Radio Times Top 40 TV Shows of 2016: 10 to 1

7. The Crown (Netflix)

If this had been on terrestrial TV it would have swept everything before it. A resolutely non-hagiographic look at the first few years of Elizabeth II’s reign covered everything from her father’s death to her sister’s doomed romance, via set-tos with Churchill and her uncle, the Duke of Windsor, and early stirrings of discontent from her husband Philip. Even committed republicans couldn’t fail to be impressed by Peter Morgan’s incisive script, opulent locations and re-creations, and a cast – particular credit to Claire Foy, John Lithgow and Jared Harris – who avoided caricature to produce vivid portraits of people we mere mortals can never truly know. Given how little time actually elapsed within this first ten-episode run, The Crown was also surprisingly gripping and perfect for binge-watching. Gill Crawford