Television series
Bad Girls
Other titles called Bad Girls: the 1994 film.
A British prison drama where guards and inmates collide in the claustrophobic world of HMP Larkhall. Bad Girls balances soap-opera intensity with genuine moral complexity, exploring how power corrupts both sides of the bars. It's for anyone who loved Orange Is the New Black but wants British grit, darker humour, and the kind of characters you can't stop arguing about.
Should you watch it?
Watch it if you like prison drama built around a crowded ensemble, where the officers' private lives run alongside the inmates' feuds and the soap-opera plotting is part of the appeal.
Skip it if you want a tight, self-contained story; at 105 episodes across eight series, with a runtime near an hour each, it sprawls and leans on long-running rivalries and romances.
What it asks of you: It asks for a long commitment, with an hour an episode and plotlines that often stretch across many weeks before they pay off, so it rewards viewers willing to settle in.
Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.
If you liked this
Orange Is the New Black2013
The spiritual successor: ensemble cast of women, prison setting, perfect mix of humour and heartbreak. If Bad Girls planted the seed, this is what bloomed from it—more expansive, more diverse, equally addictive.
But Seasons 4 onwards lose narrative tightness and lean harder into melodrama. The later runs test patience in ways the early ones don't.
Prisoner1979
The godmother of prison dramas. Australian, relentless, and utterly gripping—it pioneered the template Bad Girls perfected. Essential viewing if you want to see where this came from.
But The production values are dated and the pacing is glacial by modern standards. It demands commitment.
Wentworth2013
A modern reimagining of Prisoner that lands the tone perfectly: brutal, psychological, with outstanding performances. Dark without being cartoonish. Absolutely riveting for three seasons.
But Quality drops markedly after season three. The final arc struggles to stick the landing and some plot turns feel desperate.
Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Bad Girls
The wildcard
Something you would not have found on your own.
Bound1996
Both explore how power operates between people confined to a space—prison or apartment—and how women use intelligence and alliances to survive systems designed to control them. Same architectural interest in tension.
Wachowskis' debut: a heist thriller that moves like a sentence. Tense, sexy, brilliantly constructed. Two women navigate a male-dominated criminal world with intelligence and style—the connection runs deeper than plot.
But Only 90 minutes, which some find too short. The violence is stylised rather than gritty, which shifts the register entirely.
More like this (6)
Scrubs2001
Same era, same warmth underneath the dark comedy. A workplace where people see the worst of each other and somehow stay human. The tonal balance—funny then devastating—is identical to Bad Girls.
But It's American sentiment wrapped in hospital scrubs. If you want realism over emotional catharsis, this isn't it.
The Fall2013
Stella Gibson hunts a serial killer in Belfast. Slower-burn psychological tension, impeccable performances, the kind of show that makes you forget to move for an hour.
But Bleak. Almost oppressively so. There's little levity and the violence is disturbingly specific.
Brookside1982
A British soap that did gritty realism before it was fashionable. Grounded, unflinching, and genuinely moving. The kind of show Bad Girls owes a debt to.
But It's a soap, so repetition and wheel-spinning are built in. The early seasons are stronger; later runs feel stretched thin.
Vera2011
British crime procedural with Brenda Blethyn as a detective who is thoroughly unlikeable and completely magnetic. Sharp writing, strong ensemble, real stakes.
But Formulaic by design. If you need surprise, this isn't it—you know the shape of each episode before it starts.
The Killing2011
Danish noir that made slow television respectable. A murder investigation that unfolds over a season with documentary-like precision. Characters who breathe.
But Patience required. If you need momentum and answers, this will frustrate you.
Skins2007
British ensemble about youth, with sharp writing and real emotional stakes. Different setting, same skill at making you care about people you'd normally avoid.
But Self-consciously cool in a way that dates badly. The tone is inconsistent and some character arcs feel unearned.
People
Cast
Writing
- Ann McManusCreator
- Maureen ChadwickCreator