tv

'I'm a TV writer. Here are 13 feel-good shows you can watch in one day.'

Last week, I wrote a story about how I watch TV for a living (kind of) and then listed a bunch of TV shows you definitely haven't watched yet. 

It went gangbusters. 

You can read it here: 'I watch TV for a living. Here are the best shows you definitely haven't watched yet.'

I followed it up with 'All I do is watch murder mysteries. Here are the best ones you haven't seen yet' for those of us who like our mysteries... murderous. 

It also went off. 

It turns out people really want TV recommendations at the moment. 

And I don't know about you, but I feel like I can't commit to long, drawn-out series at the moment. I want snappy, funny series that make me feel better about myself and the world in a few short hours. Limited series or series with short seasons you can watch in one afternoon. 

So, here are 13 feel-good series you can watch in one sitting: 

Ted Lasso 

Image: Apple TV plus.  

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Ted Lasso is a TV series that probably shouldn't be as good as it is. 

The series stars Jason Sudeikis as Ted Lasso, an American college football coach who is unexpectedly recruited to coach an English Premier League team, AFC Richmond, despite having no experience in association football.

And knowing nothing about the game. 

What makes Ted Lasso such a brilliant TV show is the main character's relentless positivity in the face of adversity. 

It's heartwarming and funny and exactly what we need right now. 

Watch it if you like: Underdogs, moustaches, sipping cups of tea and saying "yuck", British comedy and strong hearts/clear minds. 

The entire first season of Ted Lasso is streaming on Apple TV+ now and the second season premieres on July 23. 

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Starstruck 

Image: ABC iview.  

Starstruck was created by New Zealand comedian and actor, Rose Matafeo. 

She plays Jessie in the series, a millennial ex-pat living in London and trying to make ends meet with a handful of casual, dead-end jobs. 

After meeting him in the bathroom at the nightclub, Jessie goes home with Tom (Nikesh Patel). The next morning, she realises she's accidentally slept with a massive film star. Think waking up and realising you've a little bit slept with Liam Hemsworth and said all sorts of things to him. 

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Each episode of the six-episode first season takes place in a different season - Winter, Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter, Spring - as Jessie and Tom deal with the aftermath of their one-night stand and attempt to fit into each other's worlds. 

Watch it if you like: Notting Hill, one-night stands with movie stars, your quirky group of friends, and dancing in the streets to 'Return of the Mack'.

The first season of Starstruck is streaming on ABC iview now. 

Feel Good 

Image: Netflix.  

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As my colleague and good friend Belinda Jepsen described it: "Feel Good is the Netflix show that sometimes... doesn't".

Canadian comedian Mae Martin writes and stars in the show which is a semi-biographical account of her own life.

In the first season Mae, a recovering cocaine addict, replaces drugs with the natural, oxytocin-driven high of love, diving headlong into a relationship with George (played by Charlotte Ritchie), a repressed London school teacher who has only ever previously dated men.

Their partnership is intense, endearing, frustrating, bitter, chaotic, with each contributing their own strengths and neuroses. As Mae puts it in the BAFTA-nominated first season, "She’s like a dangerous Mary Poppins, and I’m Bart Simpson."

The first season is a little lighter, while the second season digs deeper into the reasons behind Mae's addiction issues. 

Did I mention it's one of the funniest series I watched this year and that Lisa Kudrow plays Mae's mum? 

Watch it if you like: Whip smart dialogue, Fleabag, messy love stories, and Lisa Kudrow cameos. 

Season one and two of Feel Good are streaming on Netflix now. 

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Crashing 

Image: Netflix.  

Fans of Fleabag and British series like Lovesick, will love this short-lived series from Phoebe Waller-Bridge. 

The series follows the lives of six-twenty somethings living together as property guardians of a disused hospital in exchange for cheap rent. 

Watch it if you like: The Secret Life of Us, fighting over fridge space, The Young Ones, and anything Phoebe Waller-Bridge touches. 

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Crashing is streaming on Netflix now.

This Way Up

Image: Stan.  

This Way Up follows Aine (Aisling Bea) as an Irish teacher who is trying to get her life back together after a lil nervous breakdown. 

Disappointed by the lack of good facilities, such as jacuzzis, at the rehabilitation centre she lived in, Aine moves in with her sister Shona (Catastrophe's Sharon Horgan) and tries to return to everyday life.

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The series is full of laugh out loud scenes and life-affirming moments.

Watch it if you like: Good facilities, Catastrophe, and Irish accents. 

Both seasons of This Way Up are streaming on Stan now. 

Miranda 

Image: Stan.  

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An oldie but a goodie. 

Comedian Miranda Hart writes and stars in - you guessed it -  this semi-biographical account of her own life. 

