Detective drama recommendations

[MercedesDeMonteChristo]

We have 14, 12 and 9 year old and detective series go down particularly well for after dinner viewing. 9 year old has watched some with us but dips in and out as some more suitable than others. 14 year old is a particular fan.

Successes have been:
Sherlock
Poirot
Death in Paradise
The Mentalist
Lucifer (was prob a little close with sex/drug references but was enjoyed so I guess our bar is lower than some peoples in what they can watch)

CSI and Law and Order have only been dipped into and haven’t really struck the right note.

We have access to:
Virgin
Netflix
Amazon Prime (willing to pay for something decent)
Now TV entertainment
Disney plus (though cannot imagine anything there)

Vera?

All the ones I can think of that I love are probably not suitable for those ages. Happy valley, Luther etc

Bosch on amazon prime is good

Endeavour? I don't have DC so might not be suitable!

I’d love to watch Luther with 14 year old (he is old for his years) but I think we need a couple more years yet. Ditto Whitechapel. But he was obsessed with Poirot and Death in Paradise and rewatches then so I expect something a bit more relaxed.

I’ll look at Vera. I was thinking Granchester - I’ve read some of the books but have no idea, other than James Norton

I was going to say Vera too. A dead body or two but nothing too gruesome and not a lot of sex/swearing for the 9yr old.

I echo Bosch.

Someone recently recommended Murder Road for us and we watched with our 10 year old and 16 year old. The first series is on iplayer, there were obviously themes of drugs and murder but not much actual violence shown. We really enjoyed it, set in the Australian outback, I'd never heard of it before, it explores themes around land and Aboriginal history as well as police work. The second series was a bit more adult and too much for the 10 year old.

Oh, and a rape plot but that went over the 10 year old's head!

White Collar is really good. It's a bit like The Mentalist but the side kick is a con artist.

Bletchley Circle (and Bletchley Circle San Fransisco)
Shetland
Miss Fisher investigates (and the newer series Miss Fishers Modern Mysteries)
The Coroner
Shakespeare and Hathaway
Or even Father Brown
You could check out alibi channel and see if any of their programmes suit?

Brokenwood mysteries, My life is murder, Harrow I think as whodunnits they're complicated enough for kids without too much awful sexually violent content which is what I try to keep my DD from.

Brokenwood mysteries, My life is murder, & Harrow I think as whodunnits they're complicated enough for older kids without too much awful sexually violent content which is what I try to keep my DD from.

Jonathan Creek

We are currently enjoying Cracker on Youtube

If Poirot has gone down well, what about all the Miss Marple mysteries?

Line of duty is the best police drama imo

Agatha raisin is quite easy on kids.

A friend recommended Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries on Netflix and I love them. A female private investigator in 1920s Australia!

I saw Lie To Me on Amazon Prime recommended on here a while ago and binge-watched it. It stars Tim Roth and is really well done.

Grantchester is great and because of the 1950s context, any sexual violence is dealt with in a fairly subtle way. The chemistry between James Norton and Robson Green is excellent. As a show, it's much better than the books!

Have you watched Brooklyn 99? DS persuaded us to watch it and it's been fantastic family viewing during lockdown!

White Collar and Brooklyn 99 we have seen - the latter is another I regularly find him rewatching.

I’ll check these out, some great suggestions.

Hidden is excellent but too dark for the youngest two - not much sex or swearing, but definitely grownup themes which may unsettle them (or not hold their attention!). I would recommend it for you and the oldest DC though. Very clever drama.

Father brown

Shetland might be a bit grown-up for them (Although it's excellent).
I think Grantchester is a good shout. Unfortunately it gets less good as it goes on (IMO) but the first few series are very good.

Republic of Doyle on Netflix - cheesy but very watchable detective/crime/comedy set in Newfoundland

I second Agatha Raisin, Jonathan Creek and Bletchley Circle. I'd also put a word in for Hamish Macbeth (currently on Prime).

No one mentioned Midsommer Murders?

Cardinal but maybe not for the 9 yo.