10 Lesser-Known Historical Dramas to Stream in November 2023

Here's the list of historical series added to streaming platforms in November 2023 (we've provided some useful info on where you can actually stream, rent or buy them).

1. Sun Records (2017-2018) – Available on Paramount+

Elvis, Johnny Cash, and Jerry Lee Lewis walk into a recording studio... No, it's not a joke, it's Sun Records. Set in the 1950s, this series rocks and rolls into the birth of rock 'n' roll in Memphis. Sam Phillips, the visionary producer, is on a mission to break the racial barriers of the time through music. Elvis Presley is a truck driver with a dream and a hip shake that could shake the world. Johnny Cash is a salesman with a guitar and a deep, soulful voice. They, along with Jerry Lee Lewis, collide at Sun Records, creating the sound that would define a generation.

2. Troy: Fall of a City (2018) – Available on Netflix

Troy: Fall of a City takes you back to the ancient world where Paris, a humble shepherd, discovers he's actually a prince of Troy. He doesn't just bring home the crown; he also brings Helen, the Queen of Sparta, causing the decade-long Trojan War. This series is a mix of epic battles, divine meddling (because Greek gods just can't help themselves), and a wooden horse that's not just for decoration.

3. Mr. Selfridge (2013-2016) – Buy on Prime Video

Flashy American entrepreneur Harry Selfridge moves to London in 1909 to establish the most glamorous department store in the world: Selfridges. This series is a decadent window display of early 20th-century luxury, showcasing the retail tycoon's rise and fall. Selfridge, a man with a flair for drama, navigates high society, family struggles, and ambitious business ventures, all while maintaining a scandalous personal life. The store becomes a cultural icon, but at what cost?

4. Spy City (2020) – Buy on Prime Video

Welcome to Berlin, 1961, the height of the Cold War. Spy City follows Fielding Scott, a British spy tasked with finding a traitor among the Allied spies in Berlin. It's a dangerous game of cat-and-mouse, with double agents, secret codes, and a city divided by the looming Berlin Wall. Each episode is a tense, edge-of-your-seat hunt through shadowy streets and diplomatic dance floors, where a single slip could not just end Scott's life but escalate the Cold War into a full-blown nuclear nightmare.

5. Hatfields & McCoys (2012) – Buy on Prime Video

This series takes you back to post-Civil War America, where two families, the Hatfields and the McCoys, turn a minor squabble into a full-blown feud. It's like the world's worst neighbor dispute, with Kevin Costner and Bill Paxton leading the family armies. The drama unfurls in the rugged landscapes of Kentucky and West Virginia, featuring love affairs, betrayals, and the kind of grudges that last generations.

6. Strange Angel (2018-2019) – Available on Paramount+

Strange Angel is a bizarre brew of science and the occult set in the 1930s. Jack Parsons, a brilliant and ambitious blue-collar worker in Los Angeles, dreams of building rockets that will take man to the moon. By day, he's a janitor at a chemical factory; by night, he's a self-taught rocketeer and a disciple of occultist Aleister Crowley. As he goes deeper into the esoteric world, his life becomes a strange paradox of science and magic, leading him into a dark and mysterious realm.

7. The Spanish Princess (2019-2020) – Free on Prime Video

This series brings to life the vivid and captivating story of Catherine of Aragon, the Spanish princess who became Queen of England. As a young woman, Catherine travels to England to marry Arthur, Prince of Wales, but his sudden death catapults her into a complex liaison with Henry VIII. Expect lavish costumes, political maneuvers, and a woman's determination to shape her own destiny in a male-dominated world.

8. Da Vinci's Demons (2013-2015) – Free on Prime Video

Imagine Leonardo da Vinci, but as a dashing young adventurer with a Sherlock-level intellect. Da Vinci's Demons follows the untold story of the world's greatest genius during his turbulent youth in Renaissance Florence. Brilliant and passionate, the young artist, inventor, swordsman, lover, dreamer, and idealist struggles to live within the confines of his own reality and time. He begins to not only see the future but to invent it.

9. The White Princess (2017) – Free on Prime Video

Sequel to The White Queen, this series is set against the backdrop of the Wars of the Roses. It chronicles the story of Elizabeth of York, forced into marriage with King Henry VII, her family's enemy. Their uneasy marriage unites the houses of Lancaster and York, ending the war but igniting personal and political drama.

10. Alias Grace (2017) – Available on Netflix

Based on a true story, Alias Grace is a haunting tale set in 19th-century Canada. Grace Marks, a poor, young Irish immigrant and domestic servant, finds herself accused and convicted of the brutal murders of her employer and his housekeeper. Years later, a young doctor tries to unravel the truth, delving into Grace's mind and past. It's a psychological labyrinth of memory and murder, with Grace herself an enigma at the center.