Sex Education

Find seasons 1 & 2 on Netflix

Besides impeccable performances from Emma Mackey and Gillian Anderson, among others, it’s created by Laurie Nunn. Laurie says she almost retrained before Sex Education happened because she hadn’t had the breaks – thank goodness she didn’t.

Discover more shows like Sex Education here

GLOW

Find seasons 1-3 on Netflix

GLOW is very female-driven, both in narrative terms and the work in front of and behind the cameras. Alison Brie stars, Liz Flahive and Carly Mensch created it, and the writing is largely done by women too. As for those amazing costumes, take a bow, Beth Morgan.

Russian Doll

Find season 1 on Netflix

Created by Natasha Lyonne, Amy Poehler and Leslye Headland, which is a hell of a creative line-up. Lyonne plays Nadia, a woman who keeps dying and returning to her birthday party at exactly the same point. Season 2 is on its way too.

Cheer

Find season 1 on Netflix 

Arguably the most talked-about show of 2020, Cheer doesn’t focus solely on female cheerleaders. But the strong female role models and their inspirational stories makes this a worthy inclusion. And can we talk exclusively about coach Monica Aldama for the next hour, please…?

Discover even more great documentaries on Netflix here

Orange Is The New Black

Find seasons 1-7 on Netflix

What more can be said about the multi-award-winning OITNB, created by Jenji Kohan? Brave and bold female stories based on Piper Kerman’s memoir about her experience in a women’s prison.

Top Of The Lake

Find seasons 1 & 2 on Netflix

This acclaimed mystery drama starring Elizbeth Moss (who Vulture dubbed the “Queen of Peak TV”) was co-created, written and directed by Jane Campion. Maddeningly, she is one of only five women ever nominated for the Best Director Oscar, for The Piano, back in 1993.

Parks & Recreation

Find seasons 1-7 in Apps & Games > Prime Video

We could all be a little bit more Leslie Knope, played in iconic fashion by Amy Poehler for seven glorious seasons. Strong, passionate, funny, vulnerable and addicted to waffles. If there was any justice in the world, she’d currently be President of the United States.

Transparent

Find seasons 1-5 in Apps & Games > Prime Video

Created by Jill Soloway, this show told the story of a transgender woman in a way that had never been seen on screen before. Inspired by Soloway’s own parent who transitioned, Transparent has racked up an incredible number of awards, and rightly so.

Catastrophe

Find seasons 1-4 in Apps & Games > Prime Video

Sharon Horgan. Where does she get the time? Catastrophe, which she co-created and co-stars in alongside Rob Delaney, is a bluntly honest (and hilarious) look at modern love. Speaking of Modern Love, Horgan wrote the brilliant Anne Hathaway episode of that series, also on Prime Video.

Read our interview with Sharon Horgan and Aisling Bea for This Way Up here

The Marvelous Mrs Maisel

Find seasons 1-3 in Apps & Games > Prime Video

Starring Rachel Brosnahan and created by Amy Sherman-Palladino, the show about a female stand-up comedian in the 1950s has been a printing press for plaudits. Sherman-Palladino, of course, also created a little show called Gilmore Girls.

London Irish

Find series 1 in Apps & Games > Prime Video

Derry Girls is a natural choice for this list – created by Lisa McGee, and all about four teenage girls (and a wee English lad) during the end of The Troubles in Northern Ireland. But McGee’s first sitcom, London Irish, about four 20-somethings from Belfast finding their way in the Big Smoke, remains a hidden gem of a show with excellent swearing.

Read our exclusive interview with the Derry Girls here

Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Find seasons 1-7 in Apps & Games > Prime Video

It’s hard to appreciate now just how groundbreaking this show was in its representation of women on screen, and how much it inspired a raft of shows with strong women in the lead roles. So much telly (and so many actors) stand on the shoulders of Sarah Michelle Gellar, Alyson Hannigan and co.

Fleabag

Find series 1 & 2 in Catch Up > Channels > BBC iPlayer

So, there’s this little show you might have heard of and… OK, we’re probably preaching to the converted (although we’d rather have Andrew Scott’s Hot Priest preaching to us). Spoiler alert: the all-conquering queen of British telly Phoebe Waller-Bridge features more than once in this list.

Back To Life

Find series 1 in Catch Up > Channels > BBC iPlayer

When Laura Solon and Daisy Haggard’s comedy drama about Miri Matteson (Haggard) returning home after 18 years in prison arrived, everyone wanted to pigeonhole it – like most female-led shows – as the new Fleabag. But it’s very much its own thing, and it’s wonderful.

Killing Eve

Find series 1 & 2 in Catch Up > Channels > BBC iPlayer

Told you PWB would be back. This cat-and-mouse spy thriller blew everyone away when it arrived in 2018. Alongside its female showrunners, executive producers and writers, Sandra Oh (Eve) and Jodie Comer (Villanelle) put a female spin on the typical male spy genre.

Read more about the second series of Killing Eve here

Call The Midwife

Find series 1-9 in Catch Up > Channels > BBC iPlayer

Created by Heidi Thomas and based on the memoirs of Jennifer Worth, we can’t oversell what a female-dominated show this is. From the directors to the writers to the executive producers, and the many, many midwives over nine series – all of them accepted that call.

This Country

Find series 1 & 2 in Catch Up > Channels > BBC iPlayer, with series 3 episodes added every Monday

Co-created and co-starring Daisy-May Cooper alongside her brother Charlie, this is a very different woman’s story, one of rural life, of a lack of opportunity and… well, mostly, it’s just very, very funny. There’s no need to overthink it – something Kerry and Kurtan have never been accused of.

Find out more about This Country and an interview with Daisy-May and Charlie Cooper here

Gentleman Jack

Find series 1 in Catch Up > Channels > BBC iPlayer

One of the most talked-about shows last year, from Happy Valley creator Sally Wainwright (who wrote the whole thing and directed four of eight episodes). Suranne Jones and Sophie Rundle star as a couple who embark on a lesbian relationship in the 1800s.

How to watch Netflix with Virgin TV

If you have a TiVo^® box or Virgin TV V6 box, powered by TiVo^®:

Press home on your remote

Select Apps & Games

Select All Apps 

Select Netflix

If you’re already a Netflix subscriber, you can also access the app through Search & Discover or by pressing Red on channel 204. Just sign in with your existing login and start watching. And you’ll only have to log in the first time you use it. 

If you’re new to Netflix, then you’ll need to subscribe to use the app. The easiest way to do this is by going to netflix.com/virginmedia. You can also subscribe using the Netflix app in Apps & Games.

How to watch Amazon Prime Video with Virgin TV

Prime Video is available to all Virgin TV customers with a V6 box, powered by TiVo^®. Simply sign up to Amazon Prime Video via their website, and you can log in on the box. And because Prime Video is fully integrated into TiVo^®, you can search without even going into the app. Just select Search & Discover from the Home menu and type in the name of the show or movie you’re after.