Historical dramas have always been a popular genre both in film and television. There are countless series that quickly come to mind including The Crown, Deadwood, The Gilded Age, The Great, The Last Kingdom, Vikings, Vikings: Valhalla, The Tudors – to name a few. But there are many out there that you probably haven’t heard of, or have on a to-watch list but have never gotten to it. If you’re looking for a new series to binge, we recommend 14 historical drama series you need to watch.
The Borgias (2011-2013)
Cast: Jeremy Irons, François Arnaud, Holliday Grainger, David Oakes, Lotte Verbeek, Joanne Whalley, Colm Feore, Sean Harris, Gina McKee, Peter Sullivan, Ruta Gedmintas
Synopsis: “Jeremy Irons stars as the charismatic Rodrigo Borgia, the head of an infamous Renaissance-era Italian family who will let nothing and no one stand in the way of his relentless quest for power.”
Where to watch: fubo, Hulu, Paramount+, Showtime, Spectrum
Cable Girls (2015-2020)
Cast: Yon González, Blanca Suárez, Ana Fernandez, Nadia de Santiago, Maggie Civantos, Martino Rivas, Ana Polvorosa, Nico Romero, Ángela Cremonte, Denisse Peña, Sergio Mur, Concha Velasco, Valentina Zenere, Antonio Velázquez
Synopsis: “Set in the 1920s, this is the story of four women from different backgrounds newly hired as operators for a phone company.”
Where to watch: Netflix
Call The Midwife (2012 – )
Cast: Helen George, Laura Main, Jessica Raine, Stephen McGann, Jenny Agutter, Judy Parfitt, Max Macmillan, Linda Bassett, Miranda Hart, Emerald Fennell, Jack Ashton, Georgie Glen, Bryony Hannah, Ella Bruccoleri, Leonie Elliott, Cliff Parisi, Fenella Woolgar, Annabelle Apsion, Victoria Yeates, Charlotte Ritchie, Pam Ferris
Synopsis: “Chronicles the lives of a group of midwives living in East London in the late 1950s to late 1960s.”
Where to watch: Hoopla, Netflix, Vudu
Chernobyl (2019 miniseries)
Cast: Jared Harris, Stellan Skarsgård, Jessie Buckley, Emily Watson, Paul Ritter, Con O’Neill, Adrian Rawlins, Sam Troughton, Barry Keoghan, David Dencik, Mark Lewis Jones, Fares Fares
Synopsis: “On April 26, 1986, the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine, Soviet Union suffered a massive explosion that released radioactive material across Belarus, Russia and Ukraine and as far as Scandinavia and western Europe. Chernobyl dramatizes the story of the 1986 accident, one of the worst man-made catastrophes in history, and the sacrifices made to save Europe from the unimaginable disaster.
Where to watch: Hulu, Max
Dickinson (2019-2021)
Cast: Hailee Steinfeld, Adrian Enscoe, Ella Hunt, Anna Baryshnikov, Toby Huss, Jane Krakowski, Chinaza Uche, Finn Jones, Ayo Edebiri, Gus Birney, Wiz Khalifa, Amanda Warren, John Mulaney
Synopsis: “Set in the 19th century, it explores the constraints of society, gender and family from the perspective of rebellious young poet, Emily Dickinson.”
Where to watch: Apple TV+
Domina (2021 – )
Cast: Kasia Smutniak, Matthew McNulty, Nadia Parkes, Tom Glynn-Carney, Claire Forlani, Earl Cave, Ewan Horrocks, Ben Batt, Alex Lanipekun, Liam Cunningham, Christine Bottomley, Colette Dalal Tchantcho, Liah O’Prey, Art Campion
Synopsis: “The life and rise of Livia Drusilla, the powerful wife of the Roman emperor Augustus Caesar.”
Where to watch: MGM+, Prime Video, The Roku Channel
Frontier (2016-2018)
Cast: Jason Momoa, Jessica Matten, Zoe Boyle, Katie McGrath, Evan Jonigkeit, Landon Liboiron, Breanne Hill, Diana Bentley, Allan Hawco, Michael Patric, Lyla Porter-Follows, Alun Armstrong, Greg Bryk, Christian McKay, William Belleau
Synopsis: “Follows Declan Harp, a half-Irish/half Cree Native-Canadian outlaw who is campaigning to breach the Hudson’s Bay Company’s monopoly on the fur trade in Canada.”
