hmv previews... 2021's Best TV
While we're all desperate that 2021 is the year that everything opens back up as quickly as possible, one thing is for sure, we'll all be spending lots more time glued to our TVs.
So, with that in mind, we've rounded up 10 of the most exciting new TV dramas coming in 2021...
It's A Sin
Starring: Olly Alexander, Omari Douglas, Callum Scott Howells, Lydia West, Nathaniel Curtis, Keeley Hawes, Neil Patrick Harris, Stephen Fry
Broadcaster: Channel 4
Russell T. Davies returns with a scorching new drama, which follows three 18-year-olds who move to London in 1981.
A five-part series, the show will follow the characters as they try to make their way in London, a move which coincides with the beginning of the AIDS crisis, a change which will shape their lives forever.
We’re getting close now!! 👀 #ItsASin pic.twitter.com/isMeKopZHq
Devils
Starring: Patrick Dempsey, Alessandro Borghi, Kasia Smutniak, Laia Costa, Malachi Kirby, Lars Mikkelsen, Pia Mechler, Paul Chowdhry, Sallie Harmsen
Broadcaster: Sky Atlantic
Patrick Dempsey leads this lavish drama, which has already been confirmed for a second season, after its debut on Sky Italia in 2020.
The 10-episode run focuses on rising star, Massimo Ruggeri, who works as the Head of Trading at a huge investment bank and is on the brink of promotion to vice-CEO.
However, a scandal involving his wife puts a brake on Massimo’s ambitions, and things then take a very dark turn when his rival and apparent successor suddenly dies, and Massimo becomes the prime suspect.
Sensing that people are conspiring against him, Massimo sets about clearing his name and finding out the truth behind the vast political game plan he has inadvertently been caught up in...
The Pursuit Of Love
Starring: Lily James, Andrew Scott, Emily Beecham, Dominic West, Dolly Wells, Beattie Edmondson, Assaad Bouab
Broadcaster: BBC One
Lily James and Emily Beecham bring Nancy Mitford's 1945 novel to life in this new drama.
The pair plays cousins and best friends Linda Radlett and Fanny Logan, who embark on an adventure across Europe in the pursuit of ideal husbands.
Naturally, things don't go entirely to plan...
Domina
Starring: Kasia Smutniak, Liam Cunningham, Isabella Rossellini, Matthew McNulty, Enzo Cilenti, Claire Forlani
Broadcaster: Sky Atlantic
Fortitude creator Simon Burke is behind this new project, which chronicles the life and the extraordinary rise of Livia Drusilla, the mother of the emperor Tiberius.
The 10-parter will follow Livia’s journey from a young girl whose world crumbles in the wake of Julius Caesar’s assassination, to Rome’s most powerful and influential Empress, driven by a deep desire to avenge her father and secure power for her sons...
Conversations With Friends
Starring: TBC
Broadcaster: BBC Three
After the huge success of Normal People, Sally Rooney's other novel is getting similar treatment for the small screen.
The series, which has yet to confirm its cast, will follow Frances and Bobbi, a creative couple living in Dublin who become entwined with a married couple named Melissa and Nick.
Rooney has once again worked with Alice Birch on the script for the 12-parter, with Lenny Abrahamson returning as key director for the new run.
Vigil
Starring: Suranne Jones, Rose Leslie, Martin Compston, Connor Swindells, Paterson Joseph, Anjli Mohindra
Broadcaster: BBC One
Suranne Jones, who is also due to return in the second series of Gentleman Jack, has a busy 2020 with this new claustrophobic six-parter.
Jones will play DCI Amy Silver, a police offer investigating the disappearance of a Scottish fishing trawler and a death on board a Trident nuclear submarine.
Tom Edge, whose credits include Strike and The Crown, is behind this one.
📸 First image of @BBCOne’s #Vigil released, as filming resumes and further casting is announced: https://t.co/LQxJP6EjNK pic.twitter.com/HBzxdWbrVp
— BBC Press Office (@bbcpress) August 20, 2020
Your Honour
Starring: Hunter Doohan, Hope Davis, Sofia Black-D'Elia, Isiah Whitlock Jr., Michael Stuhlbarg, Carmen Ejogo
Broadcaster: Sky Atlantic
Bryan Cranston heads up this lavish remake of the Israeli drama, Kvodo.
Cranston plays Michael Desiato, a respected New Orleans judge whose teenaged son Adam is involved in a hit-and-run. As the drama plays out, Desiato struggles to keep his professional and personal life together...
The Pembrokeshire Murders
Starring: Luke Evans, Keith Allen, Caroline Berry
Broadcaster: ITV1
After the success of Des and White House Farm, ITV delivers another grim re-telling of a high-profile murder case.
This time, we follow Luke Evans' newly promoted Detective Superintendent Steve Wilkins, who, in 2006, decided to reopen two unsolved 1980s murder cases linked with a string of burglaries...
‘Men like him, they always kill again.’
— ITV (@ITV) January 3, 2021
Three-part true crime drama The Pembrokeshire Murders, starring Luke Evans, starts Monday 11th January 9pm on ITV and @ITVHub@TheRealLukevans @ReyAlexandria @1CarolineBerry #ThePembrokeshireMurders pic.twitter.com/Aj2W1a4ypB
Grace
Starring: John Simm, Rakie Ayola, Richie Campbell
Broadcaster: ITV
Peter James' books, based around the travails of Brighton-based Detective Superintendent Roy Grace, have sold over 20 million copies, and now get brought to ITV by Endeavour creator Russell Lewis.
The two-parter starts with the disappearance of a man after a prank on his stag night appears to misfire and Grace is called in to investigate the mystery surrounding the prank, which quickly turns bleak indeed...
Landscapers
Starring: Olivia Colman,
Broadcaster: Sky Atlantic
Olivia Colman will lead this dark new drama, with the rest of the cast to be confirmed in the coming weeks.
The series will re-tell the strange story of quiet couple Christopher and Susan Edwards, who somehow came to kill Susan's parents, and bury them in the garden of their home.
It took more than a decade for the events to come to light, which will be explored across this four-parter, which has a script from Colman's husband Ed Sinclair.