The Fall
Watch on: Netflix (UK); Prime Video (US)
Move over the Bay Harbor Butcher, it’s the turn of the Belfast Strangler. Like Dexter, The Fall explores how a serial killer can lead a double life in mainstream society, though unlike Dexter, murderer Paul Spector isn’t doling out vigilante justice, just satisfying his own perverse urges. The Tourist’s Jamie Dornan plays Spector, a married father of two and bereavement counsellor with a side line in stalking and strangling women. The true lead in this Northern Irish thriller is Gillian Anderson as Superintendent Stella Gibson, the detective brought in from England to hunt the killer. Her cat-and-mouse dynamic with Spector is the real engine of this three-season drama from writer Allan Cubitt. – LM
Manhunt
Watch on: Britbox, ITV Hub (UK); Acorn (US)
A more sober choice here for those with an interest in Dexter’s procedural side. Martin Clunes impresses as the lead in this true crime dramatisation of the hunt for British serial killer Levi Bellfield. Clunes played DCI Colin Sutton, the police detective who led the investigation into Bellfield following the 2004 murder of French student Amélie Delagrange. Sutton and his team’s dogged pursuit led to Bellfield’s arrest and eventual conviction for the attempted murder and murder of three women and one girl. Like many of the above, this isn’t a sensationalised take on serial killers, but a well-balanced dramatisation of a true crime investigation. Inspired by Sutton’s memoir, this isn’t Bellfield’s story, but that of the people who tracked him down and took him off the streets. A second series, subtitled ‘The Night Stalker’ was released in 2021, this time focusing on the pursuit of serial rapist Delroy Grant. – LM
The Serpent
Watch on: BBC iPlayer (UK), Netflix (UK & US)
If sociopathy is your TV itch, then this drama following the hunt for real life 1970s serial killer Charles Sobhraj may well scratch it. Based on a true story with real victims, The Serpent is obviously not as lurid or straightforwardly entertaining as Dexter – nor should it be – but the portrait it paints of a conscienceless narcissist is ultimately fascinating. This is a slow-burn series that rewards patience as it jumps around between countries and years, following Sobhraj as he robs and murders backpackers along South-Asia’s so-called ‘Hippie Trail’. Stylishly made with careful period detail, the story follows a Dutch diplomat’s lengthy investigation into Sobhraj’s crimes. A Prophet’s Tahar Rahim plays Sobhraj, with Doctor Who’s Jenna Coleman playing his conflicted partner. Written by Ripper Street’s Richard Warlow, the drama examines how a serial killer can go undetected for so long. – LM