Queens, kings, and other schemers—what to look for on PBS in 2025

Ah, PBS—that TV stalwart, maintaining its high-quality, low-cost service even as streaming platforms play hide-and-seek with their libraries. Where else can you readily get a history lesson, stay on top of the news, and indulge in some escapism? PBS’s digital coffers run deep, which is why we’ve put together this look at the most promising series of 2025 (new and returning), which offers a mix of drama and nonfiction. Our personalized recommendations will guide you through the start of the year, and we’ll update this post with interesting debuts every new (meteorological) season. 

Before you dive in, a programming note: You can access these shows on PBS (check your local listings), PBS.org, and the PBS app. Passport members can also stream on demand. 

An Only Murders In The Building stand-in, with a dash of “crumbling empire”: Vienna Blood season four (premiered January 5) 

Although at first glance it looks like a more dude-centric Miss Scarlet And The Duke (now simply titled Miss Scarlet), Vienna Blood shares common ground with shows like Only Murders In The Building, in which a multigenerational team of investigators navigates complicated interpersonal dynamics, past traumas, and wrongful accusations to get to the bottom of things, all while sporting superb outerwear. Inspector Oskar Rheinhardt (Jürgen Maurer) and Freudian psychoanalyst Max Liebermann (Matthew Beard) love taking the wind out of each other’s sails as much as OMITB‘s Oliver and Charles. Clara Weiss (Luise von Finckh), who’s now a reporter (which is kind of like a podcast producer—right, Mabel?), has to decide where she and Max stand, both as a couple and as investigative partners. Of course, the backdrop to their investigations, especially in season four, is a tad more fraught than 2020s New York. When the new season begins, the team must reunite to stop “Mephisto,” a shadowy group intent on destroying the Austro-Hungarian Empire. [Danette Chavez]

A plucky female detective takes on Victorian-era mysteries: Miss Scarlet season five (Masterpiece on PBS, January 7)

When Miss Scarlet And The Duke hit the airwaves, romance fans immediately perked up at the prospect of a grumpy/sunshine childhood friends-to-lovers arc between two Victorian-era detectives. The show served a pleasurable slow burn (and plenty of mysteries) over the course of four seasons, but the fifth season will mark a new era for the project. The Duke is out, and Miss Eliza Scarlet (Kate Phillips) has a new Detective Inspector to deal with in the form of Alexander Blake (Tom Durant Pritchard). This might rattle some loyal fans who signed up for the aforementioned slow burn, but it’s also a good place for new ones to hop on, as it’s a reset for the series: Eliza once again has to find a foothold in Scotland Yard while navigating the difficulty of being a female private detective. Plus, there’s all the requisite murder and mayhem and, yeah, maybe a bit of romance, too. [Mary Kate Carr]

Your next royal family to obsess over: Sisi: Austrian Empress season three (January 17) 

There were the Windsors of The Crown, the Hanovers of Victoria, the Tudors of The Tudors…wait, aren’t there royal families outside of England? Of course, just hop on over to Austria and hang out with the Habsburgs for a while. Much like The Crown or Victoria (or Starz’s Princess adaptations), this series focuses on the perspective of the royal family’s budding matriarch. In this case, it’s Empress Elisabeth, a.k.a. Sisi. The first two seasons of this lush, German-language period piece followed Sisi through the ups and downs of her marriage as she adjusted to life as a ruler. And the upcoming third season promises to focus on the journey of motherhood. The show has plenty of interpersonal conflict, romance, gorgeous costumes, and high stakes, with Sisi’s time as Empress setting the stage for World War I. [Mary Kate Carr]

A successor to Midge Maisel across the pond: Funny Woman season two (February 2) 

If you’ve been missing The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel‘s blend of comedy, drama, and feminist sensibility, Funny Woman is your obvious next binge. Based on the novel Funny Girl by Nick Hornby, the first season followed Barbara Parker (Gemma Arterton) as she quickly became disenchanted with life as a small-town beauty queen and moved to London to try to hack it as a comic actor. While that batch tracked her ascent, in the second season she’s fully transformed into Sophie Straw, sitcom star. Like Midge Maisel before her, Sophie will have to balance the highs and lows of an entertainment career with tumult in her personal life. Set against the backdrop of the swinging ’60s, the show offers a taste of industry glamor alongside the characters’ political and feminist radicalizations. Plus, those vintage looks are to die for. Like Midge, Sophie is a bona fide fashion icon. [Mary Kate Carr]

