Christmas gift ideas: 12 of this year’s best British period dramas on DVD
2020 might not have turned out exactly how we planned.
Fortunately, at least there were lots of great new British period dramas to keep fans entertained while we’ve all been stuck at home.
If you’re trying to find the perfect Christmas present, we’ve scoured Amazon for this year’s best new DVDs and box sets!
Belgravia
Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes adapted his 2016 book as a new six-part mini-series for ITV, starring Tamsin Greig (Episodes), Philip Glenister (Life on Mars) and Harriet Walter (Downton Abbey).
Emma
Based on Jane Austen’s classic 1815 novel, this new movie adaptation starred Peaky Blinders actress Anya Taylor-Joy, Bill Nighy (Love Actually), comedian Miranda Hart (Call the Midwife), Josh O’Connor (The Durrells), and Johnny Flynn (Vanity Fair).
Call the Midwife – Season 9
The BBC’s long-running period drama series about a group of nurse midwives working in the East End of London returned for a ninth season.
Endeavour – Season 7
Shaun Evans returned as DS Endeavour Morse, alongside Roger Allam as DI Fred Thursday, in three new feature-length stories, set in 1970.
Father Brown – Season 8
Harry Potter actor Mark Williams reprised his role as the crime-busting Roman Catholic priest in the BBC’s hit daytime drama series, set in the Cotswolds in the early 1950s.
Grantchester – Season 5
Outlander actor Tom Brittney is back as DI Geordie Keating’s new crime-solving partner in a fifth season of ITV’s crime drama based on James Runcie’s novels.
The Great – Season 1
Elle Fanning (Ginger & Rosa) and Nicholas Hoult (The Favourite) starred in Hulu’s satirical, comedic drama about the rise of Catherine the Great, from the writer of The Favourite.
The Secret Garden
Colin Firth (Pride & Prejudice) and Julie Walters (Mamma Mia) star in this new family movie from the producer of Harry Potter, based on Frances Hodgson Burnett’s classic 1910 novel.
The Last Kingdom – Season 4
Set in the late 9th century AD, when England is divided into seven separate kingdoms, Netflix’s epic historical drama series is based on the Saxon Stories novels by English author Bernard Cornwell.
Outlander – Season 5
Based on the fifth book in author Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander series, the fifth season of Outlander saw Claire (Caitriona Balfe) and Jamie (Sam Heughan) fight time, space, and history to protect their family.
The Windermere Children
Iain Glen (Downton Abbey), Romola Garai (The Hour) and Tim McInnerny (Blackadder) starred in this stark, moving and ultimately redemptive story, marking the 75th anniversary of the end of the Holocaust.
Misbehaviour
Based on real events, Misbehaviour dramatises the story of the activists who invaded the Miss World pageant in London in 1970, starring Keira Knightley (Pride & Prejudice), Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Belle), Keeley Hawes (The Durrells), and Phyllis Logan (Downton Abbey).
You can take a look at more of our Christmas gift ideas here.