Here at The Silver Petticoat Review, we love period dramas – especially the romantic ones! One of the most common questions readers ask us is what specific period dramas we recommend for them! So, we thought it would be fun to put together a quiz that will help you know what period drama to watch next!
We came up with specific questions to lead you to your particular mood (so feel free to take the quiz as many times as you want since it’s dependent on your current mood)! Based on your answers, we can sort you into more than a dozen possibilities of results – ultimately leading you to the type of period drama you’re looking to watch.
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Within each result is a list of personal recommendations of period dramas!
So, take the quiz and find out for yourself what type of period drama you should watch next. Let us know what you get. Enjoy!
WHAT PERIOD DRAMA TO WATCH NEXT? TAKE OUR NEW QUIZ
In the period drama quiz, there are nineteen possible results:
A Nostalgic Period Drama
You are in the mood to watch something nostalgic. You want to watch a movie or series that makes you feel warm and safe inside, from classic period dramas to sentimental period films!
A nostalgic period drama has just the right amount of comfort you crave.
Try the ‘80s adaptation of Anne of Green Gables, its spinoff series Road to Avonlea, or the 1995 adaptation of Pride and Prejudice. If a movie is more your speed, try A Room with a View starring Helena Bonham Carter or the 1994 adaptation of Little Women.
Other ideas include Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman, Sense and Sensibility (1995), Ever After, The Secret Garden (1993), or even The Sound of Music!
Watch Jane Austen
Do you love wit, romance, the Regency era, and everything Jane Austen? Well, you’re in the mood to watch a Jane Austen movie or show.
Choose from Pride and Prejudice (1995 & 2005), Emma (1996, 2009, & 2020), Mansfield Park (1999), Sense & Sensibility (1995 & 2008), Northanger Abbey (2007), Persuasion (1995 & 2007), Love & Friendship, and Sanditon.
If you want to watch a period drama about Jane Austen, check out Becoming Jane (2007) or Miss Austen Regrets (2007).
A New Period Drama
Are you tired of watching your favorite period dramas on repeat? Do you enjoy the look and high production quality of newer movies and TV shows?
Well, a newer period drama will give you the entertainment you’re craving. Try All Creatures Great and Small (the new fabulous remake!) or The Pursuit of Love starring Lily James.
Other ideas include Bridgerton (TV-MA), The Electrical Life of Louis Wain (premiering in October 2021), The Long Song, Atlantic Crossing, The Dig, Miss Scarlet and the Duke, News of the World, Summerland, The Vineyard, Silver Skates, The Last Letter From Your Lover, The Cook of Castamar (TV-MA), The Wonder Years (remake), Jungle Cruise, or Respect.
Keep your eyes peeled for these new period dramas coming soon: Around the World in 80 Days (starring David Tennant!), The Gilded Age, The Larkins, and Leonardo (no release date in the US confirmed yet).
A Foreign Historical Drama
Are you in the mood for something other than a British or American period drama?
Try watching a Foreign Period Drama as you might be surprised by how much you love the genre while also embracing a culture different from your own.
Rookie Historian Goo Hae-ryung is an excellent example of a swoony and romantic foreign period drama from South Korea. You could also consider Empress Ki, My Sassy Girl, Scholar Who Walks the Night, and Scarlet Heart Ryeo.
Other must-see foreign period dramas include Grand Hotel, Life is Beautiful, Cinema Paradiso, Raise the Red Lantern, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Cyrano De Bergerac, Populaire, and Kurt Seyit ve Sura.
An Underrated Period Drama
Do you enjoy movies and TV shows other people haven’t seen? Do you like to take the road less traveled?
It sounds like the next period drama you should watch should be an underrated one.
Try the Australian period drama series A Place to Call Home! It is fabulous.
Other ones to try: The Inheritance (1997), The Sally Lockhart Mysteries, Middlemarch, The Abduction Club, Jamaica Inn, Effie Gray, The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, Far From the Madding Crowd, Possession, The Magic of Ordinary Days, Mr. Sunshine, Sylvie’s Love, The Testament of Youth, Horatio Hornblower, My Brilliant Career, I Capture the Castle, Ballet Shoes, Under the Greenwood Tree, or even Anna Karenina starring Santiago Cabrera.
A British Period Drama
The British period drama genre is known for exceptional scripts, authenticity, swoony romantic moments, lavish costumes, fabulous actors, and more! And that’s exactly what you’re in the mood to watch.
Try old favorites like North and South (2004), Pride and Prejudice, Poldark, or Downton Abbey.
