Lockdown has eased considerably since we first started the Quaranstream Diary, but while cinemas remain closed (until next month!), streaming remains the second best option. My movie viewing is still fairly non-existent, but I’ve found myself catching up on a number of different shows with the rest of my family while we’re all stuck at home. Here’s a selection of some of my favourites that have kept me sane over the last few weeks.

Outlander: Season 4 (all seasons on Amazon Prime)

It’s always nice when the wife and I find a show that both of us can enjoy watching together, and Outlander is one of those shows. Admittedly, the attraction is slightly different for each of us – for her it’s Sam Heughan, for me it’s Caitriona Balfe. But outside of that, Outlander is still one hell of a show, which has just gone from strength to strength over the last few seasons. Season 2 was a bit of a struggle, and we found ourselves in no hurry to watch another episode so soon after finishing one. That all changed with season 3 though and Outlander became essential viewing for us. If you’re unfamiliar with the show, Outlander follows the life of Claire, a second world war nurse who unknowingly travels back 200 years to Scotland one day, where she falls in love with a rough and ready Scotsman. So far the show has covered more than 20 years of their lives, apart and together. It’s seen Claire travel back and forth in time a few times, returning on one occasion to her own time while carrying the baby of her lover from the past. This season has been a lot lighter on the prolonged and intense sex scenes and has seen the couple attempting to settle in America, with slavery and Cherokee Indians among the problems they must deal with. Every episode was as gripping as the last and I’m looking forward to getting stuck into season 5 shortly.

What We Do In The Shadows: Season 2 (all seasons on BBC iPlayer)

If it’s not on Netflix or Prime, then it’s usually off my radar, and this one managed to sneak back onto BBC iPlayer recently completely without me realising. I’m a huge fan of the movie this show is based on and it took a couple of episodes of the first season for it to really settle in for me. This season has seen the group of vampires tackle zombies, ghosts, witches and trolls and had them placed in some pretty wacky situations. I’m not sure it’s been quite as funny as season 1, although Matt Berry continues to possess the ability to make me laugh out loud with every single line that leaves his mouth. But what it may lack in laughs, it more than makes up for in bonkers ideas and entertainment and has proven to be a reliably enjoyable show.

This is Us: Season 4 (all seasons on Amazon Prime)

Another one that I watch with my wife. We initially had a bit of a wobble with this show in the UK – after showing on one of the Channel 4 group of channels for a couple of seasons, it suddenly stopped and we were left waiting and wondering if season 3 would show, until Amazon Prime finally picked it up. Season 4 also landed recently, despite having finished airing in the states some time ago. Anyway, I am consistently blown away by this show and it’s amazing ability to effortlessly juggle multiple time periods and characters, while regularly managing to gut punch you right in the feels. This season introduced us to some new characters, while continuing to zip between the present, past and future. Towards the end of the season, the show began to tackle the memory loss and possible Alzheimer’s diagnosis of Rebecca, matriarch of the Pearson family that the show focuses on and for a show which primarily deals with memories and family, this has made for some pretty powerful television. This season really has outdone itself. 

Floor is Lava (Netflix)

So this one I watch with my daughter. We both watched the trailer and decided this was perfect viewing for us, and we were not wrong! I can honestly say that Floor is Lava is one of the most fun shows I have seen in a long time. Three teams, each attempting to cross a specific room every episode (kitchen, bedroom, study etc), only they cannot touch the floor because the floor is lava!! They have to work together (or not, most of the time), making their way across strategically placed elements within the room to the other side. It’s one of those shows where you’re laughing, on the edge of your seat and screaming at the idiots on screen for not doing something that obviously you would be able to do better in their situation if you were them… The lava looks convincing enough as it bubbles away and spits up into the air every so often, and the way the players scream ‘NOOOOOO!!’ each time a teammate slips and sinks beneath the lava is just the icing on the cake. Fantastic show.

Featured image courtesy of Freepik