Acorn TV is a subscription streaming service specializing in mysteries, dramas, and comedies from Britain, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and Europe. It carries thousands of hours of commercial-free programming, adds new content every Monday, and is owned by AMC Networks. A subscription costs $8.99/month or $89.99/year, with a 7-day free trial for new customers.
This page covers the full Acorn TV show library organized by genre, country, and what’s new in 2026 — so you can decide whether it’s worth subscribing or find your next binge. Not sure how Acorn TV compares to other services you already pay for? The streaming service comparison tool makes it easy to stack them side by side.
What Is Acorn TV?
Acorn TV launched in 2011 as a niche streaming service for fans of British and international television. The service is owned by RLJ Entertainment, a joint venture between AMC Networks, which holds an 83% controlling stake, and the RLJ Companies, which holds the remaining 17%.
It does not carry live TV. Everything is on-demand. Acorn TV describes itself as the leading streaming service for international mysteries and crime dramas — covering everything from the criminally cozy to the daringly dark.
How Much Does Acorn TV Cost?
Acorn TV offers two plans: $8.99/month or $89.99/year. New subscribers get a 7-day free trial. Annual memberships can also be purchased as a gift. The annual plan saves you roughly $18 compared to paying month to month.
If you’re comparing the cost against other streaming services you’re already paying for, the cord-cutting savings calculator can show you the actual monthly difference.
What Devices Support Acorn TV?
Acorn TV is available through apps for Apple, Android, Chromecast, Roku, and Amazon Fire TV devices, as well as any web browser. You can also subscribe as an add-on channel through Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV Channels, or The Roku Channel.
If you’re running Acorn TV on a Fire TV device, the Amazon Fire Stick free channels list is worth bookmarking alongside it — there’s a lot of free content to round out your setup.
Acorn TV Show List by Genre
Mysteries & Detective Dramas
This is the core of Acorn TV’s library — and the reason most people subscribe. The selection runs deeper than any other streaming service in this category.
Midsomer Murders — All 24 seasons of the longest-running British mystery series. A detective investigates murders in the English countryside. Slow-burn and character-driven.
Murdoch Mysteries — Set in early 1900s Toronto, the series follows Detective William Murdoch as he investigates murders using forensic methods unusual for the time. Season 19 is currently airing in 2026.
My Life Is Murder — Lucy Lawless as a sharp-tongued retired detective who can’t stop solving cases in New Zealand. Season 5 premiered in January 2026.
Agatha Raisin — A retired PR executive turned amateur detective in the Cotswolds. Light, fast, and funny.
Vera — Brenda Blethyn as a brilliant but difficult detective in Northumberland. 13 seasons. One of the most acclaimed British crime dramas ever made.
Doc Martin — A surgeon with a blood phobia becomes a GP in a small Cornish village. 10 seasons.
Agatha Christie’s Poirot — David Suchet’s definitive portrayal across 25 years. Acorn TV carries all available seasons, giving subscribers access to the complete run of Christie’s most famous adaptations.
Agatha Christie’s Marple — Six seasons of Miss Marple adaptations starring Geraldine McEwan and Julia McKenzie.
Jack Irish — Guy Pearce as a Melbourne lawyer turned debt collector drawn into crime. Based on Peter Temple’s novels.
Whitstable Pearl — A former police prodigy runs a restaurant by day and solves murders in a Kent seaside town.
Miss Scarlet & The Duke — A woman fights to become London’s first female detective in Victorian England. 4 seasons.
Rebus — Ken Stott as the hard-edged Edinburgh detective from Ian Rankin’s novels.
Harry Wild — Jane Seymour as a retired professor who teams up with her detective son to solve murders in Dublin.
Bloodlands — James Nesbitt in a Northern Ireland thriller co-executive produced by Jed Mercurio. 2 seasons.
Dalgliesh — Bertie Carvel as Adam Dalgliesh, the poet-detective from P.D. James’s novels. Quietly one of the best crime dramas on the service.
Deadwater Fell — David Tennant and Cush Jumbo in a dark four-part drama about a Scottish village murder.
Dramas
Keeping Faith — A Welsh solicitor searches for her missing husband while holding her family and business together. Won a BAFTA Cymru. Available in Welsh with subtitles or English dub.
