Euro TV fans, you now have one or more ways to stream sixteen international series that have been hits in their home countries and gaining popularity on this side of the Atlantic.
Unless otherwise noted, each of the series listed below is shown in its original language with English subtitles.
Alpine House (Alpimaja) (Estonian)
This ripped-from-the-headlines, five-part drama centers on the political corruption and human greed that enable sports doping. The story begins with the Estonian women’s swimming team being stripped of their Olympic medals after their doping is exposed. Public Relations expert Martin Kütt (Ivo Uukkivi, Kelgukoerad) is called in to diffuse the situation, but new revelations threaten to escalate the scandal and bring down the government. Alpine House, which premiered in the US on Eurochannel, is now streaming on Amazon Video and Eurochannel’s Dailymotion channel.
Barbara’s Law (La loi de Barbara) (French)
Two-time César Awards winner Josiane Balasko (French Twist) stars in this three-parter as the eponymous Barbara Malo, a by-the-book attorney who takes on cases in which guilty verdicts seem to be foregone conclusions. Barbara’s Law, which premiered in the US on Eurochannel, is now streaming on Amazon Video. (Balasko didn’t return for Season 2, so the show was renamed La Loi d’Alexandre and stars four-time César Awards nominee Gérard Jugnot as attorney Alexandre Laurent. Stay tuned for updates about if and when Season 2 will screen in the US.
The Churchmen: Season 1 (Ainsi soient-ils) (French)
The first season of this award-winning drama follows the lives of five young men, candidates for the priesthood, who arrive at the Capuchin Seminary in Paris for training. As they prepare for ordination, they must contend with temptation, tests of faith, and even church politics. (For further details, read this article.) The Churchmen: Season 1, which premiered in the US on MHz Networks, is now streaming on Amazon Video, Hulu Plus, and MHz Choice, the latter of which recently premiered Season 2.
Crowns & Jewels (Dutch/Netherlands)
Two biopic miniseries — Bernhard, Scoundrel of Orange (Bernhard, Schavuit van Oranje) and Beatrix, Orange Under Fire (Beatrix, Oranje onder Vuur) — make up this series about the Netherlands’ royal family, the House of Orange. Based on actual events, the first four episodes center on the life of Prince Bernhard, the real-life inspiration for Ian Fleming’s James Bond, while the second four focus on Queen Beatrix, up to her abdication from the throne. (Click on the links above for further details.) Both seasons of Crowns & Jewels, which premiered in the US on Eurochannel, are now streaming on Amazon Video and Eurochannel’s Dailymotion channel.
Easy Living: Season 1 (Helppo elämä) (Finnish)
This character-driven drama stars Venla Awards Best Actor winner Carl-Kristian Rundman (The Border) as Tapio Mikkonen, who owes millions from a deal gone bust. To keep his wife (Anu Sinisalo, Beck) and children from finding out he isn’t the successful entrepreneur he claims to be, Tapio pulls scams and does dirty work for a mobster… until he decides to go legit. (For further details, read this article.) Season 1 of Easy Living, which premiered in the US on Acorn TV, is now also streaming on Netflix, where Seasons 2 and 3 premiered on 5 May 2016.
ESSR: Seasons 1 & 2 (ENSV: Eesti Nõukogude Sotsialistlik Vabariik) (Estonian)
One of the most successful programs ever made in Estonia, this 1980s-set, sitcom-soap-opera series follows the lives of an average Estonian family living in the countryside under the Communist regime (when the country was still the ESSR, Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic). The first 14 episodes (of 30) of ESSR, which premiered in the US on Eurochannel, are now streaming on Amazon Video and Eurochannel’s Dailymotion channel.
The Heavy Water War (Kampen om tungtvannet) (Norwegian)
Based on actual events, this six-part historical drama stars Espen Klouman Høiner (Mammon) as Norwegian scientist Leif Tronstad, and Christoph Bach (Tatort) as German theoretical physicist and Nobel Prize winner Werner Heisenberg. The series follows both sides of the story centering on heavy water: how the Nazis attempt to build nuclear weapons to defeat the Allies during World War II, and how a group of young Norwegian soldiers foil those efforts by sabotaging the only hydro plant in Europe where heavy water is available. (For further details, read this article.) The Heavy Water War, which premiered in the US on Netflix, is now also streaming on Amazon Video and MHz Choice.
Kveta Mysteries (Ach, ty vraždy!) (Czech)
This humorous, seven-episode mystery miniseries centers on the crime-solving escapades of Květa Kalendová (Jirina Bohdalová, The Ear) and her 27-year-old grandson, Kamil (Václav Jílek, Doktori z Pocátku). He’s a cop on the verge of being thrown off the police force, and she’s a retired lawyer and amateur actress who dons costumes and disguises to help Kamil catch the criminals that the Czech police can’t, and saves his job each time. Kveta Mysteries, which premiered in the US on Eurochannel, is now streaming on Amazon Video and Eurochannel’s Dailymotion channel.
