'Sex and the City' but Make It Murder: Why 'The Bletchley Circle' Is the Detective Drama You Didn’t Know You Needed
Sharp wit, fierce women, and a mystery that hooks you instantly.
Let me be honest: I didn’t expect much. I was just looking for something short, something smart, and preferably without dragons, zombies or AI gone rogue. And then, like a message from MI6, landed The Bletchley Circle. Seven tight episodes. One crime ring. Zero filler. And now I’m officially obsessed.
Seriously, this is like Sex and the City — if Carrie swapped her heels for a trench coat and started decoding serial killers over tea.
Start at 9am, solve it by lunchtime
You can devour the whole thing in 5 hours and 15 minutes. That’s one lazy Saturday morning. Just enough time to steep some Earl Grey, text your group chat that you’re "off-grid for a bit", and dive in.
And it’s worth it. These women aren’t just smart — they’re brilliantly terrifying. Picture this: a former wartime codebreaker spots a pattern in a series of murders. Coincidence? Never.
She ropes in her old friends (all equally brilliant, obviously), and off they go, cracking codes, side-eying shady men, and wearing hats that belong in a museum.
Old habits die hard — and thank God for that
What I love? They’re not superheroes. They’re just done with pretending to be housewives when their brains are screaming for puzzles. Each of them is carrying something — trauma, secrets, heartbreak — but they don’t let that stop them. If anything, it sharpens them.
By episode three, I was already shouting at the screen like "Yes, queen, decode that murder"!
A detective story with lipstick, trauma, and class
There’s a kind of quiet strength in it all. No explosions, no chase scenes, just the slow, elegant burn of women who’ve been underestimated too long. Add the moody post-war London aesthetic — raincoats, ration cards, and pubs with actual character — and you’ve got something special.
Something very British. Something I couldn’t look away from.
And you know what? It’s nice watching a show where the mystery wraps up neatly. No cliffhangers. No "see you next year." Just seven episodes of cleverly plotted brilliance. You get in, get hooked, get answers — and still have time for dinner.
Ready to swap dragons for data girls?
If you’ve had enough of endless fantasy lore dumps and teen vampires in crop tops, trust me — The Bletchley Circle will be your palette cleanser. It’s got style, brains, bite… and absolutely no one waiting around for a man to save them.
