How many times have you rewatched Fleabag? We thought rewatching the first season obsessively after it premiered would be a one-time thing and then “hot priest” came along last year and we’ve been spiraling ever since. Pheobe Waller-Bridge deserves obsession. Her smart, biting, and at times, very sad comedy series are so special because they manage to exploit our discomfort to avoid dealing with an underlying truth that’s waiting to bodyslam us in the finale. The result is deeply cathartic. Sigh.
If you’re looking for other British TV shows to fill the void left by Fleabag, we’ve got news for you: there’s nothing else like it. Waller-Bridge managed to capture lightning in a bottle (twice). However, there are plenty of excellent British comedies that will help. Dry humor, weird slang, and plenty of self-deprecation are yours for the taking! Here are 7 British comedies streaming now that we think Fleabag fans will love.
Lovesick – Netflix
If cringeworthy sex comedies are your thing, Lovesick is going to be your newest obsession. When the show was first released it was called Scrotal Recall, so that should tell you pretty much all you need to know.
The show follows Dylan as he tries to get back in touch with anyone he’s ever had sex with to tell them that he’s been diagnosed with an STD. While the show is mostly silly, Dylan’s relationship with his friend Evie is equal parts agony and ecstasy to watch! There are two seasons of the show available on Netflix.
Flowers – Netflix
Olivia Colman (Godmother in Fleabag) stars in this bleak comedy which should be motivation enough for any Fleabag fan to give it a shot. The series is about the Flowers family whose eccentric members attempt to cling on to a sense to normalcy as their lives seemingly begin to dissolve. With a touch of Wes Anderson aesthetic, this very strange and funny show sneaks up on you. Two seasons of all the Flowers’ madness are streaming on Netflix.
Crashing – Netflix
Two years before Waller-Bridge gave us Fleabag, she wrote and starred in the ensemble comedy series Crashing. While the show doesn’t mine the depths like Fleabag, it does offer plenty of laughs and features Waller-Bridge as Lulu, a character who can’t be honest with herself or the person she cares deeply about. So, sort of on-brand. Along with Lulu, the other colorful characters who crash in a disused hospital have plenty of quirks of their own. If you haven’t tried this one yet, the time is now. The one and only season of this show is streaming on Netflix.
Can’t Cope, Won’t Cope – Netflix
While this show technically hails from the Republic of Ireland, we thought it wouldn’t be too far of a stretch. Can’t Cope, Won’t Cope tells the story of two co-dependent friends, Aisling and Danielle who party very, very hard together. While their exploits are funny at first, it becomes clear that the besties aren’t going to maintain their shared lifestyle forever. As they both begin to learn and grow, their paths begin to diverge. From hilarious to heartbreaking, the show runs the gamut. Its star, Seána Kerslake is everything. Two seasons of this show are available to stream on Netflix.
Sex Education – Netflix
We’ve written about Sex Education before and one of the most endearing things about this comedy is that it puts young adults and adults in the same boat. No one can seem to determine what they want most or who they truly want to fall in love with. While she begins as a romp about teenagers and sex it matures into a show that really challenges its characters to grow outside of the framing they’ve constructed for themselves. Two seasons of the show are streaming on Netflix.
Crazyhead – Netflix
Well, we were excited to tell you about Michaela Coel‘s comedy series, Chewing Gum but it is no longer streaming on Netflix which is a shame! If you happened to see the delightful series, you were undoubtedly impressed by Susana Wokoma who Coel cast in the show as her character’s sister.
Wokoma plays the lead in the offbeat series, Crazyhead who has the ability to see… demons. Yes, we know this sounds like a frivolous premise but Wokoma absolutely sells it. She along with Cleo Theobold play unlikely friends who team up to battle the forces of darkness and it’s as ridiculous and funny as you’d expect. Crazyhead is streaming on Netflix now.
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The Bisexual – Hulu
Written by and starring Desiree Akhavan, The Bisexual tells the story of Leila who breaks up with her longterm girlfriend. The break leaves Leila feeling unmoored and leads her to experiment with having a straight relationship. Awkward, hilarious, and very much in the vein of Fleabag, this dramedy will make you feel all the feels. There is only one season of the show and you can find it streaming on Hulu.
While no other show will ever take the place of Fleabag, we hope these British comedy series inspire you to try something new.
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