What was once called All4 is now called Channel 4, which is a confusing name for a streaming service as it’s the same as the broadcast channel. However, Channel 4 (streaming) has a fantastic collection of television shows for you to enjoy — and what’s more, it’s free to use.
As well as the usual catch-up services you might expect from a broadcaster’s online presence (ie you can watch last night’s Grand Designs at the touch of a button), Channel 4 has three strengths in its armoury as a streamer — a selection of modern classic comedies, from Peep Show to Derry Girls, a solid slate of British and American dramas, from It’s a Sin to The West Wing, and, unlike most of its free-to-air competitors, an impressive archive of foreign language drama through the Walter Presents strand.
This list will be regularly updated with new content, so don’t forget to check back for more expert recommendations of what to watch. However, in the meantime, don’t forget to leave your favourite shows on Channel 4 in the comments below…
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The best shows on Channel 4 streaming
New for 2024…
Sloborn
Drama, two seasons, 2020-
It is falling to our continental cousins to begin the processing of Covid-19 via the medium of post-apocalyptic drama, with Sky Germany’s Helgoland placing pandemic survivors in the middle of the North Sea. This German-Danish production, now in its second series, kick-started its virus by means of pesky (and mummified) British tourists in a boat that crashed into an island. At the time of filming, back in the days when coronavirus was a simple head cold, their nationality might have been a comment on Brexit. As season two begins there is a global lack of pandemic preparedness and the overreach of terrified state apparatus upon which to draw. With some Sloborners having defied authorities to remain, worried that the mainland may contain worse horrors, the show begins its metamorphosis into a version of The Walking Dead with power cuts and pirates.
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Big Mood
Sitcom, one season, 2024-
Mental health and female friendship are the themes in Camilla Whitehill’s comedy drama starring Nicola Coughlan (Derry Girls) and Lydia West (It’s A Sin). Coughlan’s Maggie is a playwright with bipolar disorder: in the opening double bill she’s in manic mode as she revisits her old school to give a talk; and then very depressed in part two, but her best friend, West’s Eddie, nonetheless implausibly insists on laying on a surprise birthday party that inevitably proves a hellish ordeal. So far Big Mood is heavily reliant on the talents of its gifted leads, with the writing (as so often in British comedy) not matching the standard of the acting. And it’s a pity that West’s role is auxiliary rather than equal. Whitehill does try to give Eddie a separate life, but — presumably because Maggie is partly autobiographical — it’s her moody BFF who’s central.
The Real Serpent — Investigating A Serial Killer
True crime documentary, one-off, 2024
Fans of this 2021 serial killer drama starring Jenna Coleman and Tahar Rahim can now meet the Serpent himself. Released from a Nepali prison, he has “volunteered” to be interviewed by Paul Britton, a forensic psychologist, about five unsolved murders in Thailand in 1975. Nearly half a century on, his crimes strike fear into the hearts of parents with young children — he and female associates preyed on young tourists on the “hippie trail” across Asia in the 1970s, poisoning then nursing them, helping them to find “lost” passports and then drugging and killing them. Former Metropolitan Police detectives will pore over the circumstances of remaining murders, locating key witnesses and trying to establish if one of the most prolific murderers (real name Charles Sobhraj) of the 20th century got away with most of his suspected crimes.
The Rise And Fall Of Boris Johnson
Documentary, one season, 2024
As a child Boris Johnson would tell people he wanted to be “world king” when he grew up. His ambitions might have fallen short, but as this stylish, sharp-eyed documentary series shows, he still achieved an alarming degree of power for a man who once described his articles on the EU as “chucking rocks over the garden wall”. While a cast of associates and observers — among them Ken Livingstone, Nigel Farage (somehow quoting Gandhi) and Michael Heseltine — try to untangle something of Johnson’s motivations and personality, the narrative highlights how the British public’s fondness for a “great character” led to Johnson’s insidious shift to “Boris”, his indiscretions softening up voters for a new kind of politics. From the Bullingdon Club to Brexit, it’s all here, yet somehow, there’s still a vacuum at its core.
