Emily Bashforth
Published January 31, 2026 3:45pm
Updated January 31, 2026 4:11pm
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This conspiracy thriller has gained a cult following (Picture: Channel 4)
TV fanatics are rediscovering a 2013 Channel 4 gem that’s been declared the ‘perfect’ thriller.
Despite being released 13 years ago, Utopia is still having an impact, with new fans admitting they ‘can’t believe’ they’ve never heard of it before.
Consisting of 12 episodes in total, the British conspiracy thriller ran for two series from 2013 to 2014 and acquired a cult following.
Written by Dennis Kelly (whose most recent work includes BBC series Waiting for the Out), it follows a group of people who meet online and believe a bizarre graphic novel called The Utopia Experiments predicted the disasters of the previous century, such as mad cow disease.
After getting their hands on the rumoured unpublished sequel’s manuscript, they soon realise they are in over their heads, as a clandestine organisation known only as The Network is after it.
Willing to kill them to get their hands on what they reckon holds the answers to future events, The Network will stop at nothing, leading to what critics have since hailed as ‘one of the decade’s most electrifying thrillers’.
Utopia was released on Channel 4 in 2013 (Picture: Channel 4)
The cast of Utopia includes Fiona O’Shaughnessy as Jessica Hyde, a woman who has been on the run from The Network for as long as she can remember.
She stars alongside the core group Ian (Nathan Stewart-Jarrett), Becky (Alexandra Roach), Wilson (Adeel Akhtar), and troubled 11-year-old Grant (Oliver Woollford), who is posing as an adult in the online forum.
In the years since its initial release, TV fans have revisited Utopia when it appeared to have foreshadowed real-life incidents.
For example, conspiracy theorists have drawn parallels between scenes in the show and the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic. They have speculated that coronavirus was manufactured in the same way as the Russia flu was in Utopia.
Writer Kelly has been forced to address such claims, denying in the past that the programme mirrors reality and insisting that it is entirely fictional.
He has also since said he is unsure whether he would make the same show in modern times, given how society has changed and conspiracy theories have become more normalised.
The show’s writer had to speak out after claims it reflected real-life events (Picture: Channel 4)
Still, that hasn’t prevented anyone from speaking highly of it, with Utopia boasting a perfect 100% score from critics on Rotten Tomatoes and a respectable 93% from audiences.
Among the reviews, it is described as ‘clever’ and ‘addictive’, with commenters praising the ‘intricate plotting and appealingly ordinary protagonists’.
Meanwhile, Nawt W calls it ‘exceedingly gripping from the first opening scene onwards’, Joshg G brands it a ‘TV masterpiece’, and Kevin K says it’s an ‘underrated classic’.
As for those just binge-watching it for the first time, on Reddit, Burwhale_The_Avenger commented: ‘Possibly the best drama Channel 4 ever made, and certainly not surpassed since. Always happy to see people talk about it still.’
‘Phenomenal bit of TV. Cinematography, score, acting, narrative – all sublime’, echoed 32BitBrit.
Others admitted it was a ‘shame it went unfinished’, despite how the series had ‘really got going’ by the time it abruptly ended.
Utopia eventually got a US adaptation, but it was met with negative reviews (Picture: Amazon Prime)
Indeed, Utopia was cancelled by Channel 4 on August 12, 2014, with an official statement reading at the time: ‘Utopia is truly channel-defining: strikingly original, powered by Dennis Kelly’s extraordinary voice, and brought to life in all its technicolor glory through Marc Munden’s undeniable creative flair and vision, the team at Kudos delivered a series which has achieved fervent cult status over two brilliantly warped and nail-biting series.
‘It also has the honour of ensuring audiences will never look at a spoon in the same way again.
Comment now Are you a fan of Utopia?Comment Now‘It’s always painful to say goodbye to shows we love, but it’s a necessary part of being able to commission new drama, a raft of which are launching on the channel throughout 2015.’
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Utopia had been due to receive an American adaptation in the earlier 2010s via HBO, but it never went ahead due to budget disputes.
Amazon acquired the rights to the series in April 2018, and an American version was released in September 2020, with Gone Girl author Gillian Flynn serving as its showrunner.
However, the version was cancelled after one series, having been met with negative reviews and poor ratings.
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Watch Utopia (2013) on Apple TV+. Stream Utopia (2020) on Amazon Prime Video.
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