Guides · Shows

Modern Crime Procedurals

Set firmly in the present day — five gripping British crime procedurals for viewers who want their mysteries contemporary, tense, and true to how policing actually works now.

Jump to Professor T Trigger Point Blue Lights Line of Duty Unforgotten

Streaming availability may change — check BritBox, Acorn TV, or PBS Passport for current availability.

Professor T

ITV · PBS Masterpiece

Ben Miller stars as Jasper Tempest, a brilliant but deeply eccentric Cambridge criminology professor whose unconventional methods crack cases everyone else has given up on. A stylish English remake of the hit Belgian series, blending crisp procedural plotting with real psychological depth.

At a Glance

Watch on PBS Masterpiece → Buy the Series →

Trigger Point

ITV · BritBox

Produced by Line of Duty creator Jed Mercurio's company, HTM Television, this white-knuckle thriller follows the Met's bomb-disposal officers as they defuse devices that could go off at any second. Vicky McClure anchors it as Lana Washington, a former soldier whose steady hands hide real trauma.

At a Glance

Watch via BritBox on Prime Video → Buy the Series →

Blue Lights

BBC · BritBox

Following rookie police officers on the streets of post-Troubles Belfast, Blue Lights is tense, authentic, and surprisingly tender, capturing the danger of frontline policing without ever losing sight of the people behind the uniforms. Winner of Best Drama Series at the 2025 BAFTA TV Awards.

At a Glance

Watch via BritBox on Prime Video → Buy the Series →

Line of Duty

BBC · BritBox

AC-12, an anti-corruption unit, hunts bent coppers inside the force in Jed Mercurio's nerve-shredding thriller. Famous for its feature-length interrogation scenes and cliffhangers that had the whole country theorising, it's appointment viewing built for bingeing.

At a Glance

Watch via BritBox on Prime Video → Buy the Series →

Unforgotten

ITV · PBS Passport / BritBox

A cold-case unit reopens decades-old murders, slowly drawing together the lives of strangers whose pasts are bound to a single long-buried crime. What sets it apart is its compassion — as interested in grief and guilt as in whodunit.

At a Glance

Watch on PBS → Buy the Series →

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