The Best TV Shows on BBC Two

Every BBC Two Show Ranked From Best To Worst

BBC Two has over 20 shows broadcast from as early as 1964 and as recent as 2022. Premiering in 1964 and 1964, Horizon and Match of the Day are among BBC Two’s most celebrated shows. Discover the best of BBC Two with our list of over 20 series, meticulously updated for January 2026.

  • Peaky Blinders
    Peaky Blinders (2013)8.5

    A gangster family epic set in 1919 Birmingham, England and centered on a gang who sew razor blades in the peaks of their caps, and their fierce boss Tommy Shelby, who means to move up in the world.

  • Line of Duty
    Line of Duty (2012)8.2

    A drama about the investigations of AC-12, a controversial police anticorruption unit.

  • The Last Kingdom
    The Last Kingdom (2015)8.2

    A show of heroic deeds and epic battles with a thematic depth that embraces politics, religion, warfare, courage, love, loyalty and our universal search for identity. Combining real historical figures and events with fictional characters, it is the story of how a people combined their strength under one of the most iconic kings of history in order to reclaim their land for themselves and build a place they call home.

  • Red Dwarf
    Red Dwarf (1988)8.1

    The adventures of the last human alive and his friends, stranded three million years into deep space on the mining ship Red Dwarf.

  • Inside No. 9
    Inside No. 9 (2014)8.1

    An anthology of darkly comic twisted tales, each one taking place behind a door marked 'number 9'.

  • QI
    QI (2003)7.9

    Comedy quiz show full of quirky facts, in which contestants are rewarded more if their answers are 'quite interesting'.

  • I, Claudius
    I, Claudius (1976)7.8

    Acclaimed blackly comic historical drama series. Set amidst a web of power, corruption and lies, it chronicles the reigns of the Roman emperors - Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula and finally Claudius.

  • Match of the Day
    Match of the Day (1964)7.5

    BBC's football highlights and analysis. "The longest-running football television programme in the world" as recognised by Guinness World Records in 2015.

  • Absolutely Fabulous
    Absolutely Fabulous (1992)7.5

    Set in the world of fashion and PR, immature fun-loving mother Edina Monsoon and her best friend Patsy drive Eddie's sensible daughter, Saffron, up the wall with their constant drug abuse and outrageous selfishness. Numerous in-jokes and heavy doses of cruel humour have made this series a cult hit in the UK and abroad.

  • Top Gear
    Top Gear (2002)7.5

    This fast-paced and stunt-filled motor show tests whether cars, both mundane and extraordinary, live up to their manufacturers' claims. The long-running show travels to locations around the world, performing extreme stunts and challenges to see what the featured cars are capable of doing. The current hosts are Paddy Mcguinness, Chris Harris and Andrew "Freddie" Flintoff.

  • Horizon
    Horizon (1964)7.4

    Horizon tells amazing science stories, unravels mysteries and reveals worlds you've never seen before.

  • The Hollow Crown
    The Hollow Crown (2012)7.4

    A series of British television films featuring William Shakespeare's History Plays.

  • Torchwood
    Torchwood (2006)7.3

    The exploits of a team of people whose job is to investigate the unusual, the strange and the extraterrestrial.

  • The Graham Norton Show
    The Graham Norton Show (2007)7.2

    Each week celebrity guests join Irish comedian Graham Norton to discuss what's being going on around the world that week. The guests poke fun and share their opinions on the main news stories. Graham is often joined by a band or artist to play the show out.

  • Have I Got News for You
    Have I Got News for You (1990)7.1

    Hilarious, totally-irreverent, near-slanderous political quiz show, based mainly on news stories from the last week or so, that leaves no party, personality or action unscathed in pursuit of laughs.

  • Playhouse
    Playhouse (1974)7.0

    A one-hour anthology television series of one-off contemporary and classic dramas produced by the BBC.

  • Never Mind the Buzzcocks
    Never Mind the Buzzcocks (1996)7.0

    Never Mind the Buzzcocks is a comedy panel game show with a pop and rock music theme. The show is infamous for its dry, sarcastic humour and scathing, provocative attacks on the pop industry.

  • Mastermind
    Mastermind (1972)5.4

    Mastermind is a British quiz show, well known for its challenging questions, intimidating setting and air of seriousness. Devised by Bill Wright, the basic format of Mastermind has never changed — four and in later contests five contestants face two rounds, one on a specialised subject of the contestant's choice, the other a general knowledge round. Wright drew inspiration from his experiences of being interrogated by the Gestapo during World War II. The atmosphere is helped by Mastermind's famously ominous theme music, "Approaching Menace" by the British composer Neil Richardson. The quiz programme originated and was recorded in Manchester at studios such as New Broadcasting House and Granada Studios, before permanently moving to MediaCityUK in 2011.

  • The Boys from Brazil: Rise of the Bolsonaros
    The Boys from Brazil: Rise of the Bolsonaros (2022)5.4

    The remarkable rise of one of the world’s most controversial leaders, Jair Bolsonaro, from obscurity to the presidency of Brazil.

  • Teletubbies
    Teletubbies (1997)4.4

    Pre-school fun, fantasy and education with colourful rotund characters Tinky Winky, Dipsy, Laa-Laa and Po in a magical land called Teletubbyland.