The Push — Murder On The Cliff
True crime documentary, one season, 2024
The horrors of domestic abuse and coercive control are made clear in this documentary about the death of 31-year-old Fawziyah Javed in September 2021. The Leeds-based solicitor was 17 weeks pregnant with her first child when she died after falling from Arthur’s Seat in Edinburgh; Kashif Anwar, her husband, was quickly arrested for her murder. A deliberate push is difficult to prove without witnesses, yet the evidence Javed had recorded to document the abuse her husband had inflicted on her during their short marriage was essential to the prosecution. While this is in part a forensically fascinating courtroom documentary focusing on the trial, it also provides a heartbreaking insight into the insidious nature of abusive relationships and the impact of a murder on a family.
The Jury — Murder Trial
Legal documentary, one-off, 2024
Trial by jury is the bedrock of our society, but is the decision made by 12 people always right? A new show will put that to the test, with two juries watching a real murder case (names and dates have been changed for anonymity) re-enacted by actors. Playing out over four episodes, this bold legal experiment — a kind of turbo-charged crown court — is a word-for-word restaging of the trial of a man accused of murdering his wife. The case unfolds before the two juries, each unaware of the other’s existence thanks to a clever staging in a former Essex courthouse. Will the two groups reach the same verdict — or will the experiment expose unreliable fluctuations in the pursuit of justice? The rare chance to hear jurors’ deliberations quickly illustrates how much personal experiences can shape and inform judgments, turning the justice system’s fair hearing into a treacherous game of chance.
Alice & Jack
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Romantic drama, one season, 2024
Unfolding over 15 years, this six-part romantic drama tells the story of the complex love that develops between idealistic biomedical researcher Jack (Domhnall Gleeson), the kind of man who gets his Voltaire quotes mixed up with Rolling Stones lyrics, and Andrea Riseborough’s manic pixie mean girl Alice (“I make money,” she says when asked what her job is). Initially a one-night stand, their relationship takes on the kind of inexplicable intensity that leads to talk of soulmates. It’s written with wit and sensitivity by Victor Levin and should send a flutter through fans of romantic comedies — particularly the wistful indie kind that feature superfluous kite-flying and a melancholy yet hopeful soundtrack. The cast, which also includes Aisling Bea and Sunil Patel, are appealing.
Reindeer Mafia
Walter Presents drama, one season, 2023-
This droll Finnish family story from Walter Presents, a sort of Succession meets The Sopranos with snowmobiles, performed well across Scandinavia last year. For good reason, it transpires: it has a deliciously dark script, unusual setting and actors not scared to amuse. It opens prettily with a snow-covered scene from “ten years earlier” and an oafish chap getting ready to burn down a house containing a dead body. “Ten years later” we are in an elegant home furnished with furs and skins. An old woman addresses envelopes, sealing them carefully with blood-coloured wax. It is her funeral that brings together the show’s cast: a motley crowd of friends, farmers, disgruntled exes, staff and what appears to be a middle-aged motorcycle gang. Her will, and her reasons for sending those letters, fires the starting pistol on their reindeer games.
The Miners’ Strike 1984 — The Battle For Britain
Documentary, one season, 2024
Jumping the gun on the 40th anniversary, Channel 4 devotes a three-part series to the year-long strike that began in March 1984, which it says “opened a great wound in the nation’s soul”. Each episode is a “standalone story”. The first film starts with the pit village of Shirebrook that resembles a documentary remake of James Graham’s drama Sherwood. So unbridgeable was the strikers v “scabs” split there that it became known as the dispute’s most divided community and labelled “England’s Belfast”. Former miners — some who manned picket lines, some who crossed them — look back in anger, and their memories are interwoven with vivid archive footage. The second film charts the course of the infamous “Battle of Orgreave”, where picketing miners faced about 6,000 police, including a mounted unit and a front line in full riot gear, at the South Yorkshire coking plant. The third reveals how David Hart, a Tory supporter from a wealthy financial background, helped to bring the strike to a close, working behind the scenes exploiting divisions between working and striking miners in one key county — Nottinghamshire.
Big Boys
Comedy, two seasons, 2022-
The boys are back in town, or at least Brent University, for their second year, and Jack Rooke’s memoir retains its light heart along with the occasional sledge-hammered mental health crisis. Dylan Llewellyn as Jack remains goofily appealing, but it’s man of the moment Jon Pointing who has emerged as the star. Once the laddish beefcake on Plebs, the first series of Big Boys has been quite the calling card to other roles.
