Succession is named the top drama of 2023 following EPIC show finale while Happy Valley and Blue Lights follow

Succession has been named the top drama of 2023.  

The Jessie Armstrong-helmed masterpiece, starring Brian Cox and Jeremy Strong, topped Radio Times’ list of the top shows followed by Happy Valley and Blue Lights. 

Critics for the TV bible compiled the list to round out the year of television and named Succession, which aired its final series earlier this year, in the top spot. 

In April, the show concluded in its fourth season, with a shock twist garnering millions of viewers and becoming the most watched episode of the whole show.

Sally Wainright’s Happy Valley meanwhile, starring Sarah Lancashire, also aired its final series and came in second in the list of shows, while Blue Lights came in third. 

Succession has been named the top drama of 2023 (Brian Cox pictured in his role as Logan Roy)

Sally Wainright’s Happy Valley meanwhile, starring Sarah Lancashire, also aired its final series and came in second in the list of shows, while Blue Lights came in third

Police drama Blue Lights, which aired on BBC, came in second 

The final episode of Succession saw the fate and future of the Roy children and the company their late father Logan Roy (Brian Cox) created hanging in the balance. 

The entire series had been building up to the last few episodes, as all of Logan’s children – Kendall (Jeremy Strong), Roman (Kieran Culkin), Shiv (Sarah Snook) and Connor (Alan Ruck) – get ready for the final Waystar Royco board vote on the merger with Lukas Matsson’s (Alexander Skarsgard) GoJo.

The 90-minute series finale is directed by Mark Mylod and written by series creator Jesse Armstrong, and after many twists and turns, it is Tom Wambsgans (Matthew Macfadyen) who ultimately takes over as Waystar CEO, under new owner Matsson.

At the time. the Daily Mail’s TV critic, Christopher Stevens, gave the show five stars and said the ending was ‘everything we hoped it would be.’

He wasn’t surprised about the ‘strong language from the start and throughout’ — it was the very last episode of the ‘sweariest £@%&ing show in television history. We’d have been horrified if there wasn’t strong language.’

But he added: ‘We should have been cautioned that what followed was 90 minutes of drama so bruising, so punishing that by the end my internal organs felt like Roman Roy’s face looked — stitched up and bleeding all over the place.’

At the very least, we deserved some admonition: ‘This program contains intense scenes of psychological and emotional meltdown.

The 90-minute series finale is directed by Mark Mylod and written by series creator Jesse Armstrong, and after many twists and turns, it is Tom Wambsgans (Matthew Macfadyen) (pictured) who ultimately takes over as Waystar CEO, under new owner Matsson

FACT BOX TITLE

1. Succession, Now

2. Happy Valley, iPlayer

3. Blue Lights, iPlayer

4. The Bear Disney+

5. The Sixth Commandment, iPlayer

6. The Last of Us, Now

7. Poker Face, Now

8. Best Interests, iPlayer

9. Queen Charlotte: a Bridgerton Story, Netflix

10. Heartstopper, Netflix

11. The Diplomat, Netflix

12. A Small Light, Disney+

13. Nolly, ITVX

14. Boiling Point, iPlayer

15. Only Murders in the Building, Disney+

16. Top Boy, Netflix

17. Hijack, Apple TV+

18. Lessons in Chemistry, Apple TV+

19. The Gold, iPlayer

20. Bodies, Netflix

21. The Gallows Pole, iPlayer

22. The Long Shadow, ITVX

23. The Night Agent, Netflix

‘Do not continue watching if you can’t bear to see your favorite characters rip themselves apart, their dreams ground into dirt, their weaknesses savagely exploited. This is self-destruction on a cosmic scale.

‘More lacerating still was Roman’s blurted revelation, during a boardroom punch-up, that he and Kendall probably weren’t even their father’s natural children. Shiv was the only blood relative.

‘At that moment I feared for Jeremy Strong, a method actor who famously stays in character throughout filming. He picked up Culkin by the throat and started clawing at his eyes.

‘Those offices have glass walls. Every executive, all the gathered employees and consultants, were there to witness this climactic disintegration.

‘But they didn’t see it the way we did. It was truly traumatic. Some of us could be scarred for ever. There really should have been warnings.’

In February, Happy Valley came to an end after three seasons, 18 episodes and nine years.

And the final episode of the BBC drama lived up to the incredible hype, with many viewers hailing the episode as ‘a masterpiece’ and ‘one of the greatest television finales of all’.

Sarah’s lead performance as Sgt Catherine Cawood was lavished with praise from critics and fans alike, as her final showdown with James Norton ‘s Tommy Lee Royce (or as she described it ‘a bit of a tussle’) was deemed the perfect way to end the series.

While many fans were expecting a high-octane conclusion, and perhaps even Catherine’s demise, writer Sally’s decision to pivot her finale around a 15 minute long kitchen table war of words between Tommy and Catherine left viewers in awe.

‘A stand-off worth waiting for – no guns, no knives, no punches but a battle of words which Catherine badly needed to say. Superb stuff by Sally Wainwright a tour de fore turn by Sarah Lancashire & a whirlwind of emotion from James Norton. What a finale,’ declared one viewer.

Others hailed Sarah’s performance, with a fan deciding that ‘she deserves all the BAFTAs, Golden Globes and Oscars and it still won’t be enough.’ 

In February, Happy Valley came to an end after three seasons, 18 episodes and nine years

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