12 TV series to watch this May

1. White House Plumbers

No, this is nothing to do with the people making sure the US president has running water. "White House Plumbers" was the nickname given to the bungling team of operatives who were supposed to secretly protect Richard Nixon's presidency by stemming leaks. One of their operations was bugging the Democratic National Committee offices at the Watergate complex, an undertaking that backfired so spectacularly that the suffix "-gate" is used to this day to indicate a scandal. There have been numerous dramas about this and just last year, a Starz show Gaslit featured some of these events. HBO Max has gone the satirical route with a script from the writers of Veep. The five-part series stars Justin Theroux and Woody Harrelson as G Gordon Liddy and E Howard Hunt, the hapless pair who accidentally brought down the president they were trying to protect.

 White House Plumbers premieres 1 May on HBO Max in the US, and soon on Sky Atlantic and NOW in the UK

2. Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story

Regency romance Bridgerton is one of the jewels in Netflix's crown, so it's no surprise that we're getting another drama set in that universe. This is the origin story of Queen Charlotte, a character from the parent show who was a real-life historical figure: German aristocrat Sophia Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz who became the wife of King George III. As the six-part series begins, young Charlotte (India Amarteifio), from a tiny province in Germany, is on her way to meet the king of England (Corey Mylchreest), her brother Adolphus having signed a "betrothal contract". Charlotte's really not thrilled about it. She is, in the words of her brother, "exceedingly headstrong". Imagine how much worse she's going to be when she pals up with Lady Agatha Danbury (Arsema Thomas). Adjoa Andoh and Golda Rosheuvel are back as adult Lady Danbury and Queen Charlotte. As with its parent show, expect gorgeous costumes, opulent balls, string quartet covers of contemporary pop songs and, yes, quite a lot of sex, while a voiceover from Lady Whistledown at the start reminds us: "This is not a history lesson. It is fiction inspired by fact."

Queen Charlotte premieres 4 May on Netflix internationally

3. Bupkis

There's a hint of Larry David's Curb Your Enthusiasm around this half-hour sitcom in which comedian and Saturday Night Live cast member Pete Davidson plays himself. The show presents a fictionalised version of Davidson's life and there's certainly plenty of material to work with. Davidson has been open about his mental health struggles and his drug use, while gossip columnists have chronicled his love life in some detail: in the past, he has had relationships with Kim Kardashian, Ariana Grande, Kate Beckinsale and Phoebe Dynevor. Davidson is co-writing the show, which co-stars Edie Falco as his mother and Joe Pesci as his grandfather.

Bupkis premieres 4 May on Peacock in the US

4. Silo

Apple TV+ has really leaned into science fiction since its launch and shows such as Severance, For All Mankind, Foundation and Invasion are a key part of its offering. This latest series, adapted from a series of novels, more than maintains that level of quality. The last 10,000 people on earth live in a self-sufficient, mile-deep, multi-storey facility buried underground. The surface of the planet is so toxic that anyone venturing outside dies almost immediately. The remnants of humanity living in the "silo" can no longer remember who built it, or why, but Juliette (Rebecca Ferguson, who also produces), an engineer who reluctantly becomes the sheriff of the silo, is determined to solve the many mysteries of the place. The production design is stunning, the cast – which includes David Oyelowo, Tim Robbins, Harriet Walter, Iain Glen and Sophie Thompson – is terrific and an intriguing opening sequence is likely to hook viewers even before the opening titles roll

Silo premieres 5 May on Apple TV+ internationally

5. Class of '09

The titular "class of 09" is a group of FBI agents who graduated from the Bureau's training centre in Quantico in 2009 and are reunited following the death of a friend. The eight episodes of this thriller span three decades and the story is told across three timelines, revolving around how the characters adapt to changes as the US criminal justice system is altered by artificial intelligence. Brian Tyree Henry and Kate Mara are the two leads, playing Agent Tayo Miller and Agent Ashley Poet, who meet and become friends during training. This is from the British writer Tom Rob Smith, who wrote The Assassination of Gianni Versace for the American Crime Story series and the bestselling novel Child 44.

Class of '09 premieres 10 May on Hulu in the US

6. City on Fire

We open in New York's Central Park with the discovery of a young woman who has been shot in the head. Then we jump to "a few weeks earlier" and awkward teenager Charlie (Wyatt Oleff) is telling his therapist how he met the beautiful, charismatic, Samantha (Chase Sui Wonders). They bumped into each other in a record store, hit it off, and hung out before eventually she invited him to a gig at which her favourite band was playing. But Samantha is connected to a group of young anarchists who set fires around the city and Charlie is gradually drawn into their orbit. This mystery thriller is from Gossip Girl creators Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage and based on the 2015 novel written by Garth Risk Hallberg. The novel won plaudits but wasn't to everyone's taste, and this could prove similarly divisive.

