Can’t Wait for More ‘Bridgerton’ and ‘Outlander’? Stream ‘Poldark,’ The Steamy Period Drama That Just Landed on Netflix
In the mood for a sexy costume drama? Netflix has got what you need.
While the fourth season of steamy romance series Bridgerton won’t arrive until early 2026, the streamer has just added all episodes of BBC drama Poldark to its library. It’s the perfect binge watch for fans of shows like Outlander (which wraps up its run next year), Downton Abbey, and the aforementioned Bridgerton.
Aidan Turner and Eleanor Tomlinson star in ‘Poldark’
Set in the late 1700s, the romantic, soapy series aired from 2015 to 2019 and follows a dashing British solider, Ross Poldark (Aidan Turner) who returns home to Cornwall after fighting in the American Revolution to find the woman he loves (Heida Reed) married to another man and his family’s estate in ruins. As he works to reestablish his failing mining business, he falls in love with his maid, Demelza (Eleanor Tomlinson).
The show, which aired on PBS in the U.S., is based on a series of novels by Winston Graham. (The books were previously adapted in a 1970s TV series.) It delivered swoon-worthy stories, nasty villains (including Jack Farthing’s duplicitous George Warleggan), heartbreaking twists, swashbuckling adventures, and some memorably shirtless scything. Filmed on location in Cornwall, Poldark also made effective use of that area’s sweeping, seaside landscapes.
Turner’s performance as Ross anchors the show. The Irish actor was the first person cast, executive producer Debbie Horsfield said, and his performance was instrumental to the show’s success.
“I realized quite quickly that for the titular character of Ross, we were going to have to find somebody of the right caliber, with the right qualities,” she told TV Insider earlier this year. Turner sprang to mind immediately, and when she compared notes with fellow Poldark producer Damien Timmer, he shared he was also thinking of The Hobbit actor.
“We both kind of screamed, because we both thought exactly the same thing,” Horsfield said. “He was the first person we cast, and he was the only person we thought of for that role. It’s never normally that easy.”
‘Poldark’ is most than a ‘starry-eyed romance’
Ross and Demelza’s romance, in all its ups and downs, was central to Poldark. Horsfield said that the fact that the show went beyond the “happily ever after” moment appealed to viewers.
“It weathers all kinds of storms and sometimes it teeters on the verge of fracturing, but ultimately, these are two people who stay not just committed to each other, but who still love each other throughout everything,” she said. “I loved the realism of that. It wasn’t just a starry-eyed romance.”
Poldark is streaming on Netflix.
For more news and exclusive interviews, follow Showbiz Cheat Sheet’s Instagram.