Other great choices include Call the Midwife, Lark Rise to Candleford, Emma (2009), Bleak House, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, Belle, Belgravia, Jane Eyre (1983, 2006, and 2011), David Copperfield (1999), The Paradise, Daniel Deronda, Les Miserables (2018), or Wives and Daughters.
A Romantic Period Drama
Is that love in the air? You’re in the mood to watch a Romantic Period Drama!
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Try watching Downton Abbey, Poldark, Bridgerton (TV-MA), any Jane Austen adaptation like Persuasion (1995 & 2007) or Pride and Prejudice (1995 & 2005), and North & South (2004). Then there’s Titanic, Outlander (TV-MA), Becoming Jane, Little Dorrit, Victoria, The Young Victoria, A United Kingdom, The Importance of Being Earnest, Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, Loving, Grand Hotel, Velvet…to name a few.
A Drama Based on a True Story
Do you read about history for fun? Do you enjoy historical dramas about real people?
It sounds like watching a period drama based on a true story is right up your alley. This genre is dense with accurate settings and details right down to the number of snaps on a petticoat… and that’s the way you like it.
Of course, there are also some less-accurate period dramas based on true stories, and they’re fun to watch too!
Try watching Belle, Call the Midwife, Amazing Grace, The Crown, Selma, The King’s Speech (R), Lincoln, The Aviator, The Last Emperor, Lark Rise to Candleford, Wolf Hall, Miss Austen Regrets, Loving, Mary Shelley, Anna and the King, Effie Gray, The English Game, Gentleman Jack (TV-MA), Hidden Figures, Mr. Selfridge, or Atlantic Crossing.
A Period Drama Based on a Book
Are you a book lover? Do you enjoy watching adaptations of your favorite books? Do you not always have time to devote to reading, but a book adaptation keeps pace with your busy lifestyle?
Well, it looks like you’re in the mood to watch a period drama based on a book. From classics to newer novels, you love them all!
Start with the classics: Jane Austen adaptations, Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights, Anne of Green Gables, North & South, The Scarlet Pimpernel, Vanity Fair, Howards End, The Last of the Mohicans (Rated R), Our Mutual Friend, The Way We Live Now, or The Age of Innocence.
Or maybe you’d rather watch a period drama based on a newer book. There is Guernsey, Bridgerton (TV-MA), Atonement (Rated R), The Book Thief, Memoirs of a Geisha, Death Comes to Pemberley, The Princess Bride, Cold Mountain (Rated R), etc.
A Diverse Period Drama
Are you tired of not seeing enough well-deserved period dramas with diverse casts? Well, we’ve got you covered!
Sure, there aren’t nearly enough, but diverse period dramas are finally becoming more common. And it’s about time.
Try Bridgerton (TV-MA) or Sanditon first. Then check out Call the Midwife, Anne with an E, Much Ado About Nothing (1993), As You Like It (2006), Belle, A United Kingdom, Sylvie’s Love, Loving, Oliver Twist (2007), Les Miserables (2018), Hamilton, The Personal History of David Copperfield, The Wonder Years (2021), The Frankie Drake Mysteries, Little Dorrit, Beecham House, to get started.
A Lighthearted and Fun Period Drama
Are you craving something fun and entertaining to watch? From blockbuster period dramas with adventure to historical fantasy, or even rom-coms, you’re in the mood for a lighthearted period drama.
Try Jungle Cruise, The Mummy, Pirates of the Caribbean, The Princess Bride, Ever After, Emma (1996, 2009, or 2020), Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, Lost in Austen, Doctor Who, The Abduction Club, An Ideal Husband, Reign, The Durrells in Corfu, All Creatures Great and Small, Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries, Agent Carter, Timeless, Northanger Abbey, Easy Virtue, A Knight’s Tale, Cold Comfort Farm, Shakespeare in Love (Rated R), A Discovery of Witches (TV-MA), The Importance of Being Earnest, or A Royal Night Out.
A Mysterious Period Drama
Is that mystery you’re craving? Try out a mysterious or gothic period drama to satisfy your mood!
Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries is a fabulous period mystery full of romance and adventure. Other great choices include Miss Scarlet and the Duke, The Ruby in the Smoke (aka The Sally Lockhart Mysteries), Sherlock Holmes, Poirot, Miss Marple, Partners in Crime, Possession, Grantchester, Endeavour, High Seas, Murdoch Mysteries, The Doctor Blake Mysteries, The Moonstone, and Foyle’s War.
If a Gothic mystery is more your speed, check out Jane Eyre, Rebecca, The Woman in White, or My Cousin Rachel.
