15 Best British TV Shows Of The Decade

The best dystopian sci fi lives just on the verge of plausibility. Your premise should be close to a premonition - if things keep going this way, then this is the future we have to look forward to. Humans manages this perfectly, and in doing so has been one of the most chilling and intelligent TV dramas of the past few years.

Humans shows us a world in which technology has run riot. A shady robotics company with unclear motives has revolutionised our day to day lives with the introduction of synths, humanoid machines that act as electric slaves. If you have the money, you no longer have any cause to do anything for yourself - there’s a machine to take care of that.

Far from an anti-tech horror story, though, this is a mature and considered meditation on what it is to be, well, Human. With complicated motivations, the company has created synths with thoughts, feelings, full sentience. They live in secret, blending in with their mindless cousins, in full knowledge that, should they be discovered, humanity would likely take measures to crush them, lest they take over.

With great performances and effects on a relatively small budget, Humans is a brilliant imagining of a near future gone horribly wrong. There are moments of hope, but on the whole it offers a pretty bleak prognosis, as well as a condemnation of our attitudes towards those we consider different to ourselves. Sadly it has been cancelled on the back of a cliffhanger, but its three seasons come highly recommended for anyone who enjoys thoughtful, high concept drama.