The best comedy series on Netflix, Amazon Prime, and BBC iPlayer

When we're feeling down or just need to switch off and watch something lighthearted and easy, then comedy TV series are pretty much everyone's go-to. With short episodes packed with gags and laughs, as well as being criminally underrated in their exploration of realistic relationships and the human condition, comedy Tv is poignant and easy-going fun that is unrivalled by any other genre.

However, we are well aware of the tunnel vision people can get into with these shows, endlessly rewatching the same show over and over again (and don't get us wrong we are victims of this too) to the point where it becomes their comfort blanket. Whilst we all need our comfort blanket show for hard times, we wanted to put together a list of all of our favourite comedy shows, currently streaming on Netflix, Amazon Prime, and BBC iPlayer, that may just give you something new to wrap up, easily enjoy, and hopefully, let out a few giggles too.

So scroll down, prime your watchlists, and give some of these shows ago, we're sure you'll have heard of, and probably watched, quite a few, but if you haven't, then every single one is worth your time, and also damn right hilarious!

 

 

The Office (US) 

Where to watch: Netflix and Amazon Prime

An absolute classic of the genre, and a remake of the UK Office by Ricky Gervais (that at the very least rivals if not slightly pips it in quality depending on who you ask), The US Office is a comedy mockumentary that sees Micheal Scott,  regional manager of the Dunder Mifflin Scranton Branch, a paper company, take on the trials and tribulations of everyday office life in the US alongside its ensemble cast that features Rainn Wilson as Dwight Schrute, John Krasinski portrays Jim Halpert, and Jenna Fischer as Pam, amongst many others.

the show plays out in a cacophony of painfully awkward and relatable hilarious ways, with the way in which Micheal Scott runs his branch becoming more and more silly and eccentric. From incredible relationship drama to chaotic beetroot farming to searing on-the-line commentary on the social issues of the day, The office is one fo the funniest sitcoms to ever exist, and whilst we know most of you will have watched it, we think this is a good opportunity to give it another run through. But if you haven't seen it, what are you doing? get on Netflix or Prime asap. Just be warned, once you start its nearly impossible to stop.

 

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Always Sunny In Philadelphia

Where to watch: Netflix

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia is an American sitcom that took the world by storm, and is now the longest-running sitcom of all time; and for good reason. The show, created by Rob McElhenney and Glenn Howerton, stars the two alongside Charlie Day, Kaitlin Olson and Danny DeVito, as their respective characters Mac, Dennis, Charlie, Dee, and Frank, as the group experience the trials and tribulations of owning a dive bar in South Philadelphia.

There's only one problem. "The Gang" are a group of narcissistic, sociopaths who spend very little time actually running their bar, and instead spend their free time drinking all their own booze, scheming about the next thing that will make them money, or (as it is the case most the time) arguing amongst themselves to no avail. They are the worst people you've ever met and the show is all the better for it, as you watch, in a perpetual state of laughing and cringing, as they tear each other down, and bask in each other stupidity. It's one of the funniest shows to ever hit the telly and one you quite simply have to watch.

 

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Am I Being Unreasonable?

Where to watch: BBC iPlayer

Onto something more recent now, but equally as deserving is BBC's new drama, written by and starring Daisy May Cooper (This Country) is a comedy thriller of magnetic proportions. The show is about Nic (Cooper) who is grieving a loss that she can’t share with anyone and is unfulfilled in her marriage. Her son Ollie (played excellently by Lenny Rush, whose deadpan delivery makes this show as funny as it is) is a shining light in her life, but a new friendship Nic makes with Jen, who arrives in her small town, causes all the dark secrets to bubble up.

It's quite dark for a comedy, but the moments of levity make this an endlessly human story about grief and secrets and the interactions Between Daisy and Lenny are always side-splitting. If you lie your comedy with more story and focus, instead of the usual sitcom style, then this BBC show is definitely one to check out. 

 

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Fleabag 

Where to watch: Amazon Prime and BBC iPlayer

Where to start with Fleabag. Phoebe Waller Bridges'hilarious, cringe-inducing, fourth-wall-breaking, steamy show about a confused and free-spirited woman making for her way through life in London is as good as British comedy gets. The show is adapted from Waller-Bridge's 2013 Edinburgh Festival Fringe one-woman play of the same name which won a Fringe First Award and is now looking onto its third season.

The show follows Phoebe's character who after the death of her best friend, an event she is partly responsible for, drowns her sorrows in one-night stands and other hedonistic behaviour, whilst her quite horrific family (par her well-meaning but clueless father) haunt her day to day life. It's an acquired taste of humour that is quintessentially British, but if thats your jam, then this is one you have to sink your teeth into. 

