Top 10 Underrated Period TV Shows You Should Be Watching

In Regency era England, young Charlotte Heywood holidays in a seaside town undergoing a major change. Famed TV writer Andrew Davies has a daunting task here. “Sanditon” was Jane Austen’s last novel, and it was largely unfinished when she died in 1817. Using the completed chapters, Davies had to imagine the rest of the story in a way that honored the characters and the beloved author’s tone. The result didn’t please some Austen purists. However, the show ran for three solid seasons. Even if it has a more modern sensibility, “Sanditon” honors Austen’s work with its eye for social commentary and great acting.

Julianne Moore and “Red, White & Royal Blue” star Nicholas Galitzine lead this scandalous miniseries set during the reign of King James I of England. Mary and George Villiers are a devious mother and son duo hungry for power. George adds the king to his growing list of conquests, currying favor and position for his family in the process. Dripping with sex and political intrigue, “Mary & George” is not exactly married to the historical record. Instead, it presents a fresh, irreverent look at court life, as well as the lengths people will go for social capital and prestige.

Beginning in the year 1853, this German Netflix series tells the story of how Bavarian Duchess Elisabeth von Wittelsbach became the Empress of Austria in the aftermath of a revolution. Marrying Emperor Franz Joseph, she suddenly has to manage the duties and limitations of her new role. “The Empress” smashed records when it premiered on Netflix in 2022. Two years later, it premiered a second season. The show has earned praise for its adherence to historical facts while still managing to be as entertaining and dramatic as any of its less accurate counterparts.

Though not the first adaptation of James Herriot’s book series, it came out during the COVID-19 pandemic and was praised as a necessary, heartwarming salve during dark times. “All Creatures Great and Small” follows three vets working in Yorkshire in the 1930s. The original author was a real-life veterinarian inspired to write about his profession, even appearing as a character in the work. While it is a period piece, it’s much more understated than your average historical drama. Set among more modest, everyday spaces, it’s been hailed as a necessary source of escape for its viewers.

Based on the 2017 comedy, “How to Be a Latin Lover,” Eugenio Derbez reprises his role as Maximo Gallardo, telling the story of how he came to work at an opulent Acapulco resort. Set mostly during the 1980s, “Acapulco” is a tale of how young Maximo infiltrated the intriguing and excessive world of jet-setting vacationers. It’s a look at a setting rarely seen on TV. The reviews for the show are miles better than its source material, but many viewers didn’t even find out about it until its second or third season. With a fourth season on the way, it’s the perfect time to delve into the nostalgic, hilarious delights of “Acapulco.”

Set in 1850s Australia, this Charles Dickens inspired series sees Jack Dawkins, formerly the pickpocket known as the Artful Dodger, putting his quick fingers to more honest use as a surgeon, following a post-prison stint in the Royal Navy. However, his fresh start is complicated when his old mentor Fagin shows up, eager to draw him back into a life of ill repute. With its engaging capers, interesting balance of historical detail with a perspective that skews modern, and superb cast of performers, “The Artful Dodger” is an addictive adventure. Add in the simmering chemistry between Jack and Lady Belle Fox, a sharp-witted aristocrat with medical ambitions, and we will gladly empty our pockets to see the next chapter in this story.

If you like a heavy dose of chills and thrills with your period dramas, look no further than AMC’s anthology series, “The Terror.” The first season takes place on the frozen seas of the Arctic in the 1840s, while the second is set in a Japanese internment camp during the Second World War. Both narratives are an experiment in historical terror bred out of contemporary cultural attitudes and beliefs, adding an element of mythic evil to some of history’s manmade horror stories. Although it's only aired two seasons so far, a third is set to premiere in 2025.

Part period piece, part alternate history, this Apple TV+ science fiction drama posits what might have happened if the Russians got the moon before the United States. Beginning in 1969, each season jumps ahead a decade. “For All Mankind” is a beautifully made look into history and a history that might have been. This show is equal parts space travel, politics, and Cold War Era paranoia. While it deviates from recorded history as a result, it’s also steeped in the aesthetics and political atmospheres of the periods it’s set in. The show has been praised for its Emmy-winning tie-ins programming, but the series itself has been unfairly slept on. In 2024, it was renewed for a fifth season and a spin-off was announced.

A spin-off of History Channel’s “Vikings,” this Netflix series continues the story over a century after the original show ended. Covering the concluding era of the Vikings’ reign of influence and conquest in Europe, the show differentiated itself quickly by focusing more on battles and adventure storylines. However, the critical consensus is that it got much better as it went on. By its third and final season, “Valhalla’s” greatness may have become one of TV’s best-kept secrets. Though it ended in 2024, its finale leaves room for the continuing story of Leif Erikson, Harald Sigurdsson, and the last of the Vikings.

Dramatizing and poking fun at the mess that was Tudor England after Henry VIII’s reign, “My Lady Jane” is an irreverent and fantastical retelling of the story of Lady Jane Grey. Finding herself installed as Queen of England for nine days, Jane Grey is thrown into a world of devious humans and oppressed shapeshifters. While it’s definitely an innovative approach to period drama, it found a small and dedicated audience. Despite this, it was canceled after airing eight episodes. Fans were outraged, starting a petition for Amazon to revive the show. Even “Game of Thrones” creator George R. R. Martin lent his support to the cause. There’s no time like the present to see what all the fuss is about.


Did we miss your favorite under-the-radar historical series? Let us know in the comments.