6 new Sky TV shows worth checking out in 2020

(Image credit: Sky)

Last night, Sky held a star-studded event called Up Next at the Tate Modern to showcase its programming coming in the next year. Clearly buoyed from the success of last year's Chernobyl, which the broadcasting giant co-produced with HBO, it discussed plans to double its investment in original content by 2024. On top of that, Sky plans to create a massive new production facility in Elstree, just outside of London.

But what about the shows themselves? Sky will have 80 original series in 2020, as well as a "40% boost" to its US content. Sky, of course, is the UK home of HBO and Showtime shows, and it just launched the channel Sky Comedy, which hosts new episodes of great US sitcoms like The Righteous Gemstones and Curb Your Enthusiasm.

In addition to new series of existing shows like Cobra, Brassic and Save Me, Sky put the spotlight on a slew of new series. Below, we've picked out a few of our highlights from what Sky's got coming up in 2020. As is usually the case with Sky's content, you'll also be able to watch these with a Now TV Entertainment Pass, too. 

I Hate Suzie

I Hate Suzie is an intriguing drama about an actress (played by Billie Piper) whose popularity is in decline, which coincides with her phone being hacked and a private photo being circulated on the internet. Lucy Prebble, one of the writers of HBO sensation Succession as well as Piper's earlier series Secret Diaries of a Call Girl, is the creator of I Hate Suzie, and each of the eight episodes is themed around a different emotion: shock, denial and fear were three examples Prebble offered at the event. It starts in June 2020.

Gangs of London

This felt like the big-budget centrepiece of the evening. In Gangs of London, a gangster boss (Colm Meaney) is assassinated, leaving his son (Joe Cole) to take over the empire and defend its interests from rival gangs. Director Gareth Evans (The Raid) is behind the show, which you might get a sense of during the violent action scenes above. This nine-episode series is coming later in 2020. 

The Third Day

(Image credit: Sky)

Jude Law and Naomie Harris star in this Wicker Man-like drama from Dennis Kelly, the creator of Channel 4 cult hit Utopia, which begins in May. The show is divided into separate three-episode runs called Summer and Winter. The former part sees Jude Law's character head to a strange British island where the inhabitants are determined to keep their traditions safe. Winter, meanwhile, sees Harris's character coming to the same island looking for answers. 

A live immersive theatre event themed as an island festival takeover will break up the two halves of the show, which can be watched separately or together. 

The Trip to Greece

(Image credit: Sky)

Michael Winterbottom's semi-improvised comedy series with Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon returns for a fourth and final run on March 3, which sees the duo on an odyssey through Greece. Expect yet more Michael Caine impressions. If you've seen any previous series of The Trip, you'll know what the deal is by now, and whether this style of comedy is your sort of thing (we're big fans of it). 

Intelligence

Among Sky's upcoming original comedies, this looked like the highlight. David Schwimmer, who continues to defy age over a decade and a half after Friends ended, stars in this intelligence agency-based sitcom from comedian Nick Mohammed. Every episode lands on Sky and Now TV on February 21. Sky must have some confidence in the show – it announced a series two renewal as part of the event. 

Two Weeks to Live

(Image credit: Sky/Nick Wall)

Maisie Williams (Game of Thrones) and Sian Clifford (Fleabag) star in this comedy drama about a young woman hunting for her dad's murderer. It's not as heavy-looking as the premise would suggest – Williams plays Kim Stokes, whose mother has kept her far away from civilisation and taught her some extreme methods of survival. It's six episodes long, and coming later in 2020. 

Samuel Roberts

Samuel is a PR Manager at game developer Frontier. Formerly TechRadar's Senior Entertainment Editor, he's an expert in Marvel, Star Wars, Netflix shows and general streaming stuff. Before his stint at TechRadar, he spent six years at PC Gamer. Samuel is also the co-host of the popular Back Page podcast, in which he details the trials and tribulations of being a games magazine editor – and attempts to justify his impulsive eBay games buying binges.

Latest in Sky TV
Eddie Redmayne as the Jackal walking away from a ball in a net hanging on a tree with a gun in his hand.
The Day of the Jackal just broke a Sky viewership record following its success on Peacock
Eddie Redmayne preparing to take a shot with a sniper rifle in The Day of the Jackal.
Peacock’s #1 most-watched show The Day of the Jackal has been renewed for season 2 and I couldn’t be happier
Stamford Bridge Stadium
Six things I learned behind the scenes at Sky’s Monday Night Football...
Sky Q
6 things we want in a Sky Q smart TV
Sky Q brings back one of its best games, Beehive Bedlam
Sky Q gets its biggest ever update – and it’s packed with new features
Latest in News
Garmin Instinct 3 in Neotropic Green
"I'm an idiot": Garmin user reveals how fixing one setting completely changed their training after months of making no progress
The main battle pass characters in Fortnite Lawless, including Midas, Sub Zero and a large wolf-man
You'll finally be able to play Fortnite on Windows 11 Arm-powered laptops as Epic Games partners with Qualcomm
DeepSeek on an iPhone
OpenAI calls on US government to ban DeepSeek, calling it ‘state-subsidized’ and ‘state-controlled’
Stress
Complexity of IT systems could be increasing security risks for businesses
Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 3
Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 3 enters development as team promises to support Space Marine 2 'with exciting content and regular updates in the coming years'
Ai tech, businessman show virtual graphic Global Internet connect Chatgpt Chat with AI, Artificial Intelligence.
CEOs think they might lose their jobs if they can't deliver on AI