 

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Peep Show

Where to watch: Netflix 

One of the most wildly original comedies to hit British Tv screens, Peep Show asked the question as to what's really going on inside the heads of the day-to-day Brit. The show, co-created by David Mitchell and Robert Webb, exposes the private thoughts and feelings of the two characters they each embody, Mark and Jez, who are two twenty-something roommates who have nothing in common - except for a finished outlook on life, and the fact that said lives are anything but normal. Mayhem hilariously ensues as the pair strive to cope with day-to-day life, and you get a front-row seat to all the intrusive thoughts along the way.

It's hilarious, relatable, oh-so British in its humour and an essential watch for any true comedy fan. Watch it if only to see the Christmas Turkey scene, which has respectfully earnt its place in British folklore... It was a joke, a Christmas Joke!

 

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Brooklyn Nine-Nine

Where to watch: Netflix

Ah, Brooklyn Nine-Nine... if a show was ever to embody easy-going comfort and laughs it's this one. Following the exploits of Det. Jake Peralta and his diverse, lovable colleagues as they police the NYPD's 99th Precinct, the show explores the trials and tribulations of the police force as they get a new Captian in Raymond Holt. 

Exploring the world of crime in a way that is never too deep and always lighthearted, with great relationship drama, as well as making some quite excellent commentary on modern life and the social problems we face, Brooklyn Nine-Nine is as popular as it is for a reason, and whilst a lot of that reason is down to the interaction and personalities of its eccentric cast, it's also down to just how silly it can be. Peak American comedy that is endlessly rewatchable and a must-see for all.

 

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People Just Do Nothing

Where to watch: BBC iPlayer

Have you ever wondered what the people who operate underground radio channels get up to in their day-to-day lives? Well, People Just Do Nothing will starch that itch ten-fold. The mockumentary-style sitcom follows the lives of MC Grindah, DJ Beats and their friends, who run Kurupt FM, a pirate radio station broadcasting UK garage and drum and bass music from Brentford in West London.

Born out of a series of online comedy shirts and sketches, the programme is a mish-mash of relationships, music, and a bunch of people whose opinion of themselves far exceeds the talent they actually possess. this makes for interactions and arguments that are hilarious both in their depravity and reliability, as, living in the UK, we've all mat people exactly like this. 

 

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The Office (UK)

Where to watch: BBC iPlayer

Now, we'd be rude to include the US Office and not the original Uk programme it got all its ideas. The comedic child of Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant and the show that made Ricky the renowned comedy writer he is today, The Office follows the day-to-day lives of office employees in the Slough branch of the fictional Wernham Hogg paper company, and of course, their horrifically cring-indicing but embarrassingly relatable boss (played by Ricky) David Brent. 

The comedic centre of the mockumentary-style sitcom stems from Brent, who frequently makes attempts to win favour with his employees and peers with embarrassing or disastrous results. Whilst only airing for a short time, it's incfulence on the comedy genre is wide-spreading and it is ceaselessly hilarious in its own right. A must-watch for any Brit, if only to have conversations with those watching as to who, in your own office, each character reminds you of. 

 

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Inside No. 9

Where to watch: BBC iPlayer

There's little to be said about the enviably brilliant Inside No. 9 that hasn’t already been said. The British dark comedy anthology series, created by Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton has been on our screens for nearly a decade now, and its boundless creativity, which never has limits in both style and substance, is one of the most original things this country has produced, comedy TV-wise.

on the show, there tend to be only two rules: the episode needs to take place inside something that has a number nine on it, and there needs to be a twist. It has produced things from the genuinely scary (Live Halloween special) to the comedy caper (Wuthering Heist) to family drama (Last Night of the Proms) and is more than worth your time. Plus, if you're someone who gets bored easily, its perfect for you, as each episode can be different from the last. Think of a funnier, shorter, less intense Black mirror.

 

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Derry Girls

Where to watch: Netflix

As Derry Girls has just wrapped up filming forever, there has never been a better time to finally give this incredible Irish comedy a go. The series follows Erin, her cousin Orla, their friends Clare, Michelle, and Michelle's English cousin James as they navigate their teenage years during the end of the Troubles in Derry, where they all attend a Catholic girls' secondary school.

The friends frequently find themselves in absurd situations amid the political unrest and cultural divides of the times, and the reactionary comedy to all of this from the cast is what truly makes this show what it is. It's quintessentially Irish, and side-splittingly hilarious at point, whilst also taking frequent steps back for moments of true insight and poignancy. A must watch.

 

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