The Handbook’s Favourite TV Shows Of 2023
2023 has been another great year for TV, with some amazing new shows and some returning modern classics in the making. From the kitchens of The Bear to Buckingham Palace in The Crown, to a hijacked plane in Apple TV+s Hijack, streaming and beyond has taken us to a litany of moody settings and dazzling locales- but what were the best shows of the year? The Handbook team has assembled to list of a few of our favourites that you need to watch…
Wilderness
Elly Stancliffe, CEO
Jenna Coleman has been in a lot of successful shows lately, from The Serpent to The Sandman, and Wilderness feels like something of a different turn from her. She plays Liv, married to Will (Oliver Jackson-Cohen), who is heartbroken when she discovers from a text on his phone that he’s cheating on her with someone from work. She’s both distraught and furious, and it’s this fury that leads her to take revenge. She takes him up on a trip into the wilderness, with Will unaware that Liv knows he cheated. With the two of them alone in Yosemite National Park, Liv is perfectly placed to get her own back- but how far will show go? And what consequences could she bring upon herself?
“Wilderness starring Jenna Coleman is up there as one of my faves of the year, she’s a brilliant actress and I was hooked from start to finish!” – Elly
Stream on: Amazon Prime
The Night Agent
Natasha Harding, Digital Editor
A smash hit this year from seemingly out of nowhere to scoop the prestigious crown of Netflix’s most-watched show, The Night Agent is a good old-fashioned action thriller about conspiracy, corruption and espionage in the highest circles of the US government. FBI Agent Peter Sutherland (Gabriel Basso) is a Night Action phone operator, who finds himself tangled in a web of plots and deceit that threaten the country’s national security. His goal is to find, expose and stop the traitor at the heart of the plan- as well as protect cyber whizz from her parents’ murders. A taut, twisting thriller, it’s worth a watch, especially since Season 2 is on the way from Netflix.
“Whether you’re into action shows/films or not, I’d highly recommend The Night Agent – it’s the perfect amount of intrigue, drama, adventure, and romance – all wrapped into a highly bingeable, pacy series” – Natasha
Stream on: Netflix
Only Murders in the Building, Season 3
Robyn Upton, Managing Director
Only Murders in the Building is fast moving from cult favourite to modern classic, spinning our modern-day obsession with true crime and murder mysteries into a fun but often genuinely intriguing whodunnit series. Season 3 continues the adventures of the unlikely trio Charles (Steve Martin), Oliver (Martin Short) and Mabel (Selena Gomez), who all share a passion of crime podcasts and being amateur sleuths. Following the thread of the sudden killing of a Broadway actor (Paul Rudd), the gang race to stop it from happening again- and are joined this season by none other than Hollywood legend Meryl Streep as Loretta, an actress down on her luck.
“The perfect mix of humour, slapstick, intrigue and suspense. Also I’m now an official Selena Gomez fan – whoever came up with the idea of pairing her with Steve Martin and Martin Short is a genius. Watch out for some incredibly high profile cameos (hello Meryl Streep)” – Robyn
Stream on: Disney+
Lupin, Part 3
Megan O’Reilly, Client Relationship Manager
Bonjour, Assane- master thief and charismatic con artist Assane Diop (Omar Sy) returns in Lupin Part 3, the latest instalment of the French language Netflix show that remains some of the best telly around. This time he’s down and out in Paris, having avenged his father but simultaneously becoming one of France’s most wanted men. He might have some popular support in the French public, but he can’t risk staying on the radar without risking a lengthy prison sentence. But staying put is against his nature, and with his wife and child separated from him, he heads back to the capital to pull off another audacious heist, and hopefully disappear for good.
“I never watched the first 2 seasons of Lupin so had lots to catch up on! I’m a big fan of crime drama, and I especially enjoy watching it in French with subtitles as I feel like it helps me *actually* watch the show, and not be on my phone at the same time. It’s quite an easy watch too, but full of cliffhangers and I just got engrossed from the very first episode!” – Megan
Stream on: Netflix
Bodies
Harriet Smales, Head of Partnerships
Alongside huge shows like The Crown and The Night Agent, Netflix also released some intriguing new projects this year, with one of the best being Bodies. A time-hopping mystery, the show centres around four detectives across four different periods, but with one recurring dead body tying them all together. Each sleuth is key to solving the murder and unlocking the mystery to prevent certain doom in Britain’s future. Shira Haas, Jacob Fortune Lloyd, Kyle Soller and Amaka Okafor star as our cast of detectives, while Boiling Point and Time star Stephen Graham plays the mysterious Elias Mannix, who seems to know secrets no one else does and connects everything together.