Where to watch: Netflix
Medici: The Magnificent (2016-2019)
Cast: Daniel Sharman, Richard Madden, Sean Benn, Annabel Scholey, Bradley James, Stuart Martin, Dustin Hoffman, Sarah Parish, Synnove Karlsen, Alessandra Mastronardi, Louis Partridge, Guido Caprino
Synopsis: “In 15th-century Renaissance Florence, the visionary Medici dynasty flexes its power in politics and the arts, risking its rivals’ lethal opposition.”
Where to watch: Netflix
Reign (2013-2017)
Cast: Adelaide Kane, Toby Regbo, Torrance Coombs, Megan Follows, Jenessa Grant, Celina Sinden, Alan van Sprang, Caitlin Stasey, Anna Popplewell, Rose Williams, Craig Parker, Sean Teale, Spencer MacPherson, Ben Geurens
Synopsis: “Mary, Queen of Scots, faces political and sexual intrigue in the treacherous world of the French court.”
Where to watch: The CW, Prime Video
The Serpent Queen (2022 – )
Cast: Samantha Morton, Liv Hill, Ludivine Sagnier, Sennia Nanua, Amrita Acharia, Barry Atsma, Enzo Cilenti, Alex Heath, Nicholas Burns, Charles Dance, Antonia Clarke, Ruby Bentall, Ray Panthaki, Kiruna Stamell, Danny Kirrane, Barry Atsma
Synopsis: “The Serpent Queen tells the story of Catherine de Medici (Samantha Morton) who, against all odds, became one of the most powerful and longest-serving rulers in French history.”
Where to watch: Hulu, Starz
The Terror (2018-2019)
Cast: Season 1: Ciarán Hinds, Jared Harris, Tobias Menzies, Paul Ready, Adam Nagaitis, Nive Nielsen, Ian Hart, Trystan Gravelle. Season 2: Derek Mio, Kiki Sukezane, Naoko Mori, Cristina Rodlo, George Takei, Shingo Usami, Miki Ishikawa
Synopsis: “In the first season we follow Sir John Franklin’s 1845 expedition to find the Northwest Passage. Season 2 examines the plight and treatment of Japanese-Americans living in the USA during World War 2.”
Where to watch: Philo, Prime Video
Versailles (2015-2018)
Cast: Alexander Vlahos, George Blagden, Evan Williams, Anna Brewster, Tygh Runyan, Stuart Bowman, Elisa Lasowski, Noémie Schmidt, Lizzie Brocheré, Maddison Jaizani, Amira Casar, Steve Cumyn
Synopsis: “In 1667, 28-year-old all-powerful king of France, Louis XIV, decides to build the greatest palace in the world – Versailles. But drained budget, affairs and political intrigues complicate things.”
Where to watch: Apple TV, Netflix
Victoria (2016-2019)
Cast: Jenna Coleman, Tommy Knight, Adrian Schiller, Jordan Waller, Tom Hughes, Anna Wilson-Jones, Rufus Sewell, Nell Hudson, Ferdinand Kingsley, David Oakes, Daniela Holtz
Synopsis: “The early life of Queen Victoria, from her ascension to the throne at the tender age of 18 to her courtship and marriage to Prince Albert.”
Where to watch: Prime Video
Warrior (2019 – )
Cast: Andrew Koji, Dianne Doan, Olivia Cheng, Jason Tobin, Joe Taslim, Kieran Bew, Joanna Vanderham, Dean Jagger, Hoon Lee, Christian McKay, Perry Yung, Tom Weston-Jones, Langley Kirkwood, Chen Tang, Maria-Elena Laas, Dustin Nguyen
Synopsis: “During the Tong Wars in the late 1800s, Ah Sahm, a martial arts prodigy from China, immigrates to San Francisco and becomes a hatchet man for the most powerful tong in Chinatown.”
Where to watch: Max, The Roku Channel, Spectrum
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