City on Fire premieres 12 May on Apple TV+ internationally

7. High Desert

Financial difficulties mean that Peggy Newman (Patricia Arquette), who has spent most of her life on the other side of the law as a drug dealer and who has been in and out of rehab (she's currently down to 2mg of methadone a day), has to become a private investigator in the small Californian desert town where she lives. Although her relaxed approach to, for example, illicit substances might be thought by some to be at odds with the basic principles of detective work – "It's acid (LSD). It's not drugs," she says defensively at one point when it becomes apparent she's in an altered state of consciousness – she does seem to have a natural talent for it. This comedy drama also stars Matt Dillon as Denny, Peggy's ex, and Rupert Friend as Guru Bob, an ex-TV presenter turned mystic.

High Desert premieres 17 May on Apple TV+ internationally

8. Platonic

Sylvia (Rose Byrne) learns from Instagram that Will (Seth Rogen), her one-time best friend, is getting a divorce. They fell out and she hasn't spoken to him in years. Sylvia's husband urges her to call him. "It'll just be weird," she says. "Men and women don't really hang out at our age." If this is reminding you of When Harry Met Sally, it reminds the characters of it too – they specifically reference the classic comedy. Will runs a hipster bar now. Sylvia is, essentially, "a full-time mom" as she puts it, despite being a qualified lawyer. But when the pair reconnect, their friendship becomes all-consuming. This 10-episode half-hour comedy has smart dialogue, compelling characters you care about and considerable charm.

Platonic premieres 24 May on Apple TV+ internationally

9. American Born Chinese

Jin Wang (Ben Wang) is having a tough time at school and at home. He's forced by a teacher to hang out with exchange student Wei-Chen (Jimmy Liu) because "he's Chinese – like you" so they'll obviously have so much in common. Jin just wants to fit in – the last thing he needs, he thinks, is some Chinese kid tagging along with him. However, Jin's impressed by how completely at ease with himself his new friend is. That's possibly because Wei-Chen is the son of a god and here to enlist Jin's help in a cosmic battle. Disney's comedy-action-fantasy, adapted from a 2006 graphic novel by Gene Luen Yang, blends a coming-of-age story with elements of Chinese mythology. The cast features two recent Oscar-winners: Michelle Yeoh, as Guanyin, a goddess of compassion and mercy, and her Everything Everywhere All at Once co-star Ke Huy Quan.

American Born Chinese premieres 24 May on Disney + internationally

10. FUBAR

He did say he'd be back, but hands up whose bingo card had Arnold Schwarzenegger at the age of 75 doing the sort of action comedy that made him one of the best-loved stars on the planet? In his first leading role in a TV series, Arnie plays a mere stripling of 65. Luke Brunner has just finished his last job for the CIA, which involved stealing blood diamonds in Antwerp to exchange them for the location of a human trafficker. Now he's retired and he plans to spend his golden years sailing around the world with the ex-wife he hopes to win back. But wait, what's this? One last job, you say? Brunner is persuaded to put his plans on hold and take off on an urgent mission in Guyana – only to discover that his perfect daughter Emma (Monica Barbaro), who he thought was in Colombia implementing a clean drinking water programme, also works for the CIA, is undercover on the same job and is just as tough a nut as dear old dad.

FUBAR premieres 25 May on Netflix internationally

11. Maryland

The relationship between sisters has been the focus of several dramas recently, including Bad Sisters and Dreamland (both the creations of Sharon Horgan), and Maryland puts sisterhood under the spotlight again. This three-part drama has been created by actor Suranne Jones with screenwriter Anne Marie O'Connor. Manchester-based mother-of-two Becca (Jones) and London-dwelling high-flyer Rosaline (Eve Best) have grown apart over the years but try to put aside their differences when the body of their mother, Mary, is discovered at sunrise on a beach on the Isle of Man. Mary was supposed to have been in Wales and the sisters have no idea what she was doing on a Manx beach, but on the island they make shocking discoveries about their mother's secret life. Stockard Channing plays Mary's large-than-life friend.

Maryland premieres late May on ITV1 in the UK and will then stream on ITVX

12. Once Upon a Time in Northern Ireland

Documentary filmmaker James Bluemel's harrowing five-part series Once Upon a Time in Iraq, about the 2003 invasion of Iraq and its aftermath, won several awards including a Bafta. Now Bluemel has turned his attention to the sectarian conflict in Northern Ireland known euphemistically as "the Troubles". He uses a similar format, mixing archive footage with the unfiltered personal accounts of those who lived with the violence daily, and some who perpetrated it – and are still dealing with its legacies today. Bluemel has again secured some extraordinarily powerful and moving interviews from people on both sides of the conflict, whose lives were changed forever by it. This is a timely series, in light of the suggestion from some that issues arising from Brexit could increase tensions in the region

Once Upon a Time in Northern Ireland premieres mid to late May on PBS in the US and BBC Two in the UK.

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