The Life of Verdi (La vita di Verdi) (Italian)
This seven-part biopic stars English actor Ronald Pickup (The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel) as Giuseppe Verdi, the famed Italian composer renowned for his operas, including La Traviata, Rigoletto, and Aida. Until his death in 1901 at the age of 87, Verdi experienced popular acclaim as well as scandal, heartache, and the effects of social upheaval. The Life of Verdi, which premiered in the US on PBS’ Great Performances in 1983, was recently brought back to telly by Acorn TV. It is also now streaming (in English, dubbed) on Amazon Video.
Mammon: Season 1 (Norwegian)
Both seasons of this conspiracy thriller series star Jon Øigarden (Dag, The Half Brother) as journalist Peter Verås. In Season1 Peter uncovers evidence of massive financial fraud involving Norway’s top-level financiers and policy makers… and his brother. The closer Peter gets to the truth, the more dangerous it becomes for him and his family. Mammon: Season 1, which premiered in the US on MHz Choice, is now also streaming on Amazon Video. Season 2 premiered in early 2016 in Norway. Stay tuned for updates about if and when it will screen in the US.
Occupied: Season 1 (Okkupert) (Norwegian)
The real-world Russian government took umbrage over this series’ storyline, which revolves around that country’s (fictional) EU-sanctioned invasion of Norway after the latter’s government halts all oil production due to the effects of climate change. As Norwegian Prime Minister Jesper Berg (Henrik Mestad, Lilyhammer) grows increasingly frustrated with Russian Ambassador Irina Sidorova (Ingeborga Dapkūnaitė, Wallander), some amongst Norway’s citizenry take matters into their own hands to get the occupiers to leave. (For further details, read this article.) Occupied: Season 1, which premiered in the US on Netflix, is now also streaming on Amazon Video. (Pivot is currently showing it on cable.) Season 2 is slated to premiere in Norway in 2017. Stay tuned for updates about if and when it will screen in the US.
Paris (French)
Jérôme Robart (Nicolas Le Floch) features in the ensemble cast of this drama reminiscent of Robert Altman’s Short Cuts. The six-part serial follows the lives of various individuals from a cross-section of Parisian society, as they interconnect and intersect each other during one 24-hour period. (For further details, read this article.) Paris, which premiered in the US on MHz Networks, is now streaming on Amazon Video and Mhz Choice.
Second Chance (Toisen kanssa) (Finnish)
Krista Kosonen (Look of a Killer) stars in this six-part drama as Saara Vartia, a married social worker whose longtime desire for a child is finally fulfilled when she discovers she’s pregnant… not by her husband, Touko (Mikko Leppilampi, Nymphs), but Matti (Mikko Nousiainen, Look of a Killer), a guy with whom she has a drunken one-night stand during a family gathering. (So much for her being infertile. Harrumph!) She’s thrilled to bits about her impending motherhood, but Touko and Matti, not so much. Second Chance, which premiered in the US on Eurochannel, is now streaming on Amazon Video and Eurochannel’s Dailymotion channel.
Three Times Manon (3xManon) (French)
Directed by Oscar® winner Jean-Xavier de Lestrade (Murder on a Sunday Morning), this three-part miniseries stars Alba Gaïa Kraghede Bellugi (The Intouchables) as the eponymous Manon, a 15-year-old girl ordered to spend six months in a correctional facility for stabbing her mother. The overarching question is whether or not Manon and other felonious teens can be saved from a life of crime without teachers and officers resorting to threats or violence. Three Times Manon, the Golden FIPA Award winner at the 2014 Biarritz International Festival, premiered in the US on Eurochannel. It is now streaming on Amazon Video.
Torpedo (Norwegian)
Jørgen Langhelle (Arn: The Knight Templar) stars as Terje Jonassen, a torpedo (enforcer) for a local Siberian mobster, who finds his wife murdered with his gun and becomes the prime suspect in the homicide. Complicating the matter of finding the real killer and clearing his name are his young daughter and her nanny, whom he must protect from becoming the next victims. (For further details, read this article.) Torpedo, which officially premiered in the US on MHz Networks, is now streaming on Amazon Video, MHz Choice, and Vimeo (where production company Tenk TV posted all four videos four years ago).
Umbre (Romanian)
Another torpedo is Relu Oncescu (Serban Pavlu, The Japanese Dog), although only his mob colleagues know him as such. What they don’t know is that he has a wife and two children, who are also in the dark. They believe the family patriarch earns a living as a taxi driver. Then Relu has an unfortunate accident while collecting money owed to the local mafia boss, which begins the unraveling of his secret lives. (For further details, read this article.) Umbre, which premiered in the US on Acorn TV, is now also streaming on Hulu.
To see which other Euro TV programs are streaming in the US, visit the sub-pages under the Euro TV Shows by Language page.
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