'Put Immediately On Your Watch List': 9 Thrillers Like 'The Night Manger' On BBC iPlayer This January
The Night Manager is the show taking over our Sunday nights. With a stellar cast, a gripping plot and beautiful filming locations, it's got it all. But if you're loving the show and looking for something else to keep you going throughout the rest of the week (because who is going out in January?) we've got you covered.
Even better, all of these shows are available on BBC iPlayer, so no extra streaming fees or downloading apps required. Just great, fast-paced, internationally renowned dramas. Guaranteed there'll be one in here you've missed or forgotten about.
From another John Le Carre adaptation to international espionage and high-stakes thrills, here are nine series we think you'll love if you're obsessed with The Night Manager.
'The Little Drummer Girl'
Florence Pugh, Alexander Skarsgard and Michael Shannon star in another Le Carre adaptation that was actually also produced by the same team as The Night Manager. If the starry cast wasn't enough to hook you, the plot surrounds a 'fiery' actress who is pulled into the world of espionage with the promise of the role of a lifetime – twists and turns and double-crossing ensues from there. All six thrilling episodes are available on iPlayer.
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'McMafia'
A continents-crossing thriller featuring the 1%, where no-one knows who to trust, gives this James Norton-led show a similar Night Manager air. Norton plays the son of a Russian mafia boss, who is British born and has a legitimate career. After a series of events tear his life apart, he's slowly drawn into the family business of international crime. All eight episodes are available on iPlayer.
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'Vigil'
The tense feeling of being dragged into a situation and seemingly over your head in the face of a government cover-up is matched in Vigil, two series of which are available now on iPlayer. Suranne Jones is brilliant as DCI Amy Silva, sent on board a submarine to investigate a murder, while her partner (Rose Leslie) tries to piece things together on land. The second series sees Amy flown out to the Middle East to unpick another international drama. Put immediately on your watch list if you somehow missed it.
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'Spooks'
The original BBC spy drama, Spooks began a terrifying 24 years ago in 2002 – and while the tech might not be as smooth, the tense spy drama is still more than a match for The Night Manager. Those who mostly encountered Matthew Macfadyen in Succession will enjoy seeing the star in his breakout role – which also happens to be the workplace where he met now-wife, Keeley Hawes, who also stars in the show. Across its 10 series (all available on BBC iPlayer) you can see a who's who of British acting talent including Nicola Walker, David Oyelowo, Richard Hermitage and Rupert Penry-Jones.
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'MotherFatherSon'
Another star cast fronts this tense drama about the intersection of world politics and the personal. MotherFatherSon stars Richard Gere as Max, a kingmaker and one of the most powerful men on earth thanks to his worldwide media empire. The late, great Helen McCrory plays his estranged wife, with whom he had son Caden, a troubled character who is aiming to show his father that he can follow in his footsteps. As the BBC description says, 'when Caden’s self-destructive lifestyle spirals out of control, the devastating consequences threaten the future of the family, its empire, and a country on the brink of change.' All eight episodes of the stellar drama are on BBC iPlayer now.
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'Nine Bodies In A Mexican Morgue'
You might have missed this slick Anthony Horowitz-created thriller when it arrived on BBC iPlayer at the end of 2025, but if you love The Night Manager's quick, pacy action, this one is for you. 'A plane carrying a small group of passengers, crew and pilot, crashes in the Mexican jungle,' says the official plot description. 'All the bodies are recovered and placed in a morgue…but it turns out that only one of them died in the crash. The other passengers were murdered afterwards, each one in a unique way. But by whom? And why?' That's a hook...
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'Informer'
Nabhaan Rizwan, Paddy Considine and Bel Powley lead this great thriller about a more domestic-centred informant, which will have you completely gripped as you try to follow it. It was underrated and didn't receive a deserving second series, but it's definitely worth your time. Rizwan plays Raza, 'a young second-generation British-Pakistani man from London who is coerced by Gabe, a counterterrorism officer, into informing.' A sleeper hit you might've missed entirely.
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'The Tourist'
To quote the perfect tagline for The Tourist, 'What he doesn't know, could kill him'. This thriller drama sees Jamie Dornan wake up from a crash in the Australian outback with no memory and absolutely no idea where to turn – as he finds himself fighting for survival thanks to something he did in his life pre-amnesia... Lighter than The Night Manager, but no less thrilling, two series are now available on BBC iPlayer.
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'Boiling Point'
If you tune into The Night Manager for the adrenaline hit, then you need to check out Boiling Point. The four-part series is a follow-up to the film of the same name which starred Stephen Graham (who also stars in this show) following a cast of characters negotiating the heat of the kitchen and trying not to crack. It's all available on iPlayer now.
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