Golden Globes 2021/2022 Printable Ballot

NOTE: This post is about the Golden Globes that will be Awarded in Junuary 2022 not the ones that were given out in 2021.

Download our free 2022 Golden Globes Ballot PDF here! Or save the images by clicking on the thumbnails! Usually considered the main start to the big awards season and what I use as my warm-up at predicting awards winners is the Hollywood Foreign Press Association’s Golden Globe Awards, on Sunday January 9th.

Join in with your friends and family using our 2022 Golden Globes Ballot you can print out and fill in!

I’ve not yet seen very many of these nominees at all, so my predictions will be based more on what I’ve heard than the very little I’ve seen, which may increase a tiny bit in the weeks leading up to bigger Awards such as the BAFTAs and Oscars. Have a go yourself and please comment below what your predictions are. I’ve will be using my normal scoring system, 1. to indicate my first choice of what I think will win, 2. to show what I think could beat my first choice, and usually I put a P. for my personal choice of what I think should win. This can later be scored as 2pts for a correct first choice win and 1pt for a correct 2nd choice, no points are given for personal preferences winning as that’s more out of interest and self-expression but really you can use whatever scoring system you like!

 

Again the PDF download is here for the 2022 Golden Globes Ballot and I’ll do a post in a few weeks with my usually terrible guesses of who’s going to win!golden-globes

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Golden Globes 2021 / 2022 Nominations and Printable Ballot

Download our free 2022 Golden Globes Ballot PDF here! Or as images by clicking on the thumbnails!

The main start to the big awards season and what I consider to be my warm-up at predicting awards winners is the Hollywood Foreign Press Association’s Golden Globe Awards. This year’s low-key ceremony to honor the releases of 2021 and early 2022 will be on Sunday, January 9th 2022. Join in with your friends and family using our 2022 Golden Globes Ballot you can print out and fill in!

The awards will not currently be televised in the US, and there’s also no host as yet announced. Will this change? I expect someone will step up to host, but in a year where they could’ve really boosted the profile of musicals and other overlooked productions and performances, the Globes are being strongly boycotted while they sort themselves out.

The complete list of nominees are as follows:

Best Television Series, Musical or Comedy

“The Great” (Hulu) 
“Hacks” (HBO/HBO Max)
“Only Murders in the Building” (Hulu)
“Reservation Dogs” (FX on Hulu)
“Ted Lasso” (Apple TV Plus)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series, Drama

Brian Cox (“Succession”)
Lee Jung-jae (“Squid Game”)
Billy Porter (“Pose”)
Jeremy Strong (“Succession”)
Omar Sy (“Lupin)

Best Performance by an Actress, Limited Series, Anthology Series or a Motion Picture made for Television

Jessica Chastain (“Scenes From a Marriage”)
Cynthia Erivo (“Genius: Aretha”) 
Elizabeth Olsen (“WandaVision“) 
Margaret Qualley (“Maid”) 
Kate Winslet (“Mare of Easttown”)

Best Director, Motion Picture

Kenneth Branagh (“Belfast”) 
Jane Campion (“The Power of the Dog”)
Maggie Gyllenhaal (“The Lost Daughter”)
Steven Spielberg (“West Side Story”) 
Denis Villeneuve (“Dune”) 

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy

Marion Cotillard (“Annette”)
Alana Haim (“Licorice Pizza”) 
Jennifer Lawrence (“Don’t Look Up”) 
Emma Stone (“Cruella”)
Rachel Zegler (“West Side Story”)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture, Drama

Mahershala Ali (“Swan Song”)
Javier Bardem (“Being the Ricardos”)
Benedict Cumberbatch (“The Power of the Dog”) 
Will Smith (“King Richard”) 
Denzel Washington (“The Tragedy of Macbeth”) 

Best Television Series, Drama

“Lupin” (Netflix)
“The Morning Show” (Apple TV Plus)
“Pose” (FX)
“Squid Game” (Netflix)
“Succession” (HBO/HBO Max)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series, Drama

Uzo Aduba (“In Treatment”)
Jennifer Aniston (“The Morning Show”)
Christine Baranski (“The Good Fight)
Elisabeth Moss (“The Handmaid’s Tale”)
Michaela Jaé Rodriguez (“Pose”)

