Best crime dramas to watch now

29 May 2026

Features

Who can resist a great crime drama? From moody, troubled detectives chasing the truth to spine-tingling true crime documentaries, we’ve rounded up the best and newest crime shows you can stream free, on demand, right now.

Top Crime Dramas

For those of you who can’t get enough gritty crime dramas, we’ve got troubled detectives, twisting plots and shocking turns in abundance. Dive into our pick of the top free-to-view crime dramas, ready to watch whenever the mood hits.

Secret Service

Catch up on ITVX and STV Player

Secret Service introduces us to senior MI6 officer Kate Henderson (Gemma Arterton), who runs the Russia Desk. When she begins a covert investigation in Malta, she soon uncovers evidence that a high-ranking UK politician may be working as a Russian asset… with her trust shattered and career on the line, she must navigate political loyalty, international threat, and personal sacrifice.

Bergerac (Season 2)

Watch on U

Damian Moloney as Jim Bergerac wearing a tanned jacket and blue jeans walking towards the camera with a countryside backdrop

Jim Bergerac (Damien Maloney) is back for the second season of this reimagined series! Officially off the booze and on the dating scene, this season Bergerac will be facing the most challenging case of his career, the groom found murdered in his room at the wedding reception. Things seemed tricky enough, but when he finds out the woman he’s just met knew the victim, the plot thickens!

Believe Me

Catch up on ITV and STV Player

Group promotional portrait showing four people standing closely together indoors, one holding a drink, with a bar or café setting in the background.

This powerful drama tells the story of the victims of one of Britain’s most prolific sex offenders, John Worboys. Focusing on Sarah (Aimée-Ffion Edwards) and Laila (Aasiya Shah), it examines how they were failed and the lasting impact of not being believed.

Half Man

Catch up on BBC iPlayer

This six-part crime drama focuses on the bond between childhood friends Ruben (Richard Gadd) and Niall (Jamie Bell) over 30 years, exploring their volatile relationship from the 80s to the present day.

Gone

Stream on ITVX and STV Player

Two individuals standing in a forest clearing with scenic hills, trees and a distant suspension bridge behind them.

Gone is a psychological chilling mystery, taking us to a prestigious boarding school on the outskirts of Bristol where local headmaster Michael Polly (David Morrisey) becomes the prime suspect in his wife’s disappearance. After a visit from detective Annie Cassidy (Eve Myles) a game of cat and mouse begins as she chips away to try and uncover the truth.

Number One Fan

Stream now on 5

Lucy Logan is a beloved TV presenter with a seemingly perfect life. But after a chance encounter with an overzealous fan, admiration turns into obsession. As their past connection comes to light, Lucy’s carefully curated world begins to unravel.

Monsieur Spade

Stream on U

Moody promotional artwork for a crime drama, featuring a solitary figure standing in the foreground with a translucent silhouette behind, set against a rural landscape under dark, atmospheric lighting.

Set in 1963, this stylish crime drama follows legendary detective Sam Spade (Clive Owen), now living a quieter life in the South of France. When a brutal crime shocks the local community, his past and his instincts pull him back into the world he thought he had left behind.

Miss Scarlet and the Duke (S1-4)

Stream all episodes on U

Promotional image for the Victorian-era crime drama Miss Scarlet and The Duke, featuring Kate Phillips as Eliza Scarlet and Stuart Martin as William "The Duke" Wellington

Victorian crime solving has never been this sharp. Miss Scarlet and The Duke returns with Season 4 now on U, following amateur sleuth Eliza Scarlet as she navigates London’s underbelly with flair and sharp wits. With Kate Phillips cracking cases as Eliza and Stuart Martin as the ever-exasperated Duke at her side, the series blends clever mysteries, sizzling chemistry and plenty of swagger as the duo take on murder, intrigue and high-society secrets.

The Night Manager (Season 2)

Catch up now on BBC iPlayer

Poster image for the second season of The Night Manager, featuring three sharply dressed characters standing against a tropical backdrop with palm trees and a warm sunset sky.

The Night Manager returns with the stakes higher than ever as Jonathan Pine is pulled back into a dangerous world of espionage. Tom Hiddleston reprises his role alongside Olivia Colman, with new faces Diego Calva and Camila Morrone entering the fray, as shifting loyalties and high-risk missions unfold in Colombia.

The Lady

Stream now on ITVX and STV Player

Coming to your screens from the makers of The Crown, this gripping new royal crime drama explores the real-life story of Jane Andrews (Mia McKenna-Bruce), former royal dresser to Sarah Ferguson (Natalie Dormer). Once a determined woman who climbed the social ladder with remarkable speed, her fortunes took a sharp turn after losing her prestigious role. When she later met Thomas Cressman, life finally seemed to be improving again – until their relationship ended in tragic and devastating circumstances.

Queen’s of Mystery

Watch on U

Group of investigators standing in a library, with one person writing in a notebook while a detailed evidence board filled with photos and notes is displayed on the wall behind them.

This comedy crime drama follows three crime writing sisters and their detective niece as they solve a variety of murders in the picturesque English village of Wildermarsh.

Starring Julie Graham, Martin Trenaman and Juliet Stevenson.

NCIS: New Orleans (Season 7)

Stream all episodes now on U

Promotional image from season 7 of the US crime drama series NCIS: New Orleans, showing a group of people standing together on a dock at sunset. The background features a calm sea, a boat, and a warm orange sky with scattered clouds. Some individuals are wearing casual clothing, while one has an NCIS cap and jacket.

NCIS: New Orleans returns for its seventh and final series, raising the stakes as the team faces its toughest challenges yet. Scott Bakula leads alongside Vanessa Ferlito, Necar Zadegan and CCH Pounder, as high-risk cases collide with personal reckonings and long-held truths. Gritty, emotional and deeply resonant.

Ludwig

Stream now on BBC iPlayer

This cryptic comedy-drama sees puzzle-maker John ‘Ludwig’ Taylor (David Mitchell), a comfortable recluse, exit his comfort zone when his twin brother, a DCI goes missing. Under pressure from his sister-in-law (Anna Maxwell Martin), he impersonates his brother at work in order to discover what happened to him!

How to Get Away With Murder

Stream on Channel 4

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This legal thriller follows law professor Annalise Keating (Viola Davis) as she pulls a group of ambitious students into a deadly web of crime, secrets, and betrayal. As past and present collide, nothing and no one is ever quite what they seem.

Ellis

Stream on 5

Investigator standing on a hillside at sunset with police vehicles and a forensic team working in the background.

Fresh from success, DCI Ellis (Sharon D. Clarke) and DC Harper (Andrew Gower) are once again called back to rural north England after a series of more failing cases. With Harper now firmly at her side, Ellis faces more suspicious deaths and sinister cases!

Marlow Murder Club (Season 3)

Stream now on U

A spread of decorative playing cards featuring illustrated portraits on a wooden tabletop.

Robert Thorogood’s popular cosy crime drama is returning for it’s third season! Retired archaeologist Judith Potts (Samantha Bond), dog walker Suzie Harris (Jo Martin) and the vicar’s wife Becks Starling (Cara Horgan) are back and once again bringing their unconventional crime solving methods to string of high profile murders, but this time it appears their investigations might hit a little bit closer to home!