If there’s one thing I love about Netflix, it’s those moments when you stumble across a show you’ve never heard of before and instantly become hooked. While in most cases I’d spend the first few episodes of a series warming up to the characters or trying to work out what’s going on, occasionally, there’s a series that manages to capture your attention from the moment you press play.

Schitt’s Creek was one of those shows for me. The Canadian sitcom, created by father-son duo Eugene and Dan Levy, is jam-packed with loveable characters, heartwarming storylines and laugh-out-loud moments. 

The series follows the adventures of the Rose family – Johnny (Eugene Levy), Moira (Catherine O’Hara) and their two adult children David (Daniel Levy) and Alexis (Anny Murphy) – who, after going bankrupt, are left with only one asset – the deed to a small town called Schitt’s Creek. Without any friends to turn to, the family abandon their pampered lifestyle and move into the town’s motel. In doing so, they’re forced to reckon with the realities of family, friendship and community for the first time in their lives.  

Alongside it’s almost utopic setting and weird and wonderful personalities, Schitt’s Creek is the ultimate feel-good comedy – just what we all need at the moment. And following the show’s success at the Emmy awards last night – the show won seven prime-time comedy awards – now is the time to jump on the Schitt’s Creek bandwagon if you haven’t already done so.

Still not convinced? Here’s three reasons why you should give Schitt’s Creek a chance this autumn.

From the weird and wacky townspeople to the extravagant behaviours of the Roses, Schitt’s Creek’s characters are unlike any you’ll find in other shows.

The people of Schitt’s Creek all have their own weird and wonderful personalities, and that’s what makes this world so brilliant. Most noticeably there’s the town’s eccentric and frustrating mayor Roland Schitt and his wife Jocelyn, whose in-your-face small-town attitude to life plays perfectly into the uptight approach of the Roses. 

And despite all their flaws, you can’t help but fall in love with the Rose’s dysfunctional family dynamic – even when Alexis is recounting yet another one of her absurd round-the-world adventures, Moira is lamenting the loss of her favourite handbag, David is complaining about the moth damage to his favourite cashmere sweater and Johnny is shouting above them all, there’s a love between the four characters which gives this show its signature warmth. 

The ‘fish out of water’ style comedy which dominates Schitt’s Creek leads to a show which is jam-packed with hilarious moments of contrast between the Roses and the world around them.

Take Moira’s outfits, for one – from her endless selection of wigs to her bishop’s mitre made out of hair, her insistence on glamour isn’t curtailed by her move to a motel room, and it’s bloody brilliant.

And then, of course, there’s the accents. The drawling repetition of “Daviiiiddd” from Alexis and Moira is, quite literally, all anyone needs to get through the day.

And then there’s also Moira’s unrecognisable mix of British/Canadian/French dialect, with its overly-stressed syllables (for example, bébé instead of baby) and wacky vocabulary (“I am very booked up, David. I am positively bedevilled by meetings”). 

Alongside its hilarity and comic value, Schitt’s Creek has played an incredibly important role in the normalisation of LGBTQ+ relationships on screen.

When David begins a relationship with a local man called Patrick, there is no fanfare or big ‘coming out’ moment. The utopic world of Schitt’s Creek is one where LGBTQ+ relationships are entirely normalised; there is no struggle or pain underpinning David and Patrick’s love, and their relationship goes from strength to strength throughout the series, and the pair are able to enjoy their time together without fear of judgement.

In a documentary about the making of the show, it was revealed that more than 1,800 mothers of LGBTQ+ kids had even written to the cast to thank them for everything the show had achieved when it came to showing functional LGBTQ+ relationships on screen. 

“Your commitment to represent love and tolerance in your show is so important to families like ours,” the letter read. “Your willingness to explore, inform and educate about LGBTQ people and their relationships in an entertaining but respectful and positive manner sets a tone that is often missing.

“We sincerely believe that shows like Schitt’s Creek will serve as a catalyst to help change the world into a kinder, safer, more loving place for all LGBTQ people to live, and because of that we will remain forever grateful.”

All six seasons of Schitt’s Creek are now available to stream in the UK on Netflix.

Image: Getty