To celebrate the release of season two of I KISSED A BOY, we thought we'd take a look at some of the best queer TV shows available of BBC iPlayer right now. From hilarious gay sitcoms to queer reality tv and sapphic thrillers, here are 12 queer and LGBTQ+ inclusive TV shows available to watch in the UK on the BBC iPlayer right now.

(All shows available in the UK at time of publishing.)

1. SMOGGIE QUEENS (2024 - present)

Set in the heart of Middlesbrough, SMOGGIE QUEENS is a heartwarming and often surreal northern sit-com following a group of LGBTQ+ friends in their day-to-day lives. It's exaggerated and ridiculous at times, but also a genuinely charming portrayal of life in the north-east of England. If you like your comedy with smatterings of queer joy and found family it's well worth a watch. The show has also been commissioned for a second season.

LGBTQ+ rep: Queer Men, Queer Women

Genre: Sit-Com, Camp Comedy

Episode Run Time: 30m

2. I KISSED A BOY/I KISSED A GIRL (2023 - present)

I KISSED A BOY is a British dating game show where ten single gay men are paired up at an Italian villa and spend several weeks getting to know each other after meeting for the first time with a kiss. It's full of drama, romance and Dannii Minogue - along with some really lovely conversations about queerness and dating. Season two is airing right now. BBC3 also released the spinoff series I KISSED A GIRL in May 2004 - think the same show, but with lesbian couples

LGBTQ+ rep: Queer Men/Queer Women

Genre: Reality TV, Drama, Romance

Episode Run Time: 45m

3. WRECK (2022-2024)

Queers, cruiseships and campy horror. If you like your horror very queer and a little silly you're bound to love WRECK. It's a horror-comedy-drama following Jamie, who starts working on the cruise ship where his sister, Pippa, disappeared after being chased by a knife-wielding psycho in a duck costume. He’s investigating what happened to her, but the more questions he asks, the more horrifying the answers. It's silly and camp and a little bit very bloody.

LGBTQ+ rep: Queer Men, Queer Women, Trans Women

Genre: Horror, Comedy, Drama, Mystery

Episode Run Time: 45m

4. VIGIL (2021 - present)

VIGIL is a gritty British police drama set on a Royal Navy ballistic missile submarine. After a Scottish fishing trawler disappears and a member of the submarine's crew turns up dead, DCI Amy Silva, is sent out to the submarine to find out what happened. Who doesn't love a queer detective drama?

LGBTQ+ rep: Queer Women

Genre: Police Drama, Thriller, Mystery

Episode Run Time: 60m

5. SUCH BRAVE GIRLS (2023)

SUCH BRAVE GIRLS is another darkly funny British sitcom - this time about trauma, identity, narcissism and a self-sabotaging dysfunctional family. The show follows Josie (a depressed lesbian who doesn't know who she is), her sister Billie (who she has a love/hate relationship with), and their mother Deb (a compulsive liar) as they make terrible life decisions and fight their way through ridiculous situations.

LGBTQ+ rep: Queer Women

Genre: Dark Comedy, Drama

Episode Run Time: 25m

6. DRAG RACE UK (2019 - present)

I feel like at this stage everyone's familiar with Drag Race, but if you haven't watched DRAG RACE UK, I feel like you're missing out. At the time of writing this, the UK version boasts six seasons with a seventh on its way later this year. You can expect plenty of laughs, lots of drama and a little bit of queer education sprinkled in throughout. If you haven't watched DRAG RACE UK yet, now is a perfect time to catch up (season 2 is a personal fave).

LGBTQ+ rep: Queer Men, Non-Binary, Queer Women

Genre: Reality TV, Competition, Drama

Episode Run Time: 50m

7. MR LOVER MAN (2024)

Based on the novel of the same name by Bernardine Evaristo, MR LOVER MAN is a beautifully moving and at times comedic drama about a closeted family man. Barry is charming and swarve and hiding a secret - he's been having an affair with his best friend, Morris, for the past 60 years. If you like emotional drama and stories about living as your true self, this one's for you.

LGBTQ+ rep: Queer Men

Genre: Drama, Romance

Episode Run Time: 30m

8. GENTLEMAN JACK (2019 - 2022)

GENTLEMAN JACK follows the life of Anne Lister (a real-life person) as she shakes up her shabby ancestral home, determined to restore its fortunes and find herself a wife. If you love a good historical drama, queer histrorical figures celebrating their queer identity and 1830s lesbains this one's for you.

LGBTQ+ rep: Queer Women

Genre: Historical Drama, Romance

Episode Run Time: 60m

9. JUICE (2023)

If you love weird, surreal British comedy, then JUICE might be just what you're looking for. It follows Jamma, a gay dude with commitment issues and his relationships at work, with his boyfriend and with his family. It's a little bit FLEABAG and a little bit SPACED, perfect for anyone who enjoys cartoonish comedy, chaotic family dynamics or shows where things go from bad to worse.

LGBTQ+ rep: Queer Men

Genre: Surreal Comedy, Comedy of Errors, Farcical

Episode Run Time: 30m

10. THE JETTY (2023)

Small towns, crime, and missing people. THE JETTY is a gritty crime thriller centering a missing person case and a sapphic love affair between two of the main characters. It stars Jenna Coleman as the detective in charge as she tries to connect a fire to a podcaster and an illicit love affair between a man in his 20s and two underage girls.

LGBTQ+ rep: Queer Women,

Genre: Crime, Thriller, Mystery, Drama

Episode Run Time: 60m

11. LOST BOYS AND FAIRIES (2024)

If you're into stories about queer parenthood, adoption and growing up differrent, then check out LOST BOYS AND FAIRIES - it's a three-part miniseries following a gay couple on a quest to adopt a child in Cardiff, Wales. It's rather camp in places, emotionally turbulent in others, and a bloody lovely story that's definitely worth a watch.

LGBTQ+ rep: Queer Men, Non-Binary

Genre: Drama, Mini-Series, Emotional

Episode Run Time: 60m

12. IN MY SKIN (2018-2021)

If you're a fan of dark comedies, coming-of-age stories and troubled teens, then IN MY SKIN might be right up your street. The show follows Bethan, a teenager trying to live a double life as she negotiates her mother's mental illness, friendships and her sexuality. It's funny and emotional and it won a BAFTA for best drama series in 2022. Quick heads up for triggers of homophobia, difficult family dynamics and mental illness.

LGBTQ+ rep: Queer Women

Genre: Dark Comedy, Drama, Coming-Of-Age

Episode Run Time: 30m

Have we missed your favourite new queer TV show on iPlayer? Is there something coming out soon you think we should add to this list? Send us a message @ProudGeekStore or email us at contact@proud-geek.co.uk ✌