“It’s the perfect 8-part murder mystery, with a twist- and Stephen Graham is a highlight” – Harriet
Stream on: Netflix
Poker Face
Lottie Woodrow, Senior Editor
Russian Doll star Natasha Lyonne and Knives Out director Rian Johnson team up for Poker Face, a real highlight of the year and one of (many) mystery series that captivated us in 2023. However, this isn’t a slow burn that unravels over multiple episodes, and instead is more of an old-fashioned “case of the week” style show connected by Charlie Cale (Lyonne)’s road trip across America. An employee at a casino with a penchant for sussing out liars and cracking cases, Charlie finds herself interrogating a series of odd suspects involved in murders across the US.
“A great modern new take on the murder mystery genre. Expect a wild ride around North America as you follow Natasha Lyonne star as a gritty casino employee with a talent for detecting lies and uncovering crimes in the process” – Lottie
Stream on: NOW
Rain Dogs
Astrid Carter, Contributing Fashion & Lifestyle Editor
Daisy May Cooper already established herself as one of Britain’s most talented comedic actors with sitcoms like This Country, but she’s also begun to branch out into more serious acting, and there’s no better example than Rain Dogs. A dark comedy with some serious down-to-earth themes of family, relationships and love, Cooper stars as Costello Jones, a single mother who’s evicted from her flat alongside her daughter Iris (played by Fleur Tashjian). Costello wants what’s best for Gleur, but that’s not always easy to achieve. Along with Fleur’s surrogate father Selby (Jack Farthing) and godmother Gloria (Ronke Adekoluejo), the foursome makes a makeshift family on the fringes of society.
“Brutal and beautiful in equal measure, this British dark comedy was one of my top binges of the year. Daisy May Cooper and Jack Farthing have the most brilliant onscreen chemistry” – Astrid
Stream on: NOW
Succession
Erica O’Hara, Features Writer & Partnerships Manager
Succession is what The Sopranos was in the 2000s and what Game of Thrones was in the 2010s- that one HBO show that your friends, co-workers and your aunt you only see at Christmas keeps saying you’ve got to see. The winding saga of the Roy family came to a close earlier this year with the fourth and final season, cementing it as one of the best series in modern times. Brian Cox plays the Murdochesque Logan Roy, keen to finally pass on his media empire to an anointed successor. This last season sees his children Kendall, Roman and Shiv, as well as Shiv’s husband Tom, vying to ensure they take the biggest slice of the business pie. Logan is looking at a tech CEO (played by Big Little Lies’ Alexander Skarsgård) to sell to but nothing’s ever certain in Succession.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been glued to my TV as much as I was with Succession. Brilliant writing, compelling characters we love to hate, and incredible acting make it one of the best shows ever made” – Erica
Stream on: NOW
The Bear
Patrick Dunne, Editorial Assistant
Several members of our team have talked about their love of The Bear, and they’re not alone: the FX drama that mixes in elements of dark comedy has become a critical and audience favourite since the first season began in 2022. Jeremy Allen White plays Carmy, a top chef who comes back to run his late brother’s sandwich shop in Chicago. Season 2 sees him and his team work to re-establish the business as a new restaurant (called The Bear), though things of course won’t be easy. Particular cast stand-outs, as well as White, include Ayo Ederbiri as sous chef Sydney, Ebon Moss-Bachrach as manager Richie, and Lionel Boyce as pastry chef Lionel. But everyone in The Bear (which includes several celeb guest stars) is great, and meshed with top-tier writing and constant tension cements it as a modern classic.
“Possibly the only show that could have me crying to a Taylor Swift needle drop. The rare show that is probably even better than the hype it gets”- Patrick
Stream on: Disney+
Hijack
Asha Noble, Partnership Sales Executive
Hijack is an action thriller led by everyone’s favourite action thriller star, Idris Elba, and is one of Apple TV+’s most popular shows this year. It’s got a pretty simple set-up: a plane flying across the world from Dubai to London is suddenly assaulted and taken over by a team of hijackers. Luckily, Sam (Elba) is on board, a skilled negotiator in the business world who feels he can apply those same skills to find a peaceful solution to the situation. It won’t be easy though, with the lives of people on the flight and on the ground in jeopardy, and the tension only gets higher as each of the seven episodes goes on.