Best Performance by an Actor, Limited Series, Anthology Series or Motion Picture made for Television

Paul Bettany (“WandaVision”)
Oscar Isaac (“Scenes From a Marriage”)
Michael Keaton (“Dopesick”)
Ewan McGregor (“Halston”)
Tahar Rahim (“The Serpent”)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy

Leonardo DiCaprio (“Don’t Look Up”) 
Peter Dinklage (“Cyrano”) 
Andrew Garfield (“Tick, Tick … Boom!”) 
Cooper Hoffman (“Licorice Pizza”)
Anthony Ramos (“In the Heights”)

Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture

Ben Affleck (“The Tender Bar”) 
Jamie Dornan (“Belfast”) 
Ciarán Hinds (“Belfast”) 
Troy Kotsur (“CODA”) 
Kodi Smit-McPhee (“The Power of the Dog”) 

Best Original Score, Motion Picture

“The French Dispatch” (Searchlight Pictures) — Alexandre Desplat 
“Encanto” (Walt Disney Pictures) — Germaine Franco
“The Power of the Dog” (Netflix) — Jonny Greenwood 
“Parallel Mothers” (Sony Pictures Classic) — Alberto Iglesias 
“Dune” (Warner Bros.) — Hans Zimmer 

Best Actress in a TV Series, Musical or Comedy

Hannah Einbinder (“Hacks”)
Elle Fanning (“The Great”)
Issa Rae (“Insecure”)
Tracee Ellis Ross (“Black-ish”)
Jean Smart (“Hacks”)

Best Limited Series, Anthology Series or a Motion Picture made for Television

Dopesick” (Hulu)
“Impeachment: American Crime Story” (FX)
“Maid” (Netflix) 
“Mare of Easttown” (HBO/HBO Max)
The Underground Railroad” (Amazon Prime Video)

Best Supporting Actor, Television

Billy Crudup (“The Morning Show”)
Kieran Culkin (“Succession”)
Mark Duplass (“The Morning Show”)
Brett Goldstein (“Ted Lasso”)
O Yeong-su (“Squid Game”)

Best Picture, Musical or Comedy

“Cyrano” (MGM)
“Don’t Look Up” (Netflix) 
“Licorice Pizza” (MGM) 
“Tick, Tick … Boom!” (Netflix) 
“West Side Story” (20th Century Studios / Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures) 

Best Supporting Actress, Motion Picture

Caitríona Balfe (“Belfast”) 
Ariana DeBose (“West Side Story”) 
Kirsten Dunst (“The Power of the Dog”) 
Aunjanue Ellis (“King Richard”) 
Ruth Negga (“Passing”)

Best Picture, Foreign Language

“Compartment No. 6” (Sony Pictures Classics) — Finland, Russia, Germany
“Drive My Car” (Janus Films) — Japan
“The Hand of God” (Netflix) — Italy
“A Hero” (Amazon Studios) — France, Iran
“Parallel Mothers” (Sony Pictures Classics) — Spain

Best Screenplay, Motion Picture

Paul Thomas Anderson — “Licorice Pizza” (MGM/United Artists Releasing) 
Kenneth Branagh — “Belfast” (Focus Features) 
Jane Campion — “The Power of the Dog” (Netflix) 
Adam McKay — “Don’t Look Up” (Netflix)
Aaron Sorkin — “Being the Ricardos” (Amazon Studios)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture, Drama

Jessica Chastain (“The Eyes of Tammy Faye”)
Olivia Colman (“The Lost Daughter”) 
Nicole Kidman (“Being the Ricardos”)
Lady Gaga (“House of Gucci”) 
Kristen Stewart (“Spencer”) 

Best Motion Picture, Drama

“Belfast” (Focus Features) 
“CODA” (Apple) 
“Dune” (Warner Bros.) 
“King Richard” (Warner Bros.) 
“The Power of the Dog” (Netflix) 

