If you are anything like me, you love to watch TV-shows that match the season. I love a Hallmark Christmas movie around December and when September comes around I start craving a Gilmore Girls rewatch.
After creating a list of my favorite autumn TV shows, I figured I should make another list with my favorite spring/summer TV shows! For each show, I've listed which elements make me feel like the show deserves to be on this list. If you have any great shows that you feel fit this list, please leave a comment! I will be adding to this list, if I watch more shows in the future who fit the vibe.
Are you specifically looking for only cosy and wholesome shows in particular? I have written out a special short list with that theme, which you can find by clicking here!
Do you want to save this list on Pinterest? Here is a picture!
1. Chesapeake Shores (6 seasons, closed ending)
Sunny elements: Multi-generational, close family, lake house, B&B, bookshop, romance, small town America, music
Chesapeake Shores is about the O'Brien family, three sisters, two brothers, parents and an Irish grandma all live in Chesapeake Shores. The family home is a gorgeous house overlooking the lake and everyone has their own cosy storylines, from raising daughters as a single mother, becoming a firefighter, to writing a book, escaping musical stardom, to running a B&B to picking up art after a long break. My favorite scenes are the ones where all siblings come together to share their misery or joy, preferably around a campfire in the backyard. This show always feels me with that feeling of a summer evening where life seems lighter and time seems to slow down!
2. Hart of Dixie (4 seasons, closed ending)
Sunny elements: Quirky characters, found family, small town, southern America, romance, music, comedy
In order to save her future career as a surgeon, Zoe Hart movies to Bluebell to become a GP in the small town. She is supposed to work on her bedside manner, but the quirky characters of Bluebell are not planning to go easy on her. A doctor from New York meddling in their small town affairs? No thanks! Of course, Zoe sets out to proof herself to the small town and soon she finds herself invested in the town and the people of Bluebell... Will she ever leave?
The show is filmed on the same set as Gilmore Girls (The town gazebo features heavily!) and the town has a quirky new event almost every episode. It's fun, it's silly but also has some great character development and interesting storylines. Zoe is not a Mary Sue and I love her for it!
3. Younger (7 seasons, closed ending)
Sunny elements: strong female cast, colorful visuals, quirky story, strong friendships, cosy city living, romance
The premise of the show is what you would call, a little quirky: 40 year old mom Liza, lies about her age to get a job at a publishing house. Before she knows it, she is navigating the office life as a newbie in her mid twenties. Surprisingly, this show actually has a lot of heart, navigating storylines about what it means to be a woman at all ages and it does so beautifully! That's not to say this show is drama-free, in fact, the almost soap level drama is one of the highlights of the show. In some ways, it reminded me a bit of Gilmore Girls, where the characters are deeply flawed, but we love them anyway. It's also a very bright, colorful show that shows city living as cosy and community minded, which I feel we rarely get in TV-shows!
4. Pan Am (1 season, some storylines left open, but no big cliffhangers)
Sunny elements: Travel, friendship, 1960's aesthetic, romance
The fact that this show only has 1 season, is criminal. Truly. Thankfully, the season has somewhat of a satisfying ending, I can still recommend this show to you in good conscience. Pan Am follows Laura, Kate, Maggie and Colette, who fly with Pan Am as stewardesses. Their lives are as fabulous and complicated as you'd expect!
5. The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (5 seasons, finished)
Sunny elements: elaborate colorful sets and costumes, the 1950's, female friendship, comedy
This show is centered around Midge Maisel, a young, wealthy, Jewish mother with a sad marriage and bigger dreams than her housewife life will allow for... that is until she dares to try out being a comedian. Something her dud of a husband is also trying, but failing at. She however, has the talent required and soon she starts navigating the comedy world with her new (and peculiar) manager Susie.
It was created by the same people as Gilmore Girls and you can tell by the complicated characters and witty banter. However, the budget for this show seems to be higher. The sets, costumes and cinematography are truly some of the shiniest I've ever seen on TV! It's candy for the eye every episode.
