You loved Broadchurch. Everything about it: the brooding mood, the sharp minds, the slow unraveling of local secrets, and that stunning coastal setting acting as a character in its own right.
While DI Alec Hardy and DS Ellie Miller solved their final case back in 2017, that doesn’t mean you have to leave the salt air behind. If you are searching for that same gripping combination of coastal atmosphere and deep human drama, these four British crime series are worth your time.
Shetland
The Atmosphere: Windswept, isolated Scottish islands where news travels fast, the weather turns on a dime, and your primary suspect can easily be trapped on a delayed ferry.
- Shetland finds its dramatic footing on the remote isles of Scotland, where everyone knows everyone and privacy is a rare commodity.
- Douglas Henshall (Outlander) plays DI Jimmy Perez with a quiet intensity that brings real weight to his decisions as he investigates crimes that send shockwaves through small island communities—where suspects are often neighbors he has known for years.
The Broadchurch Connection:
- Shetland depicts crime as an infection that spreads across an entire town, proving that along the coast, a dark secret never stays buried for long.
- Cases affect whole families, offering a moody, immersive experience where the focus remains squarely on the human cost of the crime.
Vera
The Atmosphere: The rugged, wind-battered coast and moorlands of Northumberland.
Vera follows DCI Vera Stanhope, played by BAFTA winner Brenda Blethyn (Pride & Prejudice), as she solves complex cases in her trademark bucket hat and raincoat—proving that disarming suspects with a cup of tea and calling them “pet” is a devastatingly effective interrogation tactic.
The show finds its distinct appeal in emotional nuance and slow-building tension. In Vera, the quietest moments often carry the most weight.
The Broadchurch Connection:
- The series focuses on the methodical unraveling of each case, led by Blethyn’s compelling, grounded performance.
- Crimes feel deeply human, making the investigation less about flashy spectacle and more about the personal secrets brought to light along the way.
The Bay
The Atmosphere: The lived-in, tide-swept coastal town of Morecambe, Lancashire.
- The Bay follows family liaison officer DS Lisa Armstrong, played by Morven Christie (The A Word), whose assignment to a missing persons case becomes wildly complicated when she realizes she has a personal connection to the family—specifically, a disastrous one-night stand with the prime suspect on the night of the crime.
- The show puts grief, tension, and community fallout right at the heart of every investigation.
The Broadchurch Connection:
- Matches Broadchurch in its raw emotional stakes, balancing procedural police work with the fallout inside victimized households.
- It puts you right beside the investigators, pulling you thrillable-close to the truth as small-town loyalties begin to fracture.
The Long Call
The Atmosphere: The quiet, reflective, and deeply secretive coastline of North Devon.
- Unfolding with deliberate, meditative pacing, the drama stars Ben Aldridge (Fleabag) as DI Matthew Venn, a detective whose return to his hometown places him at the center of a murder case tied to the strict religious community he left years ago, a group whose idea of welcoming him back is treating him with all the warmth of a North Devon sea breeze in January.
- Venn’s personal history collides with a simmering tension that makes it nearly impossible to look away.
The Broadchurch Connection:
- Taps into character-driven storytelling where the mystery is deeply personal. Uncovering the killer means untangling the detective’s own complicated relationship with identity, belonging, and memory.
- Offers a deeply considered story about how the past is never truly past, perfect for viewers who prefer quiet emotional intensity over frantic car chases.
While Hardy and Miller’s story has ended, the tide is still bringing dark secrets to shore all across Britain, proving once again that a quiet British seaside town is perhaps the worst possible place on earth to go for a relaxing weekend getaway.