Hidden Assets — An Irish-Belgian-Canadian crime drama following Ireland’s Criminal Assets Bureau as it tracks dirty money between County Clare and Antwerp using financial forensics. Season 3 aired in early 2026.
Total Control — An Australian political thriller following a prime minister who tries to use an Indigenous woman’s popularity for political advantage, setting off a power struggle shaped by ambition and revenge. Rachel Griffiths and Deborah Mailman star.
The Last Anniversary — Adapted from Liane Moriarty’s novel. Teresa Palmer inherits a house on a remote island and uncovers buried family secrets. Produced by the team behind Big Little Lies.
Detectorists — Two amateur metal detectorists in the English countryside. Won multiple BAFTAs. One of the most beloved British comedies of the past decade, though it sits firmly in drama-comedy territory.
The Hour — A BBC period drama set in a 1950s newsroom. Sharp, political, and underrated.
Law & Order: UK — The British adaptation of the American procedural. 8 seasons.
Comedies
Detectorists — Equally at home in comedy as in drama. One of the gentlest, best-written British series of its generation.
Under the Vines — Rebecca Gibney and Charles Edwards as two strangers who inherit a New Zealand vineyard together. A romantic comedy that actually earns the label.
Ms. Fisher’s Modern Murder Mysteries — A groovy 1960s spin-off of Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries, following Peregrine Fisher (Geraldine Hakewill).
Documentaries & Talk Shows
The Graham Norton Show — The BAFTA-award-winning talk show featuring big celebrity guests and sharp conversation. Season 33 is currently running with new episodes every Friday.
Acorn TV also carries nature documentaries, travel series, and cultural specials. A recent addition follows videographer Robbie Cumming on a narrowboat journey across 300 miles of Midlands and northern England canals.
Period & Historical Series
Agatha Christie’s Poirot — 1930s Belgium and England. The most complete Christie adaptation available anywhere.
Murdoch Mysteries — Toronto, 1900s. Consistently the best period mystery series running.
Miss Scarlet & The Duke — Victorian London.
The Hour — 1950s Britain.
Acorn TV Originals (Full List 2026)
Acorn TV Originals are series commissioned or co-produced exclusively for the platform. The current and recent slate includes:
- My Life Is Murder (Lucy Lawless)
- Hidden Assets
- Harry Wild (Jane Seymour)
- Signora Volpe (Emilia Fox)
- The Chelsea Detective (Adrian Scarborough)
- Bloodlands (James Nesbitt)
- Whitstable Pearl (Kerry Godliman)
- Under the Vines (Rebecca Gibney)
- Dalgliesh (Bertie Carvel)
- Art Detectives (Stephen Moyer)
- Irish Blood (Alicia Silverstone)
- Murder Before Evensong (Matthew Lewis)
- You’re Killing Me (Brooke Shields)
Mystery Road: Origin is also a co-produced Original — an Australian prequel series set in the Outback.
For a broader look at what the parent company offers, the AMC+ channels list covers the full AMC Networks streaming lineup beyond Acorn TV.
New Shows Added in 2026
January–March 2026
My Life Is Murder, Season 5 — Premiered January 5, 2026. Lucy Lawless stars as a retired cop who can’t stop solving crime, this season tackling cases involving shady aquariums, elite cheer squads, and a deadly island getaway.
Hidden Assets, Season 3 — The new season begins with the brutal murder of investigative journalist Olatz Alzola and her family in Bilbao, linking back to a past CAB raid in Ireland that ended in tragedy.
The Family Next Door — Premiered February 23, 2026. Based on Sally Hepworth’s bestselling novel, Teresa Palmer plays Isabelle, an enigmatic woman who moves into a seaside cul-de-sac and casts suspicion on four neighboring families as she investigates an unresolved mystery.
Murdoch Mysteries, Season 19 — Premiered March 2, 2026. New episodes air every Monday. This season features a murder inside a morgue, hostage situations, and a case solved with Annie Oakley’s help.
Mystery Road: Origin, Season 2 — Premiered March 23, 2026. Detective Jay Swan and Mary explore a new world when a series of deaths and a crime that strikes close to home reveal the sinister depths of their new community.
Coming Spring 2026
You’re Killing Me — A new Acorn TV Original starring and executive produced by Brooke Shields. Set in a New England town, the mystery follows bestselling novelist Allie, who teams up with a podcaster to find the killer of a close friend. Tom Cavanagh co-stars as the local detective.
