From ‘A Thousand Blows to ‘Night manager’
Next year, big Brit stars like Andrew Lincoln and Tamara Lawrance from Walking Dead as well as Tom Hiddleston will grace the television. We round up some of the most anticipated shows from the UK for 2025. The Night Manager is returning, Steven Knight has released his latest album, and maybe the next big thing will be launched. Please read on and add your comments.
BBC
Jonathan Pine, played by Tom Hiddleston, is returning to TV and will be for a short time. A double-season supercharged order for one of the TV shows that defined TV’s golden age was placed earlier this year. Season 2 is set to arrive in 2k25, with a new director (I Hate Suzie’s Georgi Banks Davies) and a new American coproducer (Prime Video), which will replace AMC. Hugh Laurie was last seen riding in a paddy-wagon driven by disgruntled arms buyers. His status for the next season of John le Carre’s adaptation is unknown. With a cast full of returning actors and some new ones, it’s safe to say that this season will be a hit.
King and Conqueror (CBS Studios, BBC).
What’s not like about James Norton and Nikolaj Costa-Waldau playing warring 11th-century royals? This highly anticipated series (which was quickly bought by the BBC) chronicles a clash which shaped the future of Britain over a 1000 years ago and is still studied in schools. Producers and stars have said that King and Conqueror shows a different side of those who fought for the crown. Norton is currently having a bit a moment in both the US and UK, which adds some serious star-power. King and Conqueror may be the leading period drama.
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Get Millie Black’ (HBO, Channel 4
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Warner Bros Discovery
Get Millie Black is a crime thriller that UK viewers will not be able to watch until January. Marlon James, the Booker Prize winning novelist who wrote the series, starred Tamara Lawrance in it as a police officer returning to Jamaica to work at a missing person’s department. She finds herself on an adventure to solve a crime that will rock her world. The HBO and Channel 4 show deals with many themes, and American viewers seem to be impressed. James told us previously that he wanted the detective story to have a modern, contemporary feel by portraying the “richness of queer Caribbean cultures”. This could be a critical hit by 2025.
‘The death of Bunny Munro (Sky)’
Parisa Taghizadeh
According to a recent look, Matt Smith looks like he’s never been seen before in this adaptation Nick Cave’s cult book. Sky’s originals tend to move from high-budget films like Day of the Jackal, to the more quirky stuff. Bunny Munro is definitely in the latter category and sits in the same category as big-hitter Patrick Melrose. Smith’s Munro is a self-described Lothario who finds himself saddled with a young son after his wife commits suicide. Chaos and buzz are guaranteed.
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Malice’ (Prime Video)
Jack Whitehall’s name isn’t one you would normally associate with psychological thrillers, but the man can do it all. In Malice he stars alongside David Duchovny, Carice vanHouten and others as a young man who is trying to break into the wealthy family’s world. Duchovny, who plays the head of the family, and van Houten have a wealth of experience from their roles in shows such as The X-Files or Game of Thrones. Amazon could make this show a hit if they put some marketing power behind it. They are trying to establish themselves as major players in the UK Originals market. Whitehall, Duchovny, and van Houten are all great choices.
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Cold Water’ (ITV)
Andrew Lincoln has returned to Blighty. Lincoln, who won hearts in Love Actually as “the one with the pieces of card”, travelled to the US and achieved superstardom through one of the most popular TV series of all time, The Walking Dead. He is now back in an ITV thriller. Cold Water is a hit, as Lincoln plays a repressed character who moves to Scotland and develops a relationship, played by Ewen Bremner, an enigmatic neighbour. ITV is producing a variety of shows featuring some of the biggest names in the industry. They will hope to make a splash with Cold Water, a year after the success of Mr Bates vs. the Post Office.
‘How To Get To Heaven From Belfast (Netflix).
Channel 4
Derry Girls, a new show from Lisa McGee, was suddenly moved to Netflix by Channel 4 after being greenlit. Netflix will benefit from Channel 4’s “rising cost” issue. It’s a bit more extensive than Derry Girls. Saoirse Robyn, and Dara embark on a hilarious journey through Ireland and beyond, as they try to piece together the past. McGee, the woman who created Channel 4’s most popular comedy in the last decade, is back with a new show that promises to be full of laughter, joy and emotion. Channel 4 executives may watch through gritted-teeth.A thousand blows (Disney+).
Ding ding, round one. A Thousand Blows is one of Disney+’s most anticipated titles for next year. Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight and Peaky Blinders alum Stephen Graham, who will star in Knight’s new Peaky movie, reunite to fight in the UK. The Victorian boxing drama follows Hezekiah, a Jamaican native and Alec who are two friends. Sugar Goodson is a dangerous veteran who they face in their fight for survival. Disney has ended the year in a big way with Rivals and as they continue to search for a new EMEA Originals Chief, A Thousand Blows will be a great opportunity to maintain the momentum.