Truelove
Drama, one season, 2024-
Lindsay Duncan, a cigarette, a fast car, David Bowie’s Queen Bitch: the opening moments of this six-part series alone should catapult it to the top of your must-see list. Co-written by Iain Weatherby and The End Of The F***ing World’s Charlie Covell, Truelove is a rock’n’roll take on ageing, death and what it means to end a life. Tired and emotional at a funeral, a group of friends swear they will help each other die if it becomes necessary — a moment of drunken madness, until one of them sends up a distress flare. The script is sharp with wit and regret — “bungalow, hospice, crematorium”, sighs Duncan’s former police officer at her pro-downsizing husband (Phil Davis). Sue Johnston, Peter Egan, Karl Johnson and Clarke Peters join Duncan in bringing a drama about death to glorious life.
Drama
It’s a Sin
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Drama, one season, 2021
Created by the Doctor Who showrunner Russell T Davies, It’s a Sin begins in 1981 in London and follows a group of friends across ten years as the Aids crisis engulfs the lives of so many. Starring Olly Alexander at the head of a brilliant cast, this beautifully written drama has been rightly praised for its emotional and heartfelt depiction of friendship, tragedy and the will to survive.
The Virtues
Drama, one season, 2019
Shane Meadows and Jack Thorne paired up to write this well-crafted drama about a man whose life breaks down after his ex-wife and son move to Australia. He uses what little he has left to move from England back to Ireland in search of his estranged sister. However, when he arrives he begins to unearth repressed memories that will rock his life once again. Starring Stephen Graham, Niamh Algar and Helen Behan, this is an exceptional piece of television.
The Couple Next Door
Thriller, one season, 2023-
Based on the Dutch thriller New Neighbours, this racy “kitchen island drama” stars Eleanor Tomlinson as Evie and Alfred Enoch as Pete, a couple navigating their new suburban street. Before they’ve even had a chance to unpack the first boxes, it’s clear that their new neighbours Becka (Jessica De Gouw) and Danny (Sam Heughan) are interested in becoming more than friends as this addictive thriller unfolds.
The X-Files
Sci-fi drama, 11 seasons, 1993-2002, 2016-2018
Back in 1993, Chris Carter’s paranormal sci-fi drama seemed to be primarily about the FBI agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully (David Duchovney and Gillian Anderson) investigating a government conspiracy about the alien colonisation of Earth. Occasionally there’d be one-off episodes about paranormal events or cosmic horror, but they just seemed to get in the way. Thirty years on, it’s those monster-of-the-week episodes that stand up the best.
Skins
Drama, seven seasons, 2007-13
Whereas the majority of teenage dramas being shown in the 2000s were glossy and glamorous American imports, Skins gave the audience a warts-and-all glimpse of a group of hedonistic teenagers growing up in Bristol. Starring a who’s who of young British talent, including Nicholas Hoult, Kaya Scodelario and Dev Patel, it caused a stir when it was shown on E4, with its graphic depictions of sex, drugs and general debauchery — while also dealing with hard-hitting themes affecting young people.
The Good Wife
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Drama, seven seasons, 2009-16
Julianna Margulies stars as Alicia Florrick, the wife of a public attorney who returns to practising law after 13 years away when her husband is jailed for his involvement a sex and corruption scandal. What could easily be yet another procedural is elevated by a great script and excellent performances, making this one of the most celebrated long-running dramas of its era.
The West Wing
Drama, seven seasons, 1999-2006
Aaron Sorkin’s masterpiece remains the political TV show against which all others are measured. Based on the fictional administration of Jed Bartlet (Martin Sheen), the show’s top-drawer ensemble cast, which includes Rob Lowe and Allison Janney, combine with snappy, inspiring dialogue, innovative direction and superb storytelling to make for a drama that you will want to binge.
The Americans
Drama, six seasons, 2013-18
Starring Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys as Elizabeth and Philip Jennings, a pair of KGB agents posing as a suburban married couple in 1980s Virginia, this classy period piece is without doubt one of the finest Cold War-era spy dramas. Fusing a backdrop of complex geopolitical movements with everyday American life, the multi-award-winning show has cleverly constructed plots, finely crafted scripts and outstanding central performances.
