Television series
Des
- Serial killer
- Biopic
- Very dark
A three-part ITV drama that inhabits the minds of three men entangled with serial killer Dennis Nilsen: the killer himself, the detective who caught him, and the writer trying to understand him. Unflinching but never exploitative, it's a study in obsession and the corrosive weight of proximity to evil. For anyone drawn to true crime that asks difficult questions.
Should you watch it?
Watch it if you want a slow, psychologically precise study of how a monstrous crime gets noticed and understood, with the investigators and the writer who listened to the killer as the real focus rather than gore.
Skip it if the subject is a real atrocity, and if you want the crimes dramatised in vivid detail or a fast whodunit, this will feel slow and heavy.
What it asks of you: Three hour-long episodes of unhurried conversations and quiet, airless rooms, so it rewards patience more than momentum, and you will need to stay with its discomfort.
Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.
If you liked this
MINDHUNTER2017
Two FBI agents invent criminal profiling by building rapport with imprisoned killers. Methodical, intelligent, and genuinely suspenseful—it treats serial murder as a puzzle requiring empathy as much as intellect.
But Slow-burn procedural that prioritizes psychology over plot. Some find the second season repetitive and the show's cancellation leaves threads dangling.
The Fall2013
A serial killer and the detective obsessed with catching him circle each other across Belfast. Tense, darkly intimate, and Stellan Skarsgård is terrifyingly magnetic—you feel the psychological duel in every scene.
But Stylish to the point of self-consciousness. The killer's perspective gets considerable screen time, which some find gratuitous rather than illuminating.
Broadchurch2013
A child's murder tears apart a small English town. Griping mystery with genuine shock moments, excellent ensemble cast, and an ending that actually lands. Each episode leaves you desperate for the next.
But The third season is widely considered weaker. If you binge it, the pacing can feel uneven—some episodes move faster than others.
Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Des
The wildcard
Something you would not have found on your own.
Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes2019
Both use the killer's own voice and words as a primary text. Both are structured around the terrible allure of understanding someone monstrous. Both ask whether knowing why is the same as understanding.
Archival footage and interviews where serial killer Ted Bundy speaks in his own voice. Hypnotic and deeply disturbing—you feel the charisma that made him dangerous. Netflix's four-part format mirrors Des's tight structure perfectly.
But It centers the killer's perspective more than some are comfortable with. The charisma-worship around Bundy has become culturally fraught, and this documentary doesn't fully reckon with that.
More like this (7)
The Killing2011
Danish detective drama of extraordinary depth. One murder, two detectives, the entire first season investigating it. Bleak, patient, and the lead character Sarah Lund is unforgettable—haunted without being sentimental.
But Deliberately slow. If you need momentum and quick resolutions, the meticulous pace will feel like punishment rather than craft.
In the Flesh2013
Zombie soldiers return home after a cure. Sounds like genre fun but it's actually a profound drama about trauma, belonging, and small-town intolerance. Humane and heartbreaking in ways you won't expect.
But Only three seasons before cancellation. The premise takes a few episodes to trust, and early zombie-horror elements might mislead you about what the show becomes.
Manhunt2017
The hunt for the Unabomber through the eyes of the FBI agent who becomes obsessed with him. Sam Worthington is quietly excellent, and the cat-and-mouse game of criminal psychology feels chess-like and personal.
But Limited narrative scope—it's one case, eight episodes. If you need variety of plot or setting, the claustrophobia will wear on you.
Happy Valley2014
A Yorkshire sergeant faces the man who destroyed her family years earlier. Sarah Lancashire is phenomenal, and the writing balances brutal violence with genuine warmth and humor. Tense, intimate, and very, very good.
But Second season dips from the first's perfection. The show's warmth can feel at odds with its violence for some viewers; the tonal shifts might register as uneven rather than complex.
Godless2017
A Western town run by women harbors a fugitive. Visually stunning, narratively bold, and genuinely different from typical crime drama. Brilliant supporting cast and the moral ambiguity will stay with you.
But Only one season. The premise is bigger than what the show ultimately does with it, and some plot threads feel unresolved.
The OA2016
A blind woman returns with sight and cryptic knowledge. Weird, ambitious, and genuinely moving despite its strangeness. If you loved Des's focus on obsession and the mysteries people contain, this scratches a similar itch.
But Aggressively strange and deliberately incomplete. The show was cancelled mid-narrative, and it demands patience with opacity that not everyone will grant it.
The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst2015
Both are about a privileged man who kills and a smarter person trying to understand him. Both blur the line between documentation and relationship. Both suggest that getting close to evil doesn't make it less evil, just more familiar.
A real estate heir confesses to murder on camera. Six episodes of documentary following journalist Andrew Jarecki as he builds a relationship with Durst. Genuinely shocking and ethically murky—you're complicit watching it, which is the point.
But The later seasons lack the urgency of the first. Durst is less magnetic than Nilsen—less self-aware, more purely grotesque. Some find the documentary's methods questionable.
People
Cast
Writing
- Lewis ArnoldCreator
- Luke NealCreator
Production
- Charles PattinsonExecutive Producer
- David TennantExecutive Producer
- Elaine PykeExecutive Producer
- Kim VarvellExecutive Producer
- Lewis ArnoldExecutive Producer
- Luke NealExecutive Producer
- Willow GryllsExecutive Producer
- Victoria GoodallLine Producer
- David MeantiProducer
Recommended by
I'll Fly Away, The Trial of Christine Keeler, Silk, Black Bird, New Tricks, Flesh and Blood, The Pembrokeshire Murders