Best Television Actor, Musical / Comedy Series

Anthony Anderson (“Black-ish”)
Nicholas Hoult (“The Great”)
Steve Martin (“Only Murders in the Building”)
Martin Short (“Only Murders in the Building”)
Jason Sudeikis (“Ted Lasso”)

Best Supporting Actress, Television

Jennifer Coolidge (“White Lotus”)
Kaitlyn Dever (“Dopesick”)
Andie MacDowell (“Maid”)
Sarah Snook (“Succession”)
Hannah Waddingham (“Ted Lasso”)

Best Original Song, Motion Picture

“Be Alive” from “King Richard” (Warner Bros.) — Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, Dixson 
“Dos Orugitas” from “Encanto” (Walt Disney Pictures) — Lin-Manuel Miranda 
“Down to Joy” from “Belfast” (Focus Features) — Van Morrison 
“Here I Am (Singing My Way Home)” from “Respect” (MGM/United Artists Releasing) — Jamie Hartman, Jennifer Hudson, Carole King 
“No Time to Die” from “No Time to Die” (MGM/United Artists Releasing) — Billie Eilish, Finneas O’Connell 

Best Motion Picture, Animated

“Encanto” (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures) 
“Flee” (Neon) 
“Luca” (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
“My Sunny Maad” (Totem Films)
“Raya and the Last Dragon” (Walt Disney Studios)

Again the free PDF download is here for the 2022 Golden Globes Ballot and I’ll do a post in a few weeks with my usually terrible guesses of who’s going to win!

golden-globes
NOTE: This post is about the Golden Globes that will be awarded on January 9th 2022 to honor the releases of 2021 and early 2022. Lists and sheets for past years are also available on this site.

73rd Annual Emmy Awards Nominations List 2021

Here’s the list of nominees for the 73rd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards in 2021:

DRAMA SERIES

Bridgerton
The Crown

The Handmaid’s Tale
This Is Us
The Mandalorian
Lovecraft Country
Pose
The Boys

COMEDY SERIES

Ted Lasso
Hacks
The Flight Attendant
The Kominsky Method
PEN15
Cobra Kai
Emily in Paris
Black-ish

LEAD ACTRESS, DRAMA

Emma Corrin, The Crown
Olivia Colman, The Crown
Elisabeth Moss, The Handmaid’s Tale
Uzo Aduba, In Treatment
MJ Rodriguez, Pose
Jurnee Smollett, Lovecraft Country

LEAD ACTOR, DRAMA

Josh O’Connor, The Crown
Sterling K. Brown, This Is Us
Rege-Jean Page, Bridgerton
Matthew Rhys, Perry Mason
Billy Porter, Pose
Jonathan Majors, Lovecraft Country

SUPPORTING ACTOR, DRAMA

Michael K. Williams, Lovecraft Country
Tobias Menzies, The Crown
John Lithgow, Perry Mason
O-T Fagbenle, The Handmaid’s Tale
Bradley Whitford, The Handmaid’s Tale
Max Minghella, The Handmaid’s Tale

SUPPORTING ACTRESS, DRAMA

Helena Bonham Carter, The Crown
Gillian Anderson, The Crown
Ann Dowd, The Handmaid’s Tale
Madeline Brewer, The Handmaid’s Tale
Yvonne Strahovski, The Handmaid’s Tale
Cynthia Nixon, Ratched
Aunjanue Ellis, Lovecraft Country
Samira Wiley, The Handmaid’s Tale

LEAD ACTRESS, COMEDY

Kaley Cuoco, The Flight Attendant
Jean Smart, Hacks
Aidy Bryant, Shrill
Allison Janney, Mom
Tracee Ellis Ross, Black-ish

LEAD ACTOR, COMEDY

Anthony Anderson, Black-ish
Jason Sudekis, Ted Lasso
Michael Douglas, The Kominsky Method
Kenan Thompson, Kenan
William H. Macy, Shameless

SUPPORTING ACTOR, COMEDY

Brett Goldstein, Ted Lasso
Bowen Yang, Saturday Night Live
Brendan Hunt, Ted Lasso
Carl Clemons-Hopkins, Hacks
Nick Mohammed, Ted Lasso
Paul Reiser, The Kominsky Method
Jeremy Swift, Ted Lasso
Kenan Thompson, Saturday Night Live

