Science fiction in the UK is synonymous with Doctor Who. It's almost unavoidable, Doctor Who has been a huge export and an almost constant on screens since 1963. There is no denying its influence on pop culture and the short form science fiction genre in general, but British sci-fi is so much more than Daleks and Time Lords.
British short-form sci-fi is eclectic, covering everything from time-traveling detectives, dinosaurs running rampant in the present day, and super-powered ASBO teens attempting to atone for their petty crimes. This list looks at 5 of the best and most influential British sci-fi shows that prove that Doctor Who isn't the only export worth watching.
Primeval
Running from 2007 to 2011, Primeval brought dinosaurs to the small screen every week as a ragtag group of scientists investigated strange temporal anomalies that have begun to appear. The anomalies created passages from various eras in the past that dinosaurs can pass through and appear in present-day England. Featuring shady government organizations, likable characters, and impressive dinosaur effects from the team that created Walking With Dinosaurs, Primeval was a hit.
The human drama elements were just as involved as the Jurassic threat and as the series went on, more elements of time travel, future predators, and imminent temporal collapses became involved, leaving the show muddied but ultimately an enjoyable Saturday night watch.
Life On Mars
Detective Chief Inspector Sam Tyler (John Simm) is working for the Greater Manchester Police force in 2006 when he is struck by a car and knocked unconscious. Upon waking, he finds himself in 1973, still a member of the police force but now Detective Inspector in the C.I.D. Working with DCI Gene Hunt (Philip Glenister), Tyler is a fish out of the water, dealing with the different attitudes and policing techniques of the 70s while trying to figure out how to get home.
Throughout the series, Sam sees glimpses of life back in 2006, hears radio messages in the static, and is tormented by the test card girl on the television. The series was ambiguous; did Sam time travel or is he merely experiencing a coma dream? Many theories believe that Sam was in some kind of purgatory, but the ending of the second series wasn't a definitive answer. Fans may soon get the answers they seek as a third, and the concluding, series has recently gone into production.
Survivors
1975's Survivors is a harrowing tale of a post-apocalyptic world after a plague aptly named "The Death" wipes out almost the entire population of Earth. A slow-paced, sad series follows a group of survivors who are attempting to rebuild a small society of sorts and try to find some normalcy in a new world. Survivors focus heavily on the human element of the story, showcasing the best and worst that humanity has to offer in times of strife.
Equal parts bleak and hopeful, Survivors ran for 3 series before ending. A remake of sorts was broadcast in 2008, but it focused more on action than it did on characters. The show left a lasting impact on British television and continues even now in the form of an audio drama that has run episodically since 2014.
Misfits
One of the most innovative British shows of recent years, Misfits follows 5 young adult delinquents brought together to do community service. Their dislike of each other falls by the wayside as they inadvertently all gain superpowers after a strange cosmic event in the form of a lightning storm. Their powers are eclectic, telepathy, the ability to rewind time, the power over sexual urges, invisibility, and immortality. The group struggle with their new abilities, try to keep them hidden, and encounter others who were also affected by the weird storm. The show featured break-out performances from Robert Sheehan as Nathan, Iwan Rheon as Simon, and Joe Gilgun as Rudy in later series.
It's impossible to overstate the brilliance of Misfits. Elements of Skins mixed with X-Men shouldn't have worked but instead, it created a heady mix of relatable characters, insane plots, and just plain weird superpowers. Everything from GTA-style episodes, cults, and milk-controlling maniacs made Misfits an instant cult classic that has been hard to beat.
Red Dwarf
When it comes to British sci-fi not much can rival Doctor Who in terms of influence, apart from the colossus that is Red Dwarf. Initially, the show ran from 1988 to 1999 and then returned to screens in 2009, and the thirteenth installment of the show was released as recently as 2020. The crew of the mining vessel Red Dwarf is obliterated due to a mishap involving gazpacho soup apart from Dave Lister, who was in stasis at the time as punishment for bringing a cat on board. Waking in the future, Lister is accompanied by the hologram of his insufferable bunkmate Arnold Rimmer, a being called Cat who has evolved from the cat Lister smuggled aboard and neurotic android Kryten. All of this is overseen and more often than not hindered by the ship's computer Holly whose intelligence has severely degraded over time.
As the crew tries to find their way back to Earth they encounter emotion-sucking polymorphs, obligatory time travel, GELFs, and most frightening of all, Rimmerworld. The language of the show seeped its way into the zeitgeist, with "smeg" becoming a popular alternative to swearing and new installments of the show still draw huge viewership even after 30 years.