From plots that are the stuff of nightmares to truly spine-chilling twists, there’s nothing quite like a psychological thriller to get under your skin. If you’re in the mood for a series of exactly that nature, then good news, as the BBC has you covered. And we’ve done the "hard" work of watching virtually all of them (spoiler: they’re all first-rate) to bring you the most edge-of-your-seat picks.
For starters there’s Keeley Hawes’ genuinely astonishing performance as a mother whose reunion with her missing daughter doesn’t exactly go to plan in The Missing, plus The One That Got Away, about the mysterious murder of a Welsh nurse, and The Intruder, which’ll make you think twice about getting help around the house! So, cancel your social plans, and enjoy the 10 best psychological thrillers to watch now on the BBC.
The Guest
The Guest is the workplace psychological thriller to rival Severance. And it has one brilliant thing Severance doesn’t, which is a showstopper performance from Eve Myles. She plays the beguiling, wealthy businesswoman, Fran, who gives young homeless woman, Ria (Gabrielle Creevy), a promising opportunity. She employs Ria as her cleaner, with a stable generous wage and luxury accommodation. But as Ria becomes better acquainted with her new boss, she discovers there’s a sinister motivation behind her employment. The Guest is available to watch now on BBC iPlayer.
The Cry
In The Cry, we meet couple, Joanna (Jenna Coleman) and Alistair (Ewen Leslie), and their baby son, Noah (Noah Rennie), who are facing a family crisis. But little do they know it’s about to get much, much worse. Joanna and Noah are accompanying Alistair on a flight to Australia, where he’s going to fight his ex-wife for custody of their teenage daughter, when an unthinkable disaster strikes. Shortly after landing in Melbourne, Noah goes missing without a trace. As a broken Joanna and Alistair desperately try to find him, suspicion starts turning on them. Truly the stuff of nightmares. The Cry is available to watch now on BBC iPlayer.
The Missing
A global sensation when it first aired, The Missing was nominated for Golden Globe awards and Emmy awards, to name a few accolades. So, if you’re looking for a world-class psychological thriller, The Missing is just the ticket. The first series follows the disappearance of young boy, Oliver Hughes, and the search by his father, Tony (James Nesbitt), to find him. Meanwhile, the second series, which stars Keeley Hawes, explores what happens when a missing person suddenly returns home to their family after more than a decade. The Missing is available to watch now on BBC iPlayer.
Doctor Foster
Now couldn’t be a better time to catch up on (or rewatch) Doctor Foster, as the series is finally returning for a third run after nine years. If you’re unfamiliar with the story, it centres around GP Dr Gemma Foster (Suranne Jones), whose marriage falls apart after she learns that her husband, Simon (Bertie Carvel), is having an affair with the much younger Kate (Jodie Comer). But Dr Foster isn’t the only casualty of her husband’s indiscretions, as their teenage son, Tom (Tom Taylor), flees the family home in despair and goes missing. Doctor Foster is available to watch now on BBC iPlayer.
Thirteen
Before Killing Eve made her a household name, Jodie Comer proved she was a star-in-the-making in gripping psychological thriller, Thirteen. She delivers an astonishing performance as 26-year-old Ivy Moxam, who finally escapes her captor after being held in a cellar for more than a decade. Yet, when she returns home, Ivy finds that piecing back together the version of family life that existed before is no easy task. That’s muddled even further when inconsistencies about her kidnapping ordeal start to ring alarm bells with the investigating officers. Thirteen is available to watch now on BBC iPlayer.
The Intruder
Few things are as horrifying as letting someone into your home who you’re not quite sure about – and The Intruder is the series that explores that very idea. A true babysitting nightmare, the psychological thriller revolves around a mother, Paula (Mélanie Doutey), who’s given a new lease of life thanks to her seemingly angelic au pair, Tess (Lucie Fagedet). That is, until, things to start to unravel. Soon, Paula feels a sense of unease as a string of strange domestic accidents make her look like a bad mother. Is Tess behind all this? And, if so, why does she want to harm Paula’s children? The Intruder is available to watch now on BBC iPlayer.
The Fall
An oldie but a goodie, The Fall introduces us to DSI Stella Gibson’s (Gillian Anderson) who's investigating a serial killer preying on women in Belfast. What’s particularly striking is that the serial killer in question doesn’t quite fit the usual profile. Instead, Paul Spector (Jamie Dornan) is a well-regarded married man and father, holding down a good job. As DSI Gibson edges closer to her culprit, who’s unusually smart and deceiving, a dark cat and mouse game ensues. The question is: will she ever be able to outsmart him? The Fall is available to watch now on BBC iPlayer.
Keeping Faith
You can’t go wrong with an Eve Myles drama, so binge-watching her psychological thriller, Keeping Faith, is a no-brainer. In the first series, she plays Faith Howells, a solicitor on maternity leave at a family-run law firm, whose life is upended when her husband, Evan (Bradley Freegard), mysteriously vanishes. As she pieces together what happened, she discovers that Evan isn’t the man she thought he was. Later series follow the fallout from Evan’s disappearance, as well as Faith’s return to work. She’s certainly not eased back in gently, as her first case is defending a local woman accused of murder. Keeping Faith is available to watch now on BBC iPlayer.
The One That Got Away
A deliciously dark and atmospheric psychological thriller, The One That Got Away revoles around the investigation into a nurse’s murder in a Welsh coastal town. Finding out who is responsible for the crime is DI Ffion Lloyd (Elen Rhys) and her ex-lover DS Rick Walters (Richard Harrington) – which is certainly not an ideal pairing. And that’s not all, as the murder opens old wounds in the small-town community, throwing a historic conviction into doubt and raising the horrifying prospect of a copycat killer. The One That Got Away is available to watch now on BBC iPlayer.
The Ridge
How far would you go for your family? That’s the chilling premise at the heart of The Ridge, which sees Mia (Lauren Lyle) travel to New Zealand for her estranged sister, Cassy’s (Connor Amor-Bendall), wedding. But, when she lands, she learns the devastating news that Cassy has been found dead while hiking. Mia isn’t buying the cause-of-death, suspecting someone close to Cassy has killed her. Despite hostility from the locals and pushback from the police, Mia decides to take matters into her own hands, even though it puts her own life in serious danger. The Ridge is available to watch now on BBC iPlayer.