SUPPORTING ACTRESS, COMEDY

Hannah Waddingham, Ted Lasso
Juno Temple, Ted Lasso
Rosie Perez, The Flight Attendant
Hannah Einbinder, Hacks
Kate McKinnon, Saturday Night Live
Aidy Bryant, Saturday Night Live
Cecily Strong, Saturday Night Live

LIMITED SERIES

The Queen’s Gambit
Mare of Easttown
I May Destroy You
The Underground Railroad
WandaVision

TV MOVIE

Sylvie’s Love
Uncle Frank
Dolly Parton’s Christmas on the Square
Robin Roberts Presents: Mahalia
Oslo

LEAD ACTRESS, TV MOVIE OR LIMITED SERIES

Anya Taylor-Joy, The Queen’s Gambit
Kate Winslet, Mare of Easttown
Michaela Coel, I May Destroy You
Elizabeth Olsen, WandaVision
Cynthia Erivo, Genius: Aretha

LEAD ACTOR, TV MOVIE OR LIMITED SERIES

Leslie Odom Jr., Hamilton
Hugh Grant, The Undoing
Paul Bettany, WandaVision
Lin-Manuel Miranda, Hamilton
Ewan McGregor, Halston

SUPPORTING ACTRESS, TV MOVIE OR LIMITED SERIES

Kathryn Hahn, WandaVision
Moses Ingram, The Queen’s Gambit
Renée Elise Goldsberry, Hamilton
Jean Smart, Mare of Easttown
Phillipa Soo, Hamilton
Julianne Nicholson, Mare of Easttown

SUPPORTING ACTOR, TV MOVIE OR LIMITED SERIES

Paapa Essiedu, I May Destroy You
Thomas Brodie-Sangster, The Queen’s Gambit
Jonathan Groff, Hamilton
Daveed Diggs, Hamilton
Evan Peters, Mare of Easttown
Anthony Ramos, Hamilton

DRAMA GUEST ACTRESS

Alexis Bledel, The Handmaid’s Tale
Sophie Okonedo, Ratched
McKenna Grace, The Handmaid’s Tale
Claire Foy, The Crown
Phylicia Rashad, This Is Us

DRAMA GUEST ACTOR

Charles Dance, The Crown
Courtney B. Vance, Lovecraft Country
Carl Weathers, The Mandalorian
Timothy Olyphant, The Mandalorian
Don Cheadle, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier

COMEDY GUEST ACTRESS

Yvette Nicole Brown, A Black Lady Sketch Show
Issa Rae, A Black Lady Sketch Show
Jane Adams, Hacks
Maya Rudolph, Saturday Night Live
Kristen Wiig, Saturday Night Live
Bernadette Peters, Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist

COMEDY GUEST ACTOR

Alec Baldwin, Saturday Night Live
Dave Chappelle, Saturday Night Live
Daniel Kaluuya, Saturday Night Live
Dan Levy, Saturday Night Live
Morgan Freeman, The Kominsky Method

ANIMATED PROGRAM

The Simpsons
Big Mouth
Bob’s Burgers
Genndy Tartakovsky’s Primal
South Park: The Pandemic Special

COMPETITION PROGRAM

Top Chef
Nailed It!
RuPaul’s Drag Race
The Amazing Race
The Voice

VARIETY TALK SERIES

Conan
The Daily Show With Trevor Noah

Jimmy Kimmel Live!
Last Week Tonight With John Oliver
The Late Show With Stephen Colbert

VARIETY SKETCH SERIES?

Saturday Night Live
A Black Lady Sketch Show
The Amber Ruffin Show
How To With John Wilson
Tiffany Haddish Presents: They Ready

HOST FOR A REALITY OR COMPETITION PROGRAM

Bobby Berk, Karamo Brown, Tan France, Antoni Porowski, and Jonathan Van Ness, Queer Eye
Nicole Byer, Nailed It
Barbara Corcoran, Mark Cuban, Lori Greiner, Daymond John, Robert Herjavec, and Kevin O’Leary, Shark Tank
RuPaul, RuPaul’s Drag Race
Padma Lakshmi and Tom Colicchio, Top Chef

There are even more categories than this, but I can’t list them all. The full list of nominees is on emmys.com and the winners will be awarded on Sunday, September 19th 2021. 

