Best dramas on BBC iPlayer

In what must have been the easiest commissioning decision of the year, the BBC has ordered a second series of this bracing Belfast-set procedural. And no wonder, as this first run is an admirably unvarnished take on life in the police force. It also feels, thanks to its febrile location, as though the daily patrols of officers can go horribly awry in an instant – a factor that keeps viewers on their toes during the tense interactions between those in unform (Richard Dormer and Sian Brooke, above centre, being two notable standouts) and the career criminals in their sights. DAVID BROWN

Released back in 2021, Dopesick was always on course to be a thought-provoking and stark look at the American opioid crisis. While recently released Painkiller also tackled the same subject matter, Dopesick was a cut above and delivered stellar performances from Michael Keaton, Rosario Dawson and Kaitlyn Dever.

Rather than using medical jargon and confusing terms, Dopesick follows the lives of a local doctor, a young woman growing up in the Virginia mining community, a DEA agent investigating the rise in OxyContin use and a Purdue sales representative to tell a harrowing tale of addiction, greed and deceit. At eight episodes long, the series is far from the easiest of watches due to its heartbreaking stories, but is certainly gripping - and will leave you thinking for days after. MORGAN CORMACK

Stephen Merchant’s take on crime comedy — a West Country western, of sorts — was a surprise hit when it debuted in 2021. Initially following a group of small-time offenders doing community service in Bristol who find a bag of illicit cash, over two series we see this unlikely crew (including an aristocratic influencer, a lifelong protestor, a right-wing businessman, a lonely lawyer and two troubled teenagers) hoodwink the cops, outwit drug dealers and get away with the spoils. Or so we thought. Because for the latest third series, writer/star Merchant raises the stakes once more, wrapping the remaining gang up into a genuine murder plot while they’re hunted by a suave drug lord (Claes Bang). It’s a mark of Merchant’s light touch that as the story gets darker, it remains just as laugh-out-loud funny. HUW FULLERTON

Persistent sleepwalker Lorna Brady (Ruth Wilson) wakes one morning to find a corpse in her house. So, might she be responsible for the woman’s demise? And could Lorna also be linked to another case of untimely death being investigated by Dublin-based Detective Colman Akande (Daryl McCormack)?

Those are the central questions that run through this woozy and unsettling six-part thriller. But also hanging over it like a heavy shroud is the feeling of guilt, both on a personal and institutional scale, with Lorna’s deep-rooted trauma tied to Ireland’s Magdalene Laundries, the details of which are gradually shaded in for those unaware of this macabre scandal. DAVID BROWN

Screenwriter Sarah Phelps has adapted plenty of Agatha Christie works, and at the heart of this tragic true story she’s moulded into a four-part drama is a real-life antagonist as calculating and callous as any Christie killer. The pre-titles sequence states this is in memory of Peter Farquhar and Ann Moore-Martin. The deaths of these elderly neighbours, in 2015 and 2017 respectively, were not initially thought to be suspicious. But one man was suspiciously close to both.

Timothy Spall conjures sympathy in spades as the quiet, fragile Peter – a well-respected scholar who lives a solitary and deeply religious life that only begins unravelling once he meets new student Ben (Eanna Hardwicke, exuding cold charm). Emotionally vulnerable, Peter is overwhelmed as the two embark on a relationship. But soon, Peter is having dizzy spells and hallucinating. Unbeknown to the host, he’s welcomed a parasite into his home. FRANCES TAYLOR

Writer Jack Thorne is adept at tackling emotive subjects with depth and authenticity, creating stories that shine a powerful light into dark – and often uncomfortable – corners. Following the likes of National Treasure, Kiri and Help, his latest is this considered, devastating four-parter starring an outstanding Sharon Horgan and Michael Sheen.

Nicci (Horgan) and Andrew (Sheen) are parents to Marnie (Niamh Moriarty), who has a rare form of congenital muscular dystrophy. When her already-deteriorating health falls further, it prompts doctors to say that her care should be withdrawn. Her parents vehemently disagree, and the case ends up going to court.

Although there are some superfluous subplots along the way, the final episode’s denouement is as commanding, moving and unbearable as television can get. FRANCES TAYLOR

This thrilling crime drama from has just returned for a second series with stars Suranne Jones and Rose Leslie. The first outing of the blockbuster show followed murderous actions in the isolated environment of a submarine, leading Amy Silva (Jones) on a gripping race against time to discover the truth, while her on-off lover Kirsten Longacre (Leslie) grappled with their relationship difficulties whilst also pursuing avenues in the investigation. The second run moves the action from Scotland to a fictional Middle Eastern country with which the UK has been developing a military drone programme. Topical and tense, this is BBC thrilling drama at its very finest. LEWIS KNIGHT

The to-camera confidences of DI Annika Strandhed (Nicola Walker) aren’t to everybody’s taste, but this dark crime drama, based on Nick Walker’s Radio 4 drama, has much to commend it. There’s a strong cast that includes Paul McGann and Kate Dickie, while Walker is superb as the unconventional single parent who comes over from Norway to head Scotland’s Marine Homicide Unit. She’s sharp, has a dry sense of humour and – unlike your typical Scandi-noir detective – uses literary and historical allusions to solve crimes. A second series is coming later this year. JANE RACKHAM

Martin Freeman’s excellent Scouse accent is the first impressive thing about a crime drama with many aces up its sleeve. He plays against type as a police inspector demoted to night-time patrol officer: in therapy and on the verge of divorce, he tries too hard to compensate for his woes by taking on drug dealers and helping the vulnerable people they exploit, breaking rules at every turn. Against a tense portrayal of life in Liverpool’s darker corners, Freeman is a restless force of nature. JACK SEALE