A documentary that sees collective action in action: Independent Lens: The Strike (February 3) 

This doc by JoeBill Muñoz and Lucas Guilkey finds inspiration for community organizing in an unlikely place: Pelican Bay State Prison, infamous for subjecting incarcerated people to decadeslong periods of solitary confinement, which was all in accordance with California law. That dismaying statistic is hardly surprising, as for years California had more people in solitary confinement and for lengthier spans than any other state. But in 2013, nearly 30,000 prisoners went on a hunger strike to protest the inhumane conditions of the Security Housing Unit. The Strike tells the history of this collective action through interviews with the inmates of Pelican Bay’s SHU, painting a picture of reform from deep within the criminal legal system. [Danette Chavez]

A real-life historical mystery with far-reaching consequences: Secrets Of The Dead: Plunderer (February 19)

Nonfiction fans may already have Secrets Of The Dead on their radar. The long-running show’s latest installment, Plunderer, takes on another real-life mystery from history with ramifications that reverberate to this day. Historians estimate that leading up to the end of World War II, Nazis stole one-fifth of all artworks in Europe. Many of them were then sold in secret dealings, making Nazis like Bruno Lohse (the titular Plunderer) rich. Airing over two parts (which premiere on February 19 and February 26), the project underlines the consequences of dictatorship and culture wars that perhaps haven’t been explored as thoroughly as other aspects of the conflict (as evidenced by the fact that many countries still have art that was looted by Nazis). [Mary Kate Carr]

A lush historical drama that hits close to home: Wolf Hall: The Mirror And The Light (Masterpiece on PBS, March 23) 

A capricious ruler and a scheming outsider who’s amassed significant political power could be the subjects of any of today’s headlines. But in this case, they describe the two key players in Wolf Hall follow-up The Mirror And The Light. Mark Rylance is back as Thomas Cromwell, who scaled heights previously unseen by a commoner in Tudor England to become the architect of the English Reformation. But when we last saw him, Cromwell was already falling out of the king’s favor (a reminder to never set up anyone on a date, let alone a marriage). Based on the final book in Hilary Mantel’s trilogy, The Mirror And The Light captures Cromwell’s downfall, as he realizes how few allies he has left and wonders how much influence he ever held over Henry VIII (Damian Lewis, fully embracing the role of the vicious voluptuary). Even if you know how this story ends—and, if you enjoy watching as much PBS as we do, you probably do—this gorgeously produced biodrama is worth the watch. [Danette Chavez]

A cozy period drama that faces modernity head-on: Call The Midwife season 14 (March) 

Like the dedicated workers at its core, Heidi Thomas’ Call The Midwife has been chugging along for years, providing a charming yet complex look at solidarity among women—what fortifies it and what threatens it. The series’ sprawling story began in the late 1950s, and season 14 enters the 1970s, with Nonnatus House and its employees under attack for their mix of progressive and traditional views. Call The Midwife has been moving inexorably toward this confrontation. And though it’s certainly earned its “cozy” descriptor, the series has always been cognizant of the oppressive atmosphere surrounding the Nonnatus nuns. But they’re not going down easily. To quote Sister Julienne: “We are going to fight back with every weapon at our disposal.” Consider pairing this with The Strike for a double dose of grassroots organizing. [Danette Chavez]

Other notable premieres

All Creatures Great And Small season five (January 12)

Nova, “What Are UFOs?” (January 22) 

Jacqueline Du Pre: Genius And Tragedy (January 24)

Great Migrations: A People On The Move (January 28)

Walter Presents: Velvet season two (January 31)

Independent Lens, “The In Between” (February 10)

Nova, “Egypt’s Tombs Of Amun” (February 12)

Nature, “Museum Alive With David Attenborough”; Nova, “Pompeii’s Secret Underworld” (February 19)

American Masters, “The Disappearance Of Miss Scott” (February 21)

American Experience, “The NAACP And Its Architects” (w.t.) (February 25)

Walter Presents: Murder In Sweden season four (March 14)

Great Performances At The Met: Grounded (March 21)