“Unnervingly believable”: Scandi thriller Families Like Ours is a mind-blowing "look into the future"

The bank holiday weekend is almost here and there's a brilliant new thriller arriving on the BBC just in time for it. The unnervingly believable Scandi drama, Families Like Ours, imagines a world where the consequences of climate change are playing out - and it's a mind-boggling look into the future.

At least, that's what director Thomas Vinterberg has suggested about the show, which is set in Denmark. In a not-too-distant future, water levels can no longer be ignored and the country needs to be evacuated. And that means people must "bid farewell to what they love, what they know, and who they are."

The series centres around Laura and her family as they, like everyone else in Denmark, grapple with an unfolding disaster. The BBC describes the show as a "beautifully constructed, thought-provoking drama" which delves into what happens when people "are confronted by the inconceivable, and forced to make seemingly impossible choices." Here's everything we know about the gripping new series, including how to watch it.

What is Families Like Ours about?

In Families Like Ours, we're confronted with a terrifyingly realistic prospect, as rising sea levels threaten to overwhelm the country of Denmark. The nation's population are about to be evacuated - however the public have no idea of what is about to happen.

Against this dramatic backdrop, we meet 19 year old Laura. She lives between her mum, Fanny's house and that of her dad, Jacob and his new wife Amalie. As Amalie's brother Nikolaj works for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he has the inside track about the upcoming evacuation. He begins secretly warning people to start selling up and planning to flee abroad before news gets out.

Laura, on the other hand, is in the dark. About to graduate from high school and in love for the first time, life seems full of possibilities. And then, while she's at school, news of the evacuation breaks. As the reality takes hold of the population, the country declines into havoc. "All property becomes worthless, all fortunes shift, and luck favours only a few. Those who can afford it travel to affluent countries while the less well-off depend on government-funded relocation to more challenging destinations," explains the BBC synopsis.

The lives of Laura and her family are changed forever. Where will they go? How will they survive? As people disperse in all directions, Laura is forced into the "impossible dilemma of choosing between the three people she loves the most."

The series was shot on location across five countries including Denmark, Sweden, France, Romania and The Czech Republic, and first aired in Denmark last October. It received acclaim at the 2024 Venice and Toronto Film Festivals, before being acquired by the BBC.

Who's in the cast of Families Like Ours?

Amaryllis August stars in the leading role as Laura in Families Like Ours, alongside a cast which includes:

• Albert Rudbeck Lindhardt
• Nikolaj Lie Kaas
• Paprika Steen
• Helene Reingaard Neumann
• Magnus Millang
• Esben Smed
• Thomas Bo Larsen
• David Dencik
• Asta Kamma August
• Max Kaysen Høyrup

How can I watch Families Like Ours?

Families Like Ours is a seven-part series with the first episode airing on BBC Four at 9pm on Saturday 3rd May, with the second episode following directly afterwards. The episodes will air in pairs each week up to the finale, and the series will also be available to stream on BBC iPlayer after the first episode airs.