Golden Globes 2020 / 2021 Printable Ballot Sheet

Click here to download the free printable 2021 Golden Globes Ballot PDF ready for your predictions for the big night on Sunday, February 28th 2021!

The main start to the big awards season and what I consider to be my warm-up at predicting awards winners is the Hollywood Foreign Press Association’s Golden Globe Awards, on Sunday, February 28th. Join in with your friends and family using our 2021 Golden Globes Ballot you can print out and fill in! I’ve not yet seen very many of these nominees at all, so my predictions will be based more on what I’ve heard than the very little I’ve seen, which may increase a tiny bit in the weeks leading up to bigger Awards such as the BAFTAs and Oscars. Have a go yourself and please comment below what your predictions are.

Download our 2021 Golden Globes Ballot PDF here! Or if you prefer to download pictures you can simply save the images below!

I’ll be using my normal scoring system, 1. to indicate my first choice of what I think will win, 2. to show what I think could beat my first choice, and I usually put a P. for my personal choice of what I think should win. This can later be scored as 2pts for a correct first choice win and 1pt for a correct 2nd choice, no points are given for personal preferences winning as that’s more out of interest and self-expression but really you can use whatever scoring system you like!

Golden Globes 2020 / 2021 Nominations and Printable Ballot

Download our free 2021 Golden Globes Ballot PDF here! Or as images by clicking on the thumbnails!

The main start to the big awards season and what I consider to be my warm-up at predicting awards winners is the Hollywood Foreign Press Association’s Golden Globe Awards. This year’s ceremony to honor the releases of 2020 and early 2021 will be on Sunday, February 28th 2021. Join in with your friends and family using our 2021 Golden Globes Ballot you can print out and fill in!

The awards will be presented by the brilliant Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, though they’ll be on opposite sides of the country, Fey in NYC and Poehler in L.A. I’m interested in seeing how their well-honed chemistry works with a physical distance and time delay, I hope they pull it off as I love it when they present awards together. 

The complete list of nominees are as follows:

Best Motion Picture – Drama
The Father
Nomadland
Promising Young Woman
Mank
The Trial of the Chicago 7

Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy
Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
Hamilton
Music
Palm Springs
The Prom

Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama
Riz Ahmed (Sound Of Metal)
Chadwick Boseman (Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom)
Anthony Hopkins (The Father)
Gary Oldman (Mank)
Tahar Rahim (The Mauritanian)

Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama
Viola Davis (Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom)
Andra Day (The United States vs. Billie Holiday)
Vanessa Kirby (Pieces Of A Woman)
Frances McDormand (Nomadland)
Carey Mulligan (Promising Young Woman)

Best Director
Emerald Fennell (Promising Young Woman)
David Fincher (Mank)
Regina King (One Night in Miami)
Aaron Sorkin (The Trial of the Chicago 7)
Chloe Zhao (Nomadland)

Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy
Maria Bakalova (Borat Subsequent Moviefilm)
Anya Taylor-Joy (Emma)
Rosamund Pike (I Care A Lot)
Michelle Pfeiffer (French Exit)
Kate Hudson (Music)

Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy
Sacha Baron Cohen (Borat Subsequent Moviefilm)
Dev Patel (The Personal History Of David Copperfield)
Andy Samberg (Palm Springs)
Lin-Manuel Miranda (Hamilton)
James Corden (The Prom)

Best Actress in a Supporting Role in Any Motion Picture
Glenn Close (Hilbilly Elegy)
Olivia Colman (The Father)
Jodie Foster (The Mauritanian)
Amanda Seyfried (Mank)
Helena Zengel (News Of The World)

Best Actor in a Supporting Role in Any Motion Picture
Daniel Kaluuya (Judas And The Black Messiah)
Sacha Baron Cohen (The Trial of the Chicago 7)
Bill Murray (On The Rocks)
Jared Leto (The Little Things)
Leslie Odom Jr (One Night In Miami)