6. Dance Academy (3 seasons and a movie, finished)
Sunny elements: Found family, ballet, Australia
Really, what is more summery than Australia? We follow Tara as she moves from the countryside to the big city to follow her dream of becoming a ballerina. Of course, the National Academy of Dance in Sydney has plenty of other interesting characters to offer as well! Each with their own dreams and passion for dance.
This might be one of my favorite teen tv-shows ever made. It leans into the beauty of ballet as well as the confusion and rawness of being a teenager with big dreams and a lot of pressure to bear. Already watched the show? Did you know that two of the stars have started a podcast together? It's called Life Academy. They talk about their experiences as actors and working moms, have other Dance Academy stars on as guests and often rewatch an episode to give the behind the scenes gossip, as well as their own process of approaching their characters which I have just found fascinating to listen to! You can find the first episode by clicking here!
7. Derry Girls (3 seasons, finished)
Sunny elements: female friendship, comedy, the 90's
Okay, an Irish show set during the height of the troubles doesn't sound very sunshine and rainbows. But this show is so bright, the characters so hilariously funny and the storylines so charmingly 90's. It follows a group of students at an Irish catholic secondary school (and you might not expect it, but the head nun is one of the best characters in the entire show). The show is so quick with jokes and the actors absolutely nail their characters. It's a show I have found hard to describe, but if you are in need of some fun, I highly recommend trying the first couple of episodes just to see if you like it! And if you do, boy do you have a marvelous amount of fun ahead of you!!
8. The Flatshare (1 season, finished)
Sunny elements: romance, beach, colorful fashion
The Flatshare is a limited series based on the book by Beth O'Leary with the same name. It's a cute romance between two people sharing an apartment: they've just never met. Tiffany is a struggling journalist just out of a toxic relationship. She needs an affordable place to stay, enter Leon: a nurse working the night shift who only uses his apartment during the day. They start sharing the apartment, getting to know eachother (and eachothers issues) only through the clues left by the other one in the apartment.
I love the kind of silly premise and the lovable characters of this show. It's a pretty quick watch, but I'm sure it will brighten up your day!
9. Never Have I Ever (4 seasons, finished)
Sunny elements: comedy, colorful, coming of age, friendship
Devi has had a rough year, her dad passed away (leaving her with psychological issues) and her relationship with her mother is... not great. She is also in high school. How does one persevere in a situation like that? Well, Devi is going to try.
I know it doesn't sound like a terribly sunny premise, but I promise you the show is mostly lighthearted and hilarious. Maitreyi Ramakrishnan plays Devi with such charm and a lovely sweet edge that just makes you root for her from the start! Even when her character goes trough some very complex situations. I'm not one for modern teen shows generally (except if it's Buffy the Vampire slayer), but this one is worth your time!
10. The Good Karma Hospital (4 seasons, finished)
Sunny elements: Beach, India, personal growth, saving lives
The Good Karma Hospital is a typical hospital show, but set at a small town hospital in the south of India. Ran by an English expat, Ruby thinks this is the perfect place to escape all het life problems in the UK. But she soon finds out, The Good Karma Hospital has plenty of problem to offer her too. I adore Amanda Redman and she plays the role of the stern but caring Dr. Lydia (the English expat running the hospital) so well. And it's especially great watching her paired with the naivity of Dr. Ruby. If you like your hospital show with plenty of scenes on the beach: this is the show for you!
11. The Other Bennet Sister (1 season, finished)
Sunny elements: pastel colored dresses, nature, romance, coming of age, poetry
I have to admit something, this was the first ever pride and prejudice related TV-show I have ever seen. And boy what a way to start my P&P journey! The Other Bennet Sister is the story of Mary Bennet, who is an outsider in her own family. While her sisters find husbands, Mary is stuck at home. According to her own mother: too ugly and too peculiar to ever marry. Since the only options for a woman are marriage or misery, Mary has to figure out her place in the world and find her own happiness.
The story is so sweet, so wholesome, full of yearning for hot men (with white blouses) and forging your own path. A lot of the show takes place in nature, which I felt really made it a perfect spring and summer watch!
That's all I've got for you so far! As always, I will be adding shows if I find new ones later. But I hope you can find your next comfort watch on here now! If you have any recommendations, I would love to hear them! You can leave them down below in the comment section or send me a skeet on BlueSky
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