A Family-Friendly Period Drama
Maybe you enjoy cleaner period dramas, or perhaps you want to watch a period drama with your entire family! Well, family-friendly period dramas are just what you’re looking for right now.
Try old favorites like Anne of Green Gables, Road to Avonlea, Pride and Prejudice, Little Women, Mary Poppins, The Little Princess, and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.
Other great choices include When Calls the Heart, The Secret Garden, Lark Rise to Candleford, Courage Mountain, Hugo, The Chronicles of Narnia, Pollyanna, Polly, A Little Princess, Cinderella, Lantern Hill, or even the underrated British period drama series, Hetty Feather.
A Drama Set in Earlier Eras
Are you tired of the abundance of period dramas set in Regency, Victorian, or the 20th-century eras?
Well, you’re in the mood to watch a period drama set in earlier times from Ancient to Baroque.
Ever After is the perfect choice if you’re in the mood for something romantic, funny, and nostalgic. A few other great options from these eras include The Ten Commandments, Goblin (a kdrama set in the past and present-day), Much Ado About Nothing, The Twelfth Night, Elizabeth (Rated R), Shakespeare in Love (Rated R), The Princess’ Man, Reign, The Pillars of the Earth, King Arthur, First Knight, A Knight’s Tale, The Other Boleyn Girl, Ophelia, Romeo and Juliet, Lady Jane, and A Discovery of Witches (TV-MA).
If the Baroque Period is more your speed, check out Cinderella, Girl with a Pearl Earring, Jamestown, Lorna Doone, or Queen Christina.
A Georgian/Regency Drama
Do you watch every possible Jane Austen adaptation? Do you love the fashion of the Georgian and Regency eras?
Well, you’re in the mood for a period drama set in Georgian or Regency times.
Try Becoming Jane, Belle, Jamaica Inn, Sanditon, Mansfield Park (1999) – or any Jane Austen adaptation. Other period dramas to watch: Poldark, Bright Star, Bridgerton (TV-MA), Ekaterina, The Duchess, Vanity Fair, and War and Peace.
A Victorian Drama
Do you love the style of a Victorian Period Drama? The romance, the social awareness, the storytelling?
Well, here are some Victorian Period Dramas to fit your mood: Try Victoria starring Jenna Coleman – it has just the right amount of drama and romance.
Others include Belgravia, Bleak House, The Christmas Candle, Jane Eyre (1983, 2006, and 2011), The Count of Monte Cristo, Doctor Thorne, Far From the Madding Crowd (2015), The Illusionist, Lark Rise to Candleford, North & South (2004), Mercy Street, Miss Scarlet and the Duke, Our Mutual Friend…to name a few.
A 20th-Century Period Drama
From the Edwardian Era to the 1980s, you’re in the mood for a 20th-century period drama.
First, try the new period drama, All Creatures Great and Small. It’s lovely.
Other ones to watch are Grand Hotel, Howards End, A Room with a View, San Francisco, Somewhere in Time, Titanic, The Remains of the Day, I Capture the Castle, Brooklyn, The Durrells in Corfu, and The Hour.
A Drama With Small-Town Charm
There is nothing quite like the warmth of a period drama set in a small town! The charm, the romance, the rural setting…It’s one of the reasons you love period dramas!
First, try Cranford starring Judi Dench. It’s a brilliant British period drama based on an Elizabeth Gaskell novel.
A few other small-town period dramas include Lark Rise to Candleford, Anne of Green Gables, Anne with an E, Road to Avonlea, A Place to Call Home, When Calls the Heart, Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman, All Creatures Great and Small, and Emma (2009).
A Critically Acclaimed Period Drama
Do you watch award shows for fun? Are quality scripts, award-worthy performances, fabulous costumes, and overall excellence important to you?
Well, the next period drama you watch should be critically acclaimed.
You can start with The Queen’s Gambit (TV-MA), The Crown (TV-MA), or Downton Abbey.
Other critically acclaimed period dramas to check out include Pride and Prejudice (1995 & 2005), Call the Midwife, Sense and Sensibility (1995), Anne of Green Gables (1985), Bleak House (2005), Little Women (1995 & 2019), Jane Eyre (2006 & 2011), Moulin Rouge, Gone with the Wind, Titanic, Atonement (Rated R), The Age of Innocence, Les Miserables (2012), Dreamgirls, The Theory of Everything, Brooklyn…to name a few.
So, take our quiz below and find out what period drama to watch next. And let us know your results!
What type of period drama did we recommend? Did you find a period drama to watch? Did you enjoy our new period drama quiz? Sound off in the comments.
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