Cliff Notes – British series hailed as ‘best crime thriller ever’ has finally dropped on Netflix
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Broadchurch Returns: The acclaimed crime drama, featuring Olivia Colman and David Tennant, is now available on Netflix, 12 years after its original ITV debut.
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Critical Acclaim: The series ran for three seasons, consistently achieving high ratings on Rotten Tomatoes, with season one scoring 94% and season three reaching 98%.
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Star-Studded Cast: In addition to its leads, the show features notable British talent, including Jodie Whittaker and Jonathan Bailey, contributing to its gripping narrative and widespread popularity.
British series hailed as ‘best crime thriller ever’ has finally dropped on Netflix
Jodie Whittaker went on to become the first woman to play Doctor Who (Credits: ITV/Rex/Shutterstock)
It was the crime drama that fuelled water cooler chat for weeks, and turned the British public into wannabe detectives for a couple of months.
The award-winning show has now made its return to Netflix, 12 years after it first aired on ITV.
Following the story of a murder investigation into 11-year-old Danny Latimer who was found dead on a beach, the series is set in a quiet, fictional coastal town.
It is of course, Broadchurch, starring Olivia Colman and David Tennant, as detectives.
The pair work their way through suspects in the close knit community, while navigating their own professionally tense relationship.
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It ran for three series, and consistently scored highly on Rotten Tomatoes. Season 1 received 94% on the Tomatometer. The second season scored 84% while season 3 topped them both with 98%.
It ran for three series, and consistently scored highly on Rotten Tomatoes (Picture: Patrick Redmond/ITV/PA)
Jonathan Bailey played a local journalist in Broadchurch (Picture: ITV)
When is Broadchurch coming to Netflix?
Broadchurch has been added to the ‘Worth the Wait’ section on Netflix, where upcoming additions to the streaming platform are teased.
It was added on Tuesday, November 18.
The show’s addictive quality makes it the perfect thrilling watch to get your teeth into during the winter months.
Episodes are also available to stream on ITVX.
Why did Broadchurch become such a hit?
Not only is it fronted by the legends that are David Tennant and Olivia Colman, the cast is full of other British television icons – from Jodie Whittaker as the bereaved Mum, to Jonathan Bailey as a local journalist working on the story.
Line of Duty royalty, Vicky McClure, features in season one and Phoebe Waller-Bridge plays a part in season two.
The show ran for three seasons (Picture: Rex Features/ITV/Shutterstock)
Brits were hooked from the start, as each episode threw suspect on new characters who might have been invovled Danny Latimer’s death.
The twist at the end shocked audiences, who didn’t see it coming, and created intense intrigue around how the story would progress.
Google Reviewer, Deb Armstrong, called it ‘intense and riveting’.
She said: ‘You just cannot WAIT for the next one to start. I am really good at guessing who the murderer or culprit is in movies, but not this one.’
Viewers were left wondering what would happen in season two (Picture: Kudos/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
Kitty Black added: ‘It’s brilliant but utterly heartbreaking all at the same time.’
While Jeevithan Ramesh called it ‘one of the best crime thrillers [he’s] ever watched’.
Seven Netflix police dramas that you can stream on Netflix
Here are seven police dramas, available to stream now on Netflix…
Line of Duty – five seasons of the crime drama starring Martin Compston and Vicky McClure.
The Fall – set in Belfast, a superintendent played by Gillian Anderson as she tried to understand a disturbed killer.
The Capture – a London-based crime series starring Holliday Grainger and Callum Turner.
Unforgotten – Nicola Walker and Sanjeev Bhaskar star in a gritty series as they investigate historic cold cases.
The Pembrokeshire Murders – three-part drama series starring Luke Evans who plays a driven detective in Wales.
Black Work – Sheridan Smith plays a widowed police offer who starts investigating her late husband’s death.
Loch Ness – Siobhan Finneran and Don Gilet are cast in a suspenseful drama series investigating a homicide in Scotland.
What are Olivia Colman and David Tennant up to now?
Since leading in this incredible British crime drama, Colman and Tennant have continued acting in roles that have landed them critical acclaim and kept their careers sky-rocketing.
Olivia Colman picked up an Oscar for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role for her performance in The Favourite.
Olivia Colman stars in Burberry’s latest campaign (Picture: 2024 Dave Benett)
And David Tennant won an International Emmy Award for Best Performance by an Actor for his role in true crime drama, Des.
Colman recently starred in The Roses, alongside Benedict Cumberbatch, and has been serving looks in Burberry’s latest campaign.
David Tennant plays Guardian journalist Nick Davies in The Hack (Picture: ITV)
While Tennant has been busy playing Lord Tony Baddingham in Rivals and Guardian journalist Nick Davies in ITV drama, The Hack.
Broadchurch is now streaming on Netflix and ITVX.
A version of this article was originally published on October 26, 2025.
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