G.B.H.
Drama, one season, 1991
One of Channel 4’s most talked-about dramas, Alan Bleasdale’s incredible G.B.H. stars Robert Lindsay as Michael Murray, the hard-left leader of a city council in the north of England (a character that, controversially, seemed to be based on the real-life Derek Hatton), and Michael Palin as Jim Nelson, the headmaster of a special school. This is an epic story of madness and power, and how it affects the lives of these two men and those around them.
ER
Drama, 15 seasons, 1994-2009
The show that gave the world George Clooney, ER took medical dramas to a new level. Based in the often chaotic emergency room of the fictional Cook County General Hospital in Chicago, the show’s unvarnished portrayal of life working in a hospital, blended with the realistic portrayal of relationships between staff and patients, won it critical acclaim from the very start.
Indian Summers
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Period drama, two seasons, 2015-16
Detailing the exploits of the governing British and traders at the time of the Raj, Indian Summers is set in Simla, the summer capital of British India, on the edge of the foothills of the Himalayas. A very watchable period drama, with excellent attention to detail, it stars Henry Lloyd-Hughes, Nikesh Patel, Julie Walters and Craig Parkinson among a fine ensemble cast.
Hill Street Blues
Drama, seven seasons, 1981-1987
Steven Bochco’s groundbreaking 1980s cop show got down and dirty into the lives of city precinct fuzz, blending intense human drama with urban vérité. Its sexual politics now seem a little creaky, but if you’ve been raised on NYPD Blue and CSI: NY it’s time you met their radical unkempt grandpa.
Help
Drama, one season, 2021
Jodie Comer stars as a young healthcare assistant in a fictional Liverpool care home charged with looking after Tony (Stephen Graham), a middle-aged man with early onset dementia. When the Covid-19 pandemic hits in 2020 their relationship and the circumstances in which they live and work are tested to their limits in this exceptional, harrowing and wonderfully worked one-off from the writer Jack Thorne.
National Treasure
Drama, one season, 2016
Inspired by the Operation Yewtree investigations into historical sexual abuse accusations against notable British celebrities, this series stars Robbie Coltrane as Paul Finchley, a once successful 1980s comedian now presenting television quizzes. After accusations that he raped two young women in the 1990s, the show follows the police inquiry and court case, and the relationship between Paul and his wife, Marie (Julie Walters), and his daughter, Dee (Andrea Riseborough).
This Is England ’86, ’88 and ’90
Drama, three seasons, 2010-15
A trio of dramas written by Jack Thorne and Shane Meadows that spin off from Meadows’s 2006 film This Is England. They are a hard-hitting return to the gritty world of the characters from the film, taking us through three periods: the summer of 1986 and the World Cup; Christmas 1988; and the rave scene and World Cup in 1990. Starring Vicky McClure and Stephen Graham among others, this is a trilogy of television you won’t regret watching again.
Foreign language drama
The Chalet
Thriller, one season, 2018
There are two excellent reasons to watch this six-part French thriller. One is for the sheer pulpy delight of an Agatha Christie-style whodunnit set in the picturesque French Alps; the other is to revel in the Gallic sense of “l’ennui des vacances” (holiday tedium) that pervades every scene. The show is played straight, but the contrast between the bloody murders and the palpable air of dissatisfaction makes for utterly entertaining viewing. A highlight might be the young woman who complains to her boyfriend that he isn’t paying her enough attention, while they are being stalked by a serial killer.
The Bank Hacker
Thriller, one season, 2021
After the brilliant IT nerd Jeremy Peeters (Tijmen Govaerts) wins a hacking competition, the professional conman Alidor Van Praet (Gene Bervoets) enlists him in a grand plan to steal €350 million from a Frankfurt bank. What begins as a clunky attempt to do a Belgian Ocean’s Eleven gradually evolves into a power struggle between Alidor and Jeremy. Overlong at eight 50-minute episodes, there are still enough twists, turns and character reveals to keep you guessing to the end.
