9 brilliant autumn TV dramas that put women front and centre

Jessica Plummer and David Oyelowo.

Credit: BBC

Under Her Eye


9 brilliant autumn TV dramas that put women front and centre

By Kayleigh Dray

4 years ago

Trust us: these are the new TV shows that are well worth staying in for this autumn…

There’s not much more we love than a brilliant autumn TV schedule – unless, of course, it’s a brilliant autumn TV schedule that shines a spotlight on women in a big way.

With that in mind, then, we’ve found the very best female-led dramas coming to our TV screens over the next few months. All that’s left for you to do, dear reader, is source some scrummy seasonal snacks (we’re all about pumpkin spiced everything right now, if it helps), pour yourself a mug of hot chocolate, grab a warm blanket, and snuggle up on the sofa.

Trust us: it’s going to be one hell of a ride.

Hollington Drive 

Hollington Drive: ITV's new four-part drama

Credit: ITV

ITV thriller Hollington Drive deals with every parent’s worst nightmare, as Theresa (Anna Maxwell Martin) is forced to consider whether or not her own children had something to do with the disappearance of her neighbour’s young son.

Release date: 29 September

Maid

After fleeing an abusive relationship, Alex (Margaret Qualley) finds a job cleaning houses as she fights to provide for her young daughter – but will she really be able to build them the better future she’s been dreaming of? You can find out in Maid when it hits Netflix this autumn.

Release date: 1 October

Ridley Road

Taking us back to a time when Nazis walked the lanes of London, the BBC’s Ridley Road sees young Jewish woman Vivien Epstein (Agnes O’Casey) face impossible danger as she goes undercover with the fascists – not just in a bid to save her long-lost love, but for the sake of her country, too.

Release date: 3 October

Angela Black 

Angela Black ITV

Credit: ITV

This Hitchcockian thriller sees Joanne Froggatt return to ITV and take on the eponymous role in Angela Black, as a woman who risks her seemingly idyllic life to fight back against her controlling and abusive husband.

Release date: 26 October

Landscapers

Inspired by real events, Sky Atlantic’s Landscapers – starring the one and only Olivia Colman – documents the unique transformation of a mild-mannered English couple into killers, as it asks just how far someone would be prepared to go for the one that they love.

Release date: TBC October

Showtrial 

Celine Buckens and Tracy Ifeachor in Showtrial

Credit: BBC

From the makers of Line Of Duty, the BBC’s new legal drama, Showtrial, tells the story of Cleo Roberts (Tracy Ifeachor), a duty solicitor who gets embroiled in a high-profile case. Her client, an extremely privileged student, has been charged with conspiring to murder a fellow student – but she claims she is being used as a scapegoat. Is she telling the truth, though?

Release date: TBC October

Scenes From A Marriage

Sky Atlantic’s remake of Ingmar Bergman’s acclaimed Scenes From A Marriage – starring Jessica Chastain and Oscar Isaac – explores a couple’s rollercoaster romance as they attempt to cope with raising a child, evolving feelings and (gasp!) infidelity.

Release date: TBC

The Tower

ITV’s The Tower opens on a veteran police officer and a teenage girl falling to their deaths from the top of a tower block in south-east London, leaving behind a five-year-old boy and rookie police officer Lizzie Griffiths. Within hours, though, Lizzie has disappeared – leaving Gemma Whelan’s DS Sarah Collins tasked with unravelling the mystery before it’s too late.

Release date: TBC

Images: Netflix/BBC/ITV

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