Need a new TV show for the New Year? Here are the BINGE Guide’s picks for the holidays

These are some of the underrated TV shows which you may have missed that are worth streaming over the holiday break.

With the world housebound for most of 2020, it seems almost improbable that there’s TV shows you haven’t seen this year. But The BINGE Guide team offer our favourite shows that may have missed your TV radar:

THE TWELVE

Streaming, SBS on Demand

FRIE Palmers (Maaike Cafmeyer) is accused of two terrible murders – including the brutal stabbing of her own young daughter. Twelve strangers sit on the jury to decide whether or not Frie is behind these heinous crimes. But are they capable of making an unbiased decision? Is anyone? Like the iconic movie, Twelve Angry Men, this riveting Belgian drama takes us inside the jurors’ room where tempers flare, friendships form and dark secrets emerge. Where this 10-part series departs from the film is that it offers far more insight into the jurors’ personal lives outside the courtroom, leaving you questioning not only Frie’s innocence but theirs as well. – Siobhan Duck

INSECURE

Streaming, Foxtel On Demand

NOT surprisingly, the world went nuts this year for the quirkiest of Emmy-slaying comedies, Schitt’s Creek. But for lockdown laughs and an epic playlist each episode, you can’t go past the musical and magical stylings of Issa Rae, who created and stars in this brilliant dramedy. It was inspired by her web series, Awkward Black Girl and is like the African American take on Sex And The City (minus the ludicrously expensive shoes). These are snappy 30-minute episodes, with four seasons (a total of 34 episodes) primed for you to binge. – Holly Byrnes

Get organised … The Home Edit stars Joanna Teplin and Clea Shearer with Eva Longoria. Picture: Netflix

CRIMINAL UK

Streaming, Netflix

FILMED like a one-act play, each episode takes place in the same claustrophobic

interrogation room as a different suspect is grilled for a crime he or she may have

committed. This stripped-down format is a fresh take on the well-worn police drama

genre that showcases the talents of the very best in the business. Game of Thrones’

hero Kit Harrington is a smarmy executive accused of date rape; David Tenant is a

potentially predatory stepfather; while Sophie Okonedo is married to a convicted

killer. The greatest crime about Criminal UK, however, is that there are only three 30-

minute episodes in each season. Thankfully, there are also French, Spanish and

German versions also available to devour. – Siobhan Duck

THE DUCHESS

Streaming, Netflix

THERE was a really interesting podcast this year (The Imperfects), where Australian comedian Steen Raskopoulos talked about how social media shaming after an awkward TV moment here saw him hit rock bottom. He moved to the UK and this year broke through with this brilliant series, written by and starring Canadian comedian Katherine Ryan (a massive star in the UK, her stand-up shows on Netflix are must-sees). Here she’s a single mum,

Raskopoulous is the dentist boyfriend, who she’s scared to fully let into her life, while her

babydaddy is an ex-boy band member who refuses to grow up. – Cameron Adams

DIFFICULT PEOPLE

Streaming, SBS on Demand

IT’S been tough to find positives in 2020, but this US cult classic finally made it to our TV

screens, three years after it was criminally cancelled. Mariah Carey’s new mate Billy Eichner

(Billy on the Street, Parks and Recreation) stars with creator Julie Klausner. They pretty

much play two of the most repellent characters in recent history, moaning their way

through life in New York trying to make it in showbiz. They’re united by their hatred for

pretty much everyone but themselves. It’s fearless, filthy and effing funny. – Cameron Adams

Laughs … Difficult People stars Billy Eichner and Julie Klausner. Picture: Supplied

THE CIRCLE

Streaming, Netflix

PEAK lockdown was trawling Netflix for anything you hadn’t watched yet that looked

interesting and was a respite from the news. The Circle fit the bill perfectly. First aired in the

UK last year (Fatboy Slim’s son Woody Cook was a contestant), basically it’s Catfish meets Big Brother or Instagram TV. A bunch of people move into a flash apartment block but never

see each other. They communicate only via message and the photos they show to their new

friends – which are often not their own. Everyone then votes who gets to stay. Surely an

Australian version is in the works … it’s influencer clickbait. – Cameron Adams

THE PHARMACIST

Streaming, Netflix

TRUE crime documentary recommendations pinballed around this year. This one has twists you don’t see coming. It starts with a sweet pharmacist in New Orleans, Dan Schneider, whose world is rocked when his son Danny, a crack addict, is murdered. Frustrated with the police, Dan starts doing his own investigation (the tapes are used here) and accidentally uncovers a whole other crime involving healthy people filling prescriptions at his pharmacy for heavy- duty opioids through a shonky doctor set up and eager big Pharma. He shows up the Feds and gives you a scary professional insight into the opioid crisis. – Cameron Adams

Catherine Van-Davies and Anthony Guilbert in a scene from SBS drama Hungry Ghosts. Picture: Sarah Enticknap

HUNGRY GHOSTS

Streaming, SBS on Demand

IT’S the eve of the Hungry Ghost festival – a Buddhist and Taoist spiritual tradition, where the gates of hell are opened, allowing the dead to roam the mortal realm. The tomb of a vengeful ghost, Quang, is accidentally opened in Vietnam and so begins this spectacular SBS series. I’m not usually into the supernatural, but this four-part series was mystery, thriller, romance and drama all rolled into one. Ryan Corr – the token white boy in this historic predominantly Asian cast – laughed when I revealed I didn’t think I’d jumped more watching a TV show than when previewing the first episode. It’s a little bit Harry Potter, as the protagonist May Le (Catherine Van-Davies) must find the three pieces of Quang’s soul, hidden in unknown places, to appease the ghost and restore peace to the community. – Lisa Woolford

THE HOME EDIT

Streaming, Netlfix

ON paper, the idea of watching people rearrange cupboards sounds like the televisual equivalent of watching paint dry or grass grow. But trust me on this one, like the Marie Kondo craze, this lifestyle series – hosted by professional home organisers Clea Shearer and Joanna Teplin – will have you obsessed with repacking the kitchen cabinets and upending your undies drawer. Plus, you get a celebrity fix with stars like Reese Witherspoon and Khloe Kardashian opening their homes up for The Home Edit treatment. – Holly Byrnes

Originally published as Need a new TV show for the New Year? Here are the BINGE Guide’s picks for the holidays