Rig 45: Murder at Sea
Thriller, two seasons, 2018-22
This Swedish crime thriller shares a setting with Prime Video’s The Rig, but sensibly eschews that show’s horror theatrics. Unusually for a Walter Presents choice, the production is mostly in English. The first series closed with the seven-times murderess Petra escaping justice through a combination of mischance and institutional sexism, simply because it seemed outlandish that such a nice girl, a doctor even, would be so inclined. Season two begins with a reason for Petra (Lisa Henni) to go back to the rig in the company of the policing duo Emma (Natalie Gumede) and Trevor (Ciarán McMenamin), to once again face a suspicious crew.
The Mafia Kills Only in Summer
Comedy drama, two seasons, 2016-18
The Sicilian gangland wars of the late 1970s may seem an unlikely backdrop for a coming-of-age comedy. Yet this pulls it off, with an arch, funny child’s-eye view of family and young love, albeit one equally concerned with the falsehood of nostalgia and the grim reality of living cheek-by-jowl with the Cosa Nostra.
Deutschland 83-89
Drama, three seasons, 2015-20
Tracking the undercover exploits of the East German spy Martin Rauch (Jonas Nay) and his glamorous Stasi aunt Lenora (Maria Schrader) throughout the 1980s, Anna and Joerg Winger’s Cold War espionage series is balanced perfectly between ironic camp, subtle parody and chilling dread. It’s the highest-rated foreign-language drama in UK television history.
The Hunter
Drama, three seasons, 2018-
The murky war between the mafia and the state prosecutors in 1990s Sicily is laid bare in this series based on real events. The lead character is Saverio Barone, a prosecutor and seemingly the only person with any integrity in this sun-drenched setting.
All the Sins
Drama, three seasons, 2019-
Set over two decades in the close-knit religious community of Varjakka, this award-winning Finnish drama begins in seemingly typical fashion with a troubled cop, Lauri, returning to his home town to investigate a series of gruesome murders. However, over two series this inventive and complex tale repeatedly subverts expectations, especially in its game-changing second season.
Comedy
Porterhouse Blue
Comedy, one season, 1987
Adapted by Malcolm Bradbury from Tom Sharpe’s 1974 novel of the same name, this four-part comedy stars Ian Richardson and David Jason. The world of Porterhouse College is turned upside down when for the first time in 500 years a successor is not named before the death of the old Master, leading to a battle for tradition and the heart and soul of the institution against a backdrop of politics and modernisation.
The Inbetweeners
Comedy, three seasons, 2008-10
A coming-of-age sitcom that captured the imagination of a generation, The Inbetweeners’ heady mix of silliness, slapstick and the trials and tribulations of growing up continues to make it one of E4’s most successful exports. Starring Simon Bird, Joe Thomas, Blake Harrison and James Buckley as schoolmates Will, Simon, Neil and Jay, this Marmite show will either have you hooked and binge-watching or shrugging your shoulders and wondering what all the fuss was about. Either way, give it a try to find out…
Frasier
Sitcom, 11 seasons, 1993-2004
Frasier is back on Paramount+ for what Kelsey Grammer describes as a “third act”. Why not discover (or rediscover) the original show on Channel 4? The story of the Cheers character Frasier Crane’s return to his home town of Seattle to host a radio show manages to combine the cerebral with the silly in an effortless package, and achieves something amazing; it’s a spin-off that is not just good, it’s brilliant.
Taskmaster
Game show, 16 seasons, 2016-
A daft, wacky and often hilarious celebrity game show that launched on Dave in 2015 and has since transferred to Channel 4. The brainchild of Alex Horne, the show pits a group of celebrities against each other in a series of fiendish challenges, from throwing a potato into a golf hole to creating edible face masks for Horne to eat off them. Greg Davies hosts, or in other words, takes the mickey out of Horne. Celebrities on the show have included Joe Lycett, Sue Perkins and Julian Clary.
Derry Girls
Comedy, three seasons, 2018-22
Ballsy Michelle might come up with some imaginative swearing but this drama about four teenagers in Derry dealing with exams, young love and the Troubles is perfect family viewing. It became one of Channel 4’s most popular sitcoms in two decades and is a wonderful and moving series about navigating adolescence.