Best Screenplay – Motion Picture
The Father
Mank
Nomadland
Promising Young Woman
The Trial Of The Chicago 7

Best Television Series – Drama
The Mandalorian
The Crown
Lovecraft Country
Ozark
Ratchet

Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy
Emily in Paris
The Flight Attendant
The Great
Schitt’s Creek
Ted Lasso

Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Drama
Jodie Comer (Killing Eve)
Olivia Colman (The Crown)
Emma Corrin (The Crown)
Laura Linney (Ozark)
Sarah Paulson (Ratched)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Drama
Jason Bateman (Ozark)
Josh O’Connor (The Crown)
Bob Odenkirk (Better Call Saul)
Al Pacino (Hunters)
Matthew Rhys (Perry Mason)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy
Kaley Cuoco (The Flight Attendant)
Elle Fanning (The Great)
Catherine O’Hara (Schitt’s Creek)
Lily Collins (Emily In Paris)
Jane Levy (Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy
Jason Sudeikis (Ted Lasso)
Ramy Youssef (Ramy)
Eugene Levy (Schitt’s Creek)
Nicholas Hoult (The Great)
Don Cheadle (Black Monday)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
Anya Taylor-Joy (The Queen’s Gambit)
Shira Haas (Unorthodox)
Nicole Kidman (The Undoing)
Daisy Edgar-Jones (Normal People)
Cate Blanchett (Mrs. America)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
Ethan Hawke (The Good Lord Bird)
Bryan Cranston (Your Honor)
Hugh Grant (The Undoing)
Jeff Daniels (The Comey Rule)
Mark Ruffalo (I Know This Much Is True)

Best Television Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
The Queen’s Gambit
The Undoing
Unorthodox
Normal People
Small Axe

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion
Helena Bonham Carter (The Crown)
Annie Murphy (Schitt’s Creek)
Julia Garner (Ozark)
Cynthia Nixon (Ratched)
Gillian Anderson (The Crown)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or TV Motion Picture
Brendan Gleeson (The Comey Rule)
Dan Levy (Schitt’s Creek)
Jim Parsons (Hollywood)
John Boyega (Small Axe)
Donald Sutherland (The Undoing)

Best Original Score
The Midnight Sky
Tenet
News of the World
Mank
Soul

Best Motion Picture – Foreign Language
Another Round
La Llorona
The Life Ahead
Minari
Two of Us

Best Motion Picture – Animated
The Croods: A New Age
Onward
Over the Moon
Soul
Wolfwalkers

Best Original Song – Motion Picture
‘Fight For You’ (Judas And The Black Messiah)
‘Io Si (Seen)’ (The Life Ahead)
‘Speak Now’ (One Night In Miami)
‘Tigress & Tweed’ (The US v. Billie Holiday)
‘Hear My Voice’ (The Trial Of The Chicago 7)

Again the free PDF download is here for the 2021 Golden Globes Ballot and I’ll do a post in a few weeks with my usually terrible guesses of who’s going to win!

golden-globes
NOTE: This post is about the Golden Globes that will be awarded on February 28th 2021 to honor the releases of 2020 and early 2021. Lists and sheets for past years are also available on this site.

It it possible to do a top ten for a year like 2020? Let’s see!

With all the upheaval 2020 has brought to cinematic release and TV production, here’s my attempt at a Top 10 of what I’ve most enjoyed this year.

I won’t be ranking the 10 in any particular order because that’d be difficult and I’m not really worried about focusing on what’s ‘the best’ that I’ve seen this year as much as what’s stuck in my head and lingered, and given the depressing world conditions, the valued quality I’ve appreciated is what’s been the most enjoyable.

Off the top, there are a few shows that weren’t necessarily newly released in 2020 but that are maybe new to me, their latest season was something I enjoyed this year, or in some cases just that watching them has proven to be a highlight over the last year where there’s been precious little to look forward to.