The Feud on Shelbury Drive — Emma and John live on Shelbury Drive when a home renovation dispute between neighbors escalates into paranoia, life-threatening secrets, and obsession.
Not sure what to watch first? The what to watch tonight tool can help you pick based on mood and genre.
Acorn TV Content by Country
United Kingdom — The largest segment. Covers England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Mystery, period drama, contemporary drama, and comedy all well represented. Fans of UK television will also find plenty to explore on the Sky TV channels list and the Freeview channels list for free-to-air British content.
Australia — Strong true-crime adjacent dramas. Jack Irish, My Life Is Murder, Total Control, Mystery Road: Origin, The Last Anniversary, Ms. Fisher’s Modern Murder Mysteries.
Ireland — Bloodlands, Hidden Assets, Harry Wild, Keeping Faith (Wales/Ireland co-production).
Canada — Murdoch Mysteries is the flagship Canadian title. Now entering Season 19. Canadian subscribers looking for additional content may also want to check the Crave TV channels list for complementary programming.
New Zealand — Under the Vines, My Life Is Murder (filmed in Auckland).
Europe — Acorn TV carries Nordic noir titles. One recent addition, set in Copenhagen, follows profiler Louise Bergstein as she investigates the execution-style murder of a young gang member in a violent underworld shaped by loyalty and revenge. The service also carries Spanish and German-language titles through content deals with ZDF and other distributors.
Acorn TV vs BritBox: Key Differences
Both services focus on British and international TV. Here’s how they split:
Acorn TV leans heavily into mysteries and crime drama. It has more Australian and Irish content, more Acorn Originals, and a deeper back-catalog of detective series. It also carries The Graham Norton Show.
BritBox is owned jointly by the BBC and ITV. It carries more classic British programming, soap operas (EastEnders, Emmerdale, Coronation Street), reality shows, and recent BBC/ITV dramas not available elsewhere. It costs $8.99/month. You can see the full BritBox channels list to compare titles directly.
If you want pure mystery and crime drama, Acorn TV wins. If you want a broader cross-section of British TV including soaps and reality, BritBox is the better fit. Many fans subscribe to both. Use the best streaming bundle finder to see whether combining the two makes financial sense for you.
How to Start Watching Acorn TV
New subscribers get a 7-day free trial. After that, the cost is $8.99/month or $89.99/year.
You can sign up directly at acorn.tv or subscribe as an add-on through:
- Amazon Prime Video Channels
- Apple TV Channels
- The Roku Channel — the Roku channels list shows everything else available on the platform alongside Acorn TV
Subscribing via a third party like Amazon Prime Video simplifies billing and account management for many users. New episodes drop every Monday. There are no ads on any tier.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many shows does Acorn TV have? Acorn TV carries thousands of hours of content across hundreds of series. The library spans over 30 years of British and international television, with new titles added weekly.
Is Acorn TV free? No. Acorn TV costs $8.99/month or $89.99/year. A 7-day free trial is available for new customers only. If you’re looking for free alternatives, the Tubi TV channels list and the Pluto TV channel list are worth exploring for no-cost options.
Does Acorn TV have live TV? No. Everything on Acorn TV is on-demand. There is no live TV, no news channels, and no sports. For live TV options, the YouTube TV channels list or Sling TV channels list cover the main live streaming providers.
Can I get Acorn TV through Amazon Prime? Yes. Acorn TV is available as an add-on channel through Prime Video. You subscribe through Amazon and watch through the Prime Video app.
What’s the difference between Acorn TV and AMC+? AMC+ is AMC Networks’ flagship streaming service carrying AMC, BBC America, IFC, Sundance, Shudder, and more. Acorn TV is a separate, standalone service focused only on British and international mysteries and dramas. They share an ownership structure but operate independently with different content libraries.
Does Acorn TV have Midsomer Murders? Yes. All 24 seasons of Midsomer Murders are available on Acorn TV.
Are there subtitles on Acorn TV? Yes. Subtitles are available for most titles, including foreign-language European series.
Acorn TV is a strong choice if your primary interest is crime drama, detective mysteries, or international British-adjacent television. The library runs deep on exactly those genres, the price is lower than most major streamers, and the 7-day free trial gives you enough time to work through the first episode of four or five different series before committing.
