15 brilliant British crime dramas old and new to keep you cool for the summer

Summer, and all the vacation days and potential travel that implies, is upon us.And whether flying internationally or taking time off at home, you can’t beat a good British crime drama as the ultimate self-soother (especially in summer when the U.K.’s inevitable drizzly city streets and windswept moors can provide at least visual relief from the heat).

The genre is varied, the casts inevitably fine and justice almost always prevails.So here are 15 shows, new and old, to watch.

(And if that’s not enough, you can find 15 more here.) Will we ever tire of reimagining Sherlock Holmes? Not anytime soon, apparently.Created by Matthew Parkhill and developed by Guy Ritchie (who directed two episodes), this version gives us a college-aged Sherlock (Hero Fiennes Tiffin) banished to the role of Oxford University porter by his fed-up older brother, Mycroft (Max Irons), who hopes to put the arrogant young rip on a steadier path.

Alas, before you can say “Sir Bucephalus Hodge” (the Oxford bigwig played by Colin Firth), young Sherlock is up to his flat cap in murder and mystery, which he is determined to solve with the aid of his new best bud — wait for it — James Moriarty (Dónal Finn).An over-the-top romp that proves, if nothing else, the near-miraculous elasticity of Arthur Conan Doyle’s iconic creation.Speaking of Holmes, “Sherlock” co-creator and co-star Mark Gatiss is up to it again, this time in the leading role.

In post-World War II London, Gabriel Book (Gatiss) runs a secondhand bookshop, above which he and his beloved wife, Trottie (Polly Walker), live.But all is not what it seems, as Jack (Connor Finch), the young orphan ex-con they take under their wing, soon discovers.

Gabriel apparently did something so important during the war that he is now the neighborhood’s go-to crime solver (with a letter from Winston Churchill to ensure VIP access).He also has a personal stake in Jack’s reclamation, which gives the series a fascinating and ...