11 British Shows To Stream In April of 2021
MASTERPIECE “Atlantic Crossing" Sundays, April 4 - May 23, 2021 on PBS Episode Three Sunday, April 18, 2021; 9-10pm ET on PBS While bombs fall on Olav and the King in London, Martha and the children are in the U.S. where President Roosevelt extends a special invitation. Shown: Sofia Helin as Crown Princess Martha For editorial use only. Courtesy of MASTERPIECE.
@JULIE VRABELOVA
Spring is here, and so are new debuts of British programming for American television. From PBS Passport to Britbox, everyone's got brand new titles arriving in April, from period dramas to comedies to police procedurals and everything in between.
So, what's coming to the U.S. in British TV this April? Let's run down the biggest titles arriving this month.
PBSAtlantic Crossing
Masterpiece's newest limited series, Atlantic Crossing, is a new World War II drama from a surprising POV, namely that of Norwegian Crown Princess Martha.
Played by Sofia Helin, the young royal flees her country from Nazi rule to live under the American government's protection and FDR (Kyle MacLachlan), where she becomes a leading voice for U.S. involvement in the war. The series premieres on Sunday, April 4, and PBS Passport will have all eight episodes to binge right away.
NetflixThe Serpent
The most-watched streaming series on iPlayer since 2019's Normal People, The Serpent, comes to Netflix on April 2. Starring Tahar Rahim and Jenna Coleman as real-life murderers Charles Sobhraj and Marie-Andrée Leclerc, the 1970s period-set true-crime drama is a recreation of a particular time and place in history and the man who took advantage of it. All eight episodes stream starting Friday, April 2.
Life in Color with David Attenborough
Though Discovery+ has commandeered the entire Planet Earth series and its spinoffs, Netflix is still doing their own David Attenborough-hosted specials.
This year's new series is called Life In Color and is timed to arrive on Earth Day, April 22. The three-part special covers some of the most gorgeous vistas our planet has to offer, from the rainforests of Costa Rica to the snowy Scottish Highlands.
HBO/HBO MaxThe Great Pottery Throwdown Season 4
The Great Pottery Throwdown returns to the American airwaves after its run on Channel 4 earlier in the year. The series is a direct spinoff of The Great British Baking Show from the same company, Love Productions, with a new batch of potters hoping to take home the top prize.
Fan-favorite judge Keith Brymer Jones returns with Kiln-Man Rich, Richard Miller, promoted to judge beside him, and Derry Girls' Siobhán McSweeney as host with all ten episodes arriving on April 1.
The Nevers
After a decade of British-actor-starring fantasy carrying the channel, HBO debuts the new series it hopes will carry on the tradition. The Nevers, a new Victorian period supernatural drama from Joss Whedon, stars Laura Donnelly, Olivia Williams, and James Norton among its PBS-friendly cast.
The first episode arrives on Sunday, April 11, on HBO and will be available the next day on HBO Max. The series will follow a one-episode-a-week-schedule from there.
AMC/AMC+Gangs of London
Sky Atlantic initially did Gangs of London in partnership with Cinemax, but HBO Max's debut upended that. AMC took over, streaming the series on AMC+ last fall. Starring a bevy of British actors across ten different factions, including Joe Cole, Michelle Fairley, Colm Meaney, the story starts when Finn Wallace, patriarch of the powerful Wallace crime syndicate, is accidentally murdered, touching off a war of inheritance.
The series linear television debut on AMC begins April 4, with weekly installments to follow.
Spy City
Mad Men meets police procedural in Spy City, 1960s series about MI-6. Dominic Cooper stars as Fielding Scott, an MI6 agent who goes to Berlin in 1961 to find a double agent. The six-episode series is a collaboration between Miramax and Germany's H&V Entertainment and has already aired over in its home country.
All six episodes will arrive on AMC+ on Thursday, April 15
Acorn TVThe Norman Conquests
The first thing I ever saw Penelope Wilton in, The Norman Conquests is the 1980s-era television adaptation of the hit trilogy of stage plays by Alan Ayckbourn. Each installment tells the story of one family's weekend gathering from the perspective of three different rooms. Penelope Keith, Tom Conti, Richard Briers, David Troughton, and Fiona Walker co-star.
For those missing theater productions, all three plays arrive on Monday, April 5.
Keeping Faith Series 3
The popular BBC Wales series Un Bore Mercher (translated: "One Wednesday Morning"), known to Acorn TV fans as Keeping Faith, draws to a close with a third and final season.
Starring Eve Myles as small-town lawyer Faith Howells, the last season brings more upheaval to the solicitor's life than her affair and divorce already has, as her estranged mother, Rose (Celia Imrie), returns to town. The six-episode series begins Monday, April 12, with two episodes, once a week to follow.
BritBoxKate & Koji Season 1
The ITV sitcom Kate & Koji was a hit last March when it aired overseas. Now BritBox is bringing the first season over here. Brenda Blethyn and Jimmy Akingbola star as the titular odd couple. Koji is an asylum-seeking doctor in the small seaside town where Kate runs a cafe. When she learns of his inability to work due to his immigrant status, she hatches a scheme via word of mouth, turning him into the town's unofficial G.P. All six episodes land Tuesday, April 13.
Grace Part 1
Based on the crime novels by Peter James, this series from Endeavour creator Russell Lewis stars John Simm as the titular DS Roy Grace.
The first installment, adapted from the novel Dead Simple, aired in mid-March on ITV and will premiere on BritBox on April 27. The second installment, adapted from Looking Good Dead, does not have a U.K. release as of this writing but is expected to follow on BritBox once it does.