‘This is Us’ is only a handful of episodes into Season 5 but I am so grateful for its existence. I love this show, it’s superbly written and acted, throwing twists and turns in the best ways that make it always the most rewarding hour of TV each week. I was so thrilled when they managed to get the season together under new Covid production conditions, and it’s just what was needed. So far, the season has been good, not at its best but setting up some threads that I’m sure will become more fulfilling in a few episodes time. The season has a very different feel, you can tell things have been considerably scaled back out of necessity, but that’s no bad thing as it’s slowed character development down, making meaningful moments out of daily interactions. I love how they’re taking a little more time to build one of the key relationships, though with each great moment I feel the risk growing that things will go wrong and I’ll end up disappointed as I’m very invested in things working out for the characters. That’s a key part of the appeal of this show, despite teasing the future with flash-forward scenes, you never really know what’s going to happen, even if you think you do, and you end up caring deeply.

My lockdown gem has been ‘Bob’s Burgers’, a show that didn’t take long for me to get into, and it’s remained consistently enjoyable for 10 seasons (I’m about halfway through the tenth right now). Having something uplifting that I could rely upon to make me chuckle has been invaluable this year. I’ve formed a habit of watching an episode some days with lunch, and most days before bed, a little half-hour filler that is my default option for ‘something’ to watch. 

Following on nicely from that is ‘Central Park’ by the same creators as ‘Bob’s Burgers’. It’s only released the first season so there wasn’t much to watch, the 10 episodes only lasted me a few days, but I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Another show for which I was late to the party was ‘The Crown’, as I’d only watched a couple of episodes before this year. With the fourth season on the way, I really went for it this time, determined to catch up by the time it was released, with a few weeks break between the second and third to ease the jolt of the cast change. Season 3 included an episode set in my town, which was funny to see the streets and buildings I know so well but haven’t seen with my own eyes for months as I’ve been staying at home. I’m looking forward to seeing how they tackle the more modern history, as what comes next is not just fresher in living memory, but specifically my own. 

Considering my personal reaction to the news it was coming to Disney+, ‘Hamilton’, was the closest thing to a big exciting release this year. While cinemas were all closed with little to look forward to seeing, having this finally available to watch safely at home, costing me nothing extra as it was included in Disney+, it was the closest I’d come to feeling as I do when I travel for a midnight screening of a Marvel movie. It’s a near-flawless example of how to film a stage performance and something that I’ll be going back to time and again to enjoy. 

‘Tenet’ is the only film I’ve seen in the cinema since March, which has to be the longest time between cinema visits since I became an adult, possibly in my entire life (though cinema trips weren’t very frequent in my youth). I’m looking forward to watching this at home soon, as it will benefit for another viewing and especially in an environment where I can adjust the audio for clarity, but it was made for the big-screen spectacle and I’m glad I got the chance to see it in that way. 

‘The Queen’s Gambit’ has been the Netflix hit of the year and has consistently stayed in their top 10 for months since it released (number 5 in the UK today), after binging it in a day it’s not hard to see why. It’s a shame this is a limited series as I’d happily watch another short season with excellent storytelling, interesting characters and the fascinating world of competitive chess. 

‘Parasite’, is the film this year that’s most stuck in my mind, there’s been nothing quite like it. It’s superbly put together in every way and has some wonderful twists that had me on the edge of my seat. I know I’ll watch it again at some point and I think that’ll be interesting as knowing where it’s going will change the experience but allow me to focus on all the details. 

‘Eurovision: The Story of Fire Saga’ is not the best film of the year, not even close, but it’s up there as one of the most joyous. It revels in the exuberance and campiness of the contest, along with some truly great songs. Though it’s not Will Ferrels best, it has plenty of quotable lines and jokes that will make it rewatchable, and it’s worlds apart from ‘Holmes & Watson’ that also came to Netflix this year, which if I was writing one, would absolutely top my list of worst things I’ve watched this year.

Slipping in just under the wire as my last pick is an unexpected one, ‘a 40-minute documentary on Netflix called ‘Speed Cubers’. I’d heard it mentioned in a podcast as a recommendation and I heartily recommend it myself. It’s about the most heartwarming ‘rivalry’ between two world-record speed Rubik’s cube solvers. Though they’re competing to beat each others time, the way in which the older champion supports the younger challenger is one of the most uplifting things I’ve seen. There are tears, it’s emotional, and with such a fittingly short runtime, it’s well worth watching if you want to fill less than an hour with something good.