8 brilliant TV shows to enjoy this autumn

With Sky Entertainment and Netflix at just £25 per month, there's never been a better time to watch these lauded programmes

We're living in an era of great television right now, so it's perhaps inevitable that occasionally some shows might slip under the radar.

But with Sky Entertainment and Netflix – available for just £25 a month on Sky Q – you can be sure to keep up with everything brilliant in the TV world, from hard-hitting dramas to dark comedies and everything in between.

Forget endless browsing: here are eight greats to put on your watch list now...

For a drama-filled dry comedy, try The Politician

"I'm not a box. I don’t have four sides for you to look at and approve of, I have feelings. This is the true me. This is who I am. I am a winner… I will not be stopped,” claims deliriously-driven Payton Hobart (Ben Platt, Benji in Pitch Perfect) who is aiming to become high school president in Ryan Murphy’s exquisite Netflix comedy drama, which recalls Wes Anderson and Alexander Payne.

Platt, pictured, who excels as the budding dictator, is ably supported by an unhinged Jessica Lange and a wonderfully dry Gwyneth Paltrow.

For a sumptuous royal epic, watch Catherine The Great

Dame Helen Mirren is suitably magisterial as the supreme Russian monarch, whose reign spanned 1762 to 1796, in this ripe look at Catherine the Great's latter years and her tempestuous affair with Russian military leader Grigory Potemkin (Jason Clarke).

Expect imperiousness from Mirren, fruity dialogue and lavish set-pieces in this four-part Sky Atlantic drama.

For a compelling look at history, pick Chernobyl

Sky Atlantic’s gripping, precise and often harrowing (dog lovers can look away in one particular episode) drama dissects the origins and fallout of the nuclear reactor catastrophe in 1986.

Jared Harris, above left, plays Valery Legasov, the heroic and studious scientist who tackles the horror of Chernobyl and points the finger at the perpetrators, including Paul Ritter’s sadistically negligent chief engineer.

Chernobyl is arguably the most compelling TV drama of the past three years.

For thrilling sci-fi, select Stranger Things: season 3

The multitasking Duffer brothers, creators of Stranger Things, not only make sure you’re invested in every character – even the relatively minor ones, such as bolshie Erica – but also litter the show with cult movie references. Nods to Alien, Day of the Dead and The Terminator add richness to this compelling Netflix nostalgia-fest, now set in 1985.

In season 3, the once-mean Steve has now miraculously morphed into a favoured character – with an astonishing quiff – and the addition of Maya Hawke (daughter of Ethan Hawke and Uma Thurman) is a huge plus, but pity poor Billy…

For a high-concept thriller, enter Temple

Mark Strong, who never disappoints, plays a grieving surgeon compelled to run an illegal medical practice in an abandoned network of tunnels near London Underground's Temple station.

This high-concept, Sky One medical thriller – an adaptation of the Norwegian TV series Valkyrien – benefits from committed turns from Strong, Carice Van Houten and Daniel Mays.

Joe Gilgun's spiky-yet-touching comedy tracks the crime-filled lives of bipolar Vinnie (Gilgun, searing in This Is England) and his five shady pals as they dodge and weave around the fictional northern town of Hawley.

This caper draws comparisons with Shameless, but Sky One's Brassic has a unique energy and wit all of its own. Former Coronation Street resident Michelle Keegan, pictured, also stars.

For a star-studded laugh, explore Living with Yourself

Paul Rudd – Ant-Man and Hollywood's most likeable heavy hitter – plays a disappointing corporate schlub who pays for a mysterious life-changing treatment to change his fortunes, only to end up being cloned by a much better than version of himself.

Also starring Aisling Bea, Netflix's Living with Yourself is an agreeably surreal black comedy in which you get two Rudds for the price of one.

For fast-paced crime drama, welcome the return of Top Boy

Since migrating from Channel 4 to Netflix, Top Boy’s intensity has gone up a few notches, with the excellent Ashley Walters returning as Dushane (above left), the London drug dealer who is intent on becoming “top boy” once again.

However, a ruthless rival (Micheal Ward, above right) stands in his way in this authentic and powerful crime drama that recalls The Wire.

Enjoy Sky Entertainment and Netflix on Sky Q for just £25 a month. Visit sky.com for more details