch: NOW
However, when she volunteers on her son’s school trip, things start falling into place. Reliable gags land in a fresh setting, but it’s the familiar faces, Bridget’s spirit and some genuinely festive moments that make this an ideal Christmas comfort film – Alex Berry
5. Sinners
Director Ryan Coogler follows up his Black Panther films with a muscular original feature that offers a mash-up of history and horror. Bootlegging twins Smoke and Stack (both Michael B Jordan) return to Mississippi where they plan to set up a juke joint.
But opening night is interrupted when a silver-tongued white man (Jack O’Connell) wants an invitation to the party. This is an ambitious movie that asks prickly questions about creativity, assimilation and culture. But its great cast (including Hailee Steinfeld and Delroy Lindo) and confident pace keep it deftly entertaining. – Sean McGeady
4. Frankenstein
A work of gothic fiction that has fascinated film-makers for as long as cinema has existed, Mary Shelley’s 1818 tale of the Modern Prometheus gets its most faithful movie adaptation to date, courtesy of horror maestro Guillermo del Toro (The Shape of Water). Oscar Isaac is the pioneering scientist who harnesses Mother Nature, modern physics and the patronage of an arms trader (Christoph Waltz) to bring to life a creature (Jacob Elordi) stitched together from body parts.
Where to watch: NOW
It’s a low-budget but rich and grandly scaled film that captures the uneasy relationships between art and commerce, and America and immigration. The cast is flawless. – Emma Simmonds
2. Nickel Boys
This audacious, Oscar-nominated adaptation of Colson Whitehead’s novel is an original work of innovation and power. Director RaMell Ross adopts a point-of-view visual style to tell the story of Elwood Curtis (Ethan Herisse), a black teenager wrongly arrested and sent to a racially segregated reform school in 1960s Florida.
There, he strikes up a bond with rebellious Turner (Brandon Wilson). The unique shooting style creates a tactile and immersive experience, while Ross adds some beautiful flourishes and well-placed flash-forwards, all performed perfectly by a fantastic cast. – Patrick Cremona
1. One Battle After Another
This terrific film from Paul Thomas Anderson is loosely based on Thomas Pynchon's 1990 novel Vineland. The auteur expertly borrows elements and crafts them into something his own, keeping the book's rebellious spirit, absurdist comic tone and thematic weight intact.
The resulting chase is thrilling, uproarious and perfectly paced, with DiCaprio excelling as a frustrated layabout thrust back into the fold. Anderson stages the film's set pieces in unpredictable, inventive ways, with Jonny Greenwood's frantic, piano-led score the perfect complement. The film feels urgent and timely, with Anderson's choice to put a touching father/daughter relationship front and centre amid the thrills giving it undeniable emotional heft. – Patrick Cremona
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