In the series, Miranda plays a socially inept shopkeeper who constantly finds herself in the middle of awkward situations. 

Hard relate. 

Watch it if you like: Tall, awkward people, laughing out loud, ridiculously storylines, comedians starring in semi-biographical accounts of their own lives. 

You can watch all three seasons of Miranda on Stan now. 

Insecure

Image: Binge.  

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Insecure is written, directed and executive produced by comedian Issa Rae and it’s based off her original web series The Misadventures of an Awkward Black Girl.

Set in LA, the show follows the life of 29-year-old Issa and her friends, as they navigate their careers, dating – and most importantly – their strong, female friendships.

There are definitely not enough shows like this – smaller, more intimate sitcoms that explore the regular, everyday lives of women of colour. It’s the show a generation of Girls and Broad City fans really needed to see.

You'll be hooked after watching Issa rap about her friend's "broken pussy" on stage. 

Watch it if you like: Shows like Broad City and Fleabag, rapping about your vagina, laughing with your best mates, and tips on navigating your 20s and 30s. 

The first three seasons of Insecure are streaming on Binge now. 

Friday Night Dinner

Image: ABC iview.  

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Friday Night Dinner is a British comedy that centres around one family's - you guessed it - Friday night dinners. 

It the tradition of great British comedies, lots of ridiculous things happen during the dinners and the series is packed full of laugh out loud dialogue. 

It'll make you miss your own awkward family dinners. 

Watch it if you like: British comedies like Keeping Up Appearances and My Family, fighting with your family at Christmas lunch and awkward British people. 

All six seasons of Friday Night Dinner are streaming on ABC iView now.  

Spirited 

Image: ABC iview.  

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Have you ever wondered what it would be like to fall in love with a ghost while also being Claudia Karvan? 

Spirited answers those two very specific questions for you. It turns out it's funny, and heartwarming, and unexpected, and sometimes sad. 

Fans of The Secret Life of Us, Love My Way, and Bump will love this short-lived Australian series that definitely should have gotten more airtime. 

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Watch it if you like: Having sex with ghosts, Claudia Karvan's very expressive face and TV series you'll think about for years after you've watched them. 

Both seasons of Spirited are streaming on ABC iview now.

Modern Love

Image: Amazon Prime Video.  

There's a lot to love about Amazon Prime Video's anthology series, Modern Love

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First of all, there's Dev Patel's face. 

Then there's the rest of the stellar cast including Catherine Keener, Anne Hathaway, Tina Fey, John Slattery and Andrew Scott (yep, the hot priest from Fleabag). 

The series is made up of eight stories of modern love. One between a single mum and her doorman, another between a journalist and the developer of a dating app who can't stop thinking about the one who got away, and a man and woman who find themselves in an emergency on their first date. 

The stories will make you laugh and cry, restore your faith in humanity, and make you cry again when they're all tied together in the finale episode. 

It's pure TV magic. 

Watch it if you like: Dev Patel's face, classic rom-coms, crying into your snacks but ultimately feeling uplifted. 

The first season of Modern Love is streaming on Amazon Prime Video Australia now. 

Trying 

Image: Apple TV Plus.  

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This Apple TV+ follows Nikki and Jason, a British couple who are desperate to start a family together but are struggling to conceive a baby.

It's a light-hearted, uplifting look at a struggle many couples face. 

Watch it if you like: British comedies like Catastrophe, laugh out loud scenes, and life affirming moments. 

Both seasons of Trying are streaming on Apple TV+ now. 

Dollface 

Image: Disney Plus.  

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After being dumped by her long-term boyfriend, 20-something Jules has to figure out how to re-enter her social circle and rekindle the friendships she neglected for far too long. 

Watch it if you like: Shows like The Bold Type and Younger, getting drunk and regretting all your life choices, hanging out with your mates, and figuring out who you are. 

Dollface is streaming on Disney Plus now. 

Don't Trust The B in Apartment 23 

Image: Disney Plus.  

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Don’t Trust the B (short for b*tch) is a sitcom about June (Dreama Walker), a woman who finally lands her dream job and moves to the big city, only to find out that her job doesn’t exist and her fiancé has just dumped her.

June is forced to move in with Chloe (Krysten Ritter), a self-absorbed party girl who is the aforementioned ‘B’ in apartment 23.

Chloe is… horrible. She’s self-absorbed, vain, and she uses everyone around her to support her lavish lifestyle. She also happens to be best friends with James Van Der Beek.

Watch if you like: James Van Der Beek playing himself, apartment-based comedies like Friends and New Girl, and... b*tches. 

Both seasons of Don't Trust The B in Apartment 23 are streaming on Disney Plus now. 

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Keryn Donnelly is Mamamia's Pop Culture Editor. For more of her TV, film and book recommendations and to see photos of her dog, follow her on Instagram

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