Friday Night Dinner
Sitcom, six seasons, 2011-20
This sitcom was an unlikely success. Based on the creator Robert Popper’s experience of growing up Jewish in north London, every episode centred on a family meal at the start of Shabbat (the Jewish day of rest). This family are anything but normal. There are two bickering brothers (Simon Bird and Tom Rosenthal), a peculiar father (Paul Ritter) and a mother (Tamsin Greig) who becomes weird whenever she talks about Masterchef. What’s more, Mark Heap plays a creepy neighbour. It’s really odd but very funny.
The IT Crowd
Sitcom, four seasons, 2006-13
Geeks are turned into heroes in this bonkers sitcom, with its plot about three chumps in their basement office, shut away from the outside world. Richard Ayoade, Chris O’Dowd and Katherine Parkinson give humorous turns as computer experts, and there’s slapstick, recurring jokes and eccentric sketches. It also taught us that when any computer is broken, you just need to turn it off and turn it on again.
The Big Bang Theory
Sitcom, 12 seasons, 2007-19
You either love The Big Bang Theory or you hate it. The show follows the life of four nerdy scientists navigating the world, relationships and heartbreak, with the help of the girl next door. It made a star of Jim Parsons, who delivers an entertaining performance as the Nobel prize-hunting genius Sheldon Cooper, a character who got his own prequel spin-off. It’s harmless and at times joyous — just ignore the annoying title sequence.
Peep Show
Sitcom, nine seasons, 2003-15
Jesse Armstrong and Sam Bain’s sitcom only gets better with age. It began as a minor cult and developed into one of the channel’s longest serving sitcoms. It relies almost entirely on the relationship between careless Jez and cowardly Mark (Robert Webb and David Mitchell), a duo who live together in a high-rise flat in Croydon, south London. It’s a brilliant show, packed with gags and also key in the evolution of comedy on television, with its point-of-view shots and voice-over internal monologues. A catch-up with these two buffoons is always a welcome one.
Cheers
Sitcom, 11 seasons, 1982-93
One of the great American sitcoms, Cheers launched the career of many big stars, including Kirstie Alley, Ted Danson and Woody Harrelson — and of course gave the world one of the best spin-offs in the shape of Frasier, starring Kelsey Grammer. The bar in Boston where everyone knows your name is an iconic part of sitcom history and Cheers’s excellent episodes are worth revisiting.
Father Ted
Sitcom, three seasons, 1995-98
The antics of three priests on Craggy Island, off the coast of Ireland, became one of the sitcom sensations of the 1990s and still has a large and loyal fanbase. Dermot Morgan is Father Ted Crilly, attempting to navigate life while living in a surreal and at times absurd world with Father Dougal McGuire (Ardal O’Hanlon) and Father Jack Hackett (Frank Kelly). This is edgy, clever and funny Channel 4 comedy at its very best.
Shameless
Comedy drama, 11 seasons, 2004-13
Paul Abbott’s edgy comedy drama follows the dysfunctional working-class Gallagher family living on the fictional Chatsworth council estate in Greater Manchester. The show initially centres on alcoholic father Frank (David Threlfall), but later examines the lives of his children, relatives, friends and neighbours, played by an ensemble cast including Anne-Marie Duff, James McAvoy and Maxine Peake. The tremendously well-made series was such a hit in the UK that it spawned a much-loved US remake starring William H Macy.
Fresh Meat
Comedy, four seasons, 2011-16
Created by the Peep Show pair Jesse Armstrong and Sam Bain, Fresh Meat introduces us to Vod, Oregon, Josie, Kingsley, JP and Howard, a group of freshers at the fictional Medlock University, as they learn to live as almost-adults. A sharp and witty take on student life, the show has a great cast including Joe Thomas, Zawe Ashton, Charlotte Ritchie and Jack Whitehall.
Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace
Comedy, one season, 2004
Matthew Holness and Richard Ayoade’s spoof of 1980s sci-fi drama remains brilliantly pertinent. Beyond the obvious humour of wobbly sets and bad acting, here is a series that simultaneously loves cheap exploitation telly and straight-to-video horror, but also satirises the flawed versions of masculinity it sometimes tends to attract.