“It was an anxious watch, to say the least, the suspense builds and is released yet to just be on that same rollercoaster just a few minutes later! Thoroughly enjoyed it”- Asha
Stream on: Netflix
Moving
Shu Fang Cheng, Creative
South Korean series Moving arrived earlier this year to become Disney+’s most-watched Korean show globally and is based on a webtoon series of the same name. It surrounds a group of teenagers going through high school, who develop superpowers and have to learn how to deal with them. Hang Hui-Soo has healing and incredible athletic powers, Kim Bong-Seok can fly and Lee Gang-Hoon has super speed. However, are forced to hide these amazing powers and live in secret, and they and their parents face huge danger if they’re exposed, especially since they have secretive pasts of their own. A mash between teen high school drama and super-powered thrills.
“Moving on Disney+ brings a great combo of laughs, drama, and suspense. It keeps things entertaining with unexpected twists that make it super fun to watch!”- Shu-Fang
Stream on: Disney+
Jury Duty
Alison Von Haefen, Editorial Intern
Jury Duty took all the absurdities of reality TV and those court-based daytime shows called “Judge-“ and put them into one of 2023’s best new comedies, and was convincing enough to fool people reacting to clips of it on social media. It fakes a court case, including the judge, defendant, and all the jurors, except for one: Ronald Gladden, who is part of the hurry but has no idea that it’s not real. This pretence is kept up for the eight-part series, and we see Ronald not only sitting in court and watching the “proceedings”, but also interacting with the other jurors to come up with a decision. Westworld star James Marsden plays a fictionalised version of himself, who is also part of the jury, and the whole thing is both surreal and hilarious.
“I fell in love with the unusual nature of Jury Duty from start to finish. It has you rooting for Ronald and all of the strange circumstances he finds himself in.” – Alison
Stream on: Amazon Prime
Daisy Jones and the Six
Madelyn Slattery, Editorial Intern
Based on the bestselling novel of the same name, Daisy Jones and the Six released earlier this year as an equally successful series. The premise is pretty simple: in 1970s LA, the fictional rock band Daisy Jones and the Six is formed and starts making huge hits- eventually becoming one of the biggest bands in the world. In the band’s heyday, they seemed to be completely unstoppable in conquering the music scene, but like many bands of the era, the higher they rose, the further there was to fall. Actress Riley Keough leads the ten-part miniseries as Daisy Jones herself, one of the two lead singers of the group alongside Sam Claflin as Billy Dunne. If you love 70s music (and fashion), then you’ll love Daisy Jones and the Six.
“I loved both the book and this brilliant series lived up to the hype! The casting was amazing, the music was super catchy and the costumes were something else” – Madelyn
Stream on: Amazon Prime
Bad Sisters
Ashling McCoy, Contributing Style & Interiors Editor
Bad Sisters actually released late last year, but we’re sneaking it into this list after it got renewed attention when it won the BAFTA for Best Drama Series earlier in 2023. Written and starring Sharon Horgan, its set in Dublin, and concerns the lives of a group of five sisters: Eva (Horgan), Grace (Anne-Marie Duff), Ursula (Eva Birthistle), Bibi (Sarah Greene) and Becka (Eve Hewson) Garvey. Grace’s abusive husband, John, who all five sisters dislike, dies apparently out of nowhere. This unexpected event however leads to a dark and difficult fallout when the sisters are investigated for a potential connection to his death, with investigators suspecting someone could be after life insurance money. The Garvey sisters did have ideas of a plan to kill John, and considering his horrible treatment of Grace, they feel they’re justified- but will things unravel? The comedic but often very emotional series has been renewed for a further season, and the acting in particular received praise.
“While actually released in 2022, I binge watched it in 2023. It was smart, witty, infuriating and a gorgeous reminder of how special it is to grow up in a chaotic, yet brilliant Irish family. Utterly loved it”- Ashling
Stream on: Apple TV+
Never Have I Ever
Nicole Duret, Creative
US comedy Never Have I Ever debuted in 2020, and finished with a fourth and final season in June. The Mindy Kaling series takes place in Boston, following an Indian-American student at high school attempting to fit in and deal with her grief following her father’s death. Acclaimed for its South Asian representation and relatability, this last season sees Devi (Maitreyi Ramakrishnan) juggling the her crushes for Paxton (Darren Barnet) and Ethan (Michael Cimino) along with her school work in her final year of high school. She’s got her eyes set on a prestigious college, and while things aren’t always easy, Devi has begun to become more at ease with life and herself, especially with her loyal family and friends at her side.
“What started out as something that I watched to replace doom scrolling on my phone while I was having lunch, ended up as one of the shows I enjoyed the most this year. This is your typical ‘coming of age’ story, but with a twist: the main character starts out as someone pretty unlikeable and becomes someone who warms up to you as she navigates the complexities of grief, love, family, friendship and chasing after your dreams”- Nicole
Stream on: Netflix