I hate to say it, but I think British TV may be producing too many remakes

Now, there’s been a lot of talk about Hollywood’s current love of remakes and reboots. Banking on something that’s already been successful once—or twice, in some cases—is always a safe bet. In today’s world, familiarity feels easy and comforting, and nostalgia is a powerful tool. I get it, though I wish we’d see more original ideas being produced, too.

The thing is, Hollywood isn’t the only one with this issue. The Brits, too, are big fans of remakes, though it feels slightly more overwhelming now than ever before. Four new high-profile remakes (that we know of) will premiere on BBC, ITV, BritBox, and PBS Masterpiece this year alone, including the Bergerac remake, Lynley, Maigret, and The Forsyte Saga. All Creatures Great & Small is still going strong, too, and while the new All Creatures is undoubtedly one of the most heartwarming dramas currently on TV, it is still undeniably a remake.

I’m not saying that remakes have no value. I firmly believe that a different director, writer, and cast can find new layers of meaning in a story by creating new adaptations. Crucially, modern remakes can also inject diversity into a story where there was none before. Though the anti-woke crowd will inevitably fight against those sorts of changes, they can and often do alter the narrative for the better. These remakes also allow new generations to discover classic stories. But how many remakes can one character or story have before it begins to feel stale? And why are some remakes happening so quickly after the last one?

All Creatures Great & Small’s original TV adaptation aired between 1978 and 1990. Fair enough, there were 20 years between the finale of the old one and the premiere of the new one, and Channel 5’s current series is an undeniable hit. The same can be said for the upcoming Bergerac remake; the original, starring a younger John Nettles, aired on TV in the U.K. between 1981 and 1991, and the remake is changing the formula significantly, with the upcoming six-episode season featuring just one murder case instead of six separate ones.

Then, however, there are shows like The Forsyte Saga, Lynley, and Maigret. This year’s version will be the third adaptation of The Forsyte Saga. The last major adaptation, starring Damien Lewis, Rupert Graves, and Gina McKee, ended in 2003. The Inspector Lynley Mysteries, starring Nathaniel Parker and Sharon Small, ran from 2001 to 2008. There have been plenty of adaptations for Parisian detective Jules Maigret, the last of which aired in 2016, and starred the one and only Rowan Atkinson. Are these shows old enough to already warrant remakes? Can they truly offer us a new perspective just a few years later? I’m not so sure. Surely, people will be tempted to compare these stories more than necessary.

And what’s to stop these networks from greenlighting other shows to have remakes before we’ve had a chance to forget about the previous one? Who’s to say we won’t read an announcement for a new version of Vera in a few years, even though the incomparable Brenda Blethyn just took her final bow as DCI Vera Stanhope?

I’d rather see more books and other works adapted for the first time, like last year’s brilliant Rivals, based on the second book from the Rutshire Chronicles series by Dame Jilly Cooper. If you haven’t watched it yet, please do. Disney+ has officially announced a second season, so you don’t have to worry about that massive cliffhanger at the end never getting resolved.

I’ll watch the upcoming remakes, and I’m certain they’ll all have something interesting to offer. There is such a thing as too many remakes, though. I don’t want to get sick of them.