Down Cemetery Road – A must-watch thriller that hits the ground running ★★★★★
Down Cemetery Road is exactly the kind of prestige thriller Apple TV+ has made its calling card: visually sumptuous, sharply written and relentlessly gripping. This is no slow-burn mystery that takes half a season to get going — the action and the twists are there from the outset, and the series never lets up. From its opening moments, the story pulls you in and refuses to loosen its grip.
When a house explodes in a quiet Oxford suburb and a young girl vanishes in the aftermath, neighbour Sarah Trafford (Ruth Wilson) becomes obsessed with uncovering the truth. Her search leads her to the formidable private investigator Zoë Boehm, played by Emma Thompson, and what begins as a missing-person case soon spirals into something far darker. As Zoë and Sarah dig deeper, they uncover a labyrinthine conspiracy in which people long believed dead may still be alive — while the living are rapidly joining the dead.
What makes Down Cemetery Road so compelling is not just its twist-heavy plotting, but how beautifully it’s delivered by the cast. Wilson and Thompson in particular look to be completely in their element. There’s a spark between them that lifts every scene they share, and you get the strong sense that they genuinely loved making this series — it certainly looks that way on screen. Their performances ground the story emotionally while letting the thriller mechanics fly at full throttle.
You can see exactly why Apple TV+ wanted to make this show. Down Cemetery Road allows for the kind of glorious cinematography and confident storytelling that has become synonymous with the platform. The camera lingers where it needs to, the framing is elegant and purposeful, and the production design gives the series a rich, immersive feel. Layered on top of that is a streak of dry, biting humour that fans will recognise from shows like Slow Horses, The Morning Show and Prime Target, giving the drama a sharp, contemporary edge.
The series was filmed extensively across the South West of England, primarily in Bristol, with additional locations in Somerset — including the West Somerset Railway and Street — and Cornwall, notably Polperro and Holywell Bay. These locations, along with Bristol studios and a mix of urban and rural settings, stand in convincingly for Oxford while adding texture and scale to the production. It’s a reminder of the huge value in Apple TV backing ambitious series like this and bringing them to life in regions outside London with such impressive production values.
Twisty, thrilling and never resting on its laurels, Down Cemetery Road is prestige television firing on all cylinders. With standout performances, lavish visuals and a story that keeps throwing surprises right up to the end, this is one series you need to add to your Must Watch list immediately.