Loved Netflix's The Beast in Me? These free-to-stream British dramas deliver the same vibe
Catch Vicky McClure, Jill Halfpenny and Sam Heughan in these thrillers
The Beast in Me might be Netflix’s latest hot ticket, and if you’re seeking out the same sort of vibe after watching it these free British streamers will not disappoint.
Claire Danes and Matthew Rhys’ psycho-thriller denoument is a 2025 highlight. It’s pure edge-of-your-seat glue and stands a fine chance of sweeping all of next year’s most prestigious TV awards. But once you’ve come to the end, you need something new to feast upon…
Here are six free-to-stream titles made by Channel 4, Channel 5, ITV and BBC that delves into characters’ deep suspicions about others.
The Feud
Originally airing just six months ago, the thrill behind Channel 5’s The Feud ignited when couple Emma and John Barnett decided to add a kitchen extension to their property. This disruptive construction project didn’t go down well with their neighbours, hence the title.
Despite an apparent litany of unforgivable plot clangers, The Feud benefitted from a solid foundation of performances. The husband of Jill Halfpenny’s Emma was played by Rupert Penry-Jones of Spooks fame. Screw’s Jamie-Lee O’Donnell, Emmerdale’s Amy Nuttall, and Gavin & Stacey legend Larry Lamb added some extra spice to the equation.
“Cosy crime is to 5 what global financial chaos is to Donald Trump, and The Feud is an assured weeknight pot-boiler,” read The i Paper’s review.
The Times applauded the series for “cleverly” tapping into “a modern malaise”. Even though it displayed “often shonky dialogue”, The Feud “harnesses the sheer toxicity of neighbour disputes that in real life can escalate”.
Stream all six episodes on Channel 5.
The Guest
Guided by Coldwater’s Eve Myles and Black Doves’ Gabrielle Creevy, The Guest concerned successful businesswoman Fran and her new cleaner, Ria.
In Ria, Fran found a sponge in which to soak her wisdom, but their lives were forever changed thanks to a tragic event they got wrapped up in.
The show was warmly received on the whole, with The Guardian urging viewers to bring popcorn along for the ride. “The Guest is a fast, furious, preposterous thriller of the kind that you can only pull off if everyone involved in its creation and consumption approaches it without an ounce of cynicism,” the review noted.
“[Writer Matthew] Barry, [director Ashley] Way and the high-calibre cast hold up their end of the bargain, delivering bags of propulsive plot.”
Stream all four episodes of The Guest on BBC One.
Platform 7
Now it’s time for a supernatural curveball, yet Platform 7 still maintains that all-important edginess we’re after.
Headlined by Top Boy favourite Jasmine Jobson, she put down the tracksuit hood to haunt a train station in this four-part chiller. As Lisa, she witnessed a man’s suicide and subsequently worked out a huge plot twist regarding herself.
Platform 7 placed coercive control under the microscope as Lisa learned the truth about her ex-boyfriend.
The Standard vouched for the show’s locomotive, purgatorial setting as being “right on the money” for a murder mystery. The Telegraph claimed the script was “at its most powerful” when portraying the way in which “coercive controllers slink their tendrils around even confident young women like Lisa”.
Stream all four episodes on ITVX.
Without Sin
We’d be remiss not to mention a thoroughly welcome reunion within ITV’s Without Sin cast. This was between Vicky McClure and Johnny Harris of the This is England franchise.
But before we get carried away on the Shane Meadows train, let’s dive into why their 2023 collaboration is worth a look if you enjoyed Netflix’s The Beast in Me.
Vicky was Uber driver Stella Tomlinson this time around. Three years after their daughter got killed, Stella and her estranged husband endured a Restorative Justice programme in order to come face to face with the man imprisoned for the crime. All was not what it seemed though…
“No one will love this new Vicky McClure drama, but no one will hate it,” boldly read The Independent’s headline. You definitely won’t hate it.
Stream all four episodes on ITVX.
The Couple Next Door
Channel 4 turned The Couple Next Door into an anthology after its premiere series back in 2023.
Evie and her other half Pete moved in next to Danny and Becka during the first incarnation. What began as a friendship morphed into something forbidden though, with Eva and Danny’s night of passion leading to terrible consequences. That one boasted Outlander’s Sam Heughan, Harry Potter’s Alfred Enoch, Poldark’s Eleanor Tomlinson, and The Artful Dodger’s Jessica De Gouw.
Series 2 of The Couple Next Door followed heart surgeon Charlotte and husband Jacob. They dealt with Mia as both their new colleague and neighbour.
In its review, The Standard even compared it to a modern HBO classic in its expression. “Weird guttural soundscapes and shots of invitingly warm but terribly creepy doorways lend shades of The White Lotus to this conventional thriller set in a cul-de-sac,” it read.
The Rumour
Channel 5’s “enthralling” series The Rumour is a worthy list-ender.
Consisting of five episodes, the story was all about Joanna and the ramifications of her words. She inadvertently birthed a rumour about a convicted child murder living in the community. Cue an almost overwhelming amount of paranoia. Rivals’ Emily Atack and All Creatures Great and Small’s Rachel Shenton brought it to vivid life.
Most of the critical plaudits landed at the former’s feet. The Daily Mail even wanted her character, Debbie, transplanted into BBC sitcom Motherland.
Stream all five episodes on Channel 5.
Read more: The Feud star Jill Halfpenny’s five other unmissable dramas and where to watch them
