Shows Like Backstairs at the White House

If you liked Backstairs at the White House (1979), a drama and war & politics series, here are 20 shows with a similar feel, based on TMDB's recommendations. Each one links to its cast, trailer and where it's streaming.

1
The West Wing (1999)
★ 8.3/10Also drama
The West Wing provides a glimpse into presidential politics in the nation's capital as it tells the stories of the members of a fictional presidential administration. These interesting characters have humor and…
2
Political Animals (2012)
★ 7.1/10Also drama
Former first lady and current Secretary of State Elaine Barrish Hammond try to keep her family together while simultaneously dealing with crises of the State Department and fending off the hungry DC journalist who is…
3
Zero Day (2025)
★ 7/10Also drama and war & politics
A former U.S. President is called out of retirement to find the source of a deadly cyberattack, only to discover a vast web of lies and conspiracies.
4
Scandal (2012)
★ 7.2/10Also drama
Everyone has secrets and Olivia Pope has dedicated her life to protecting and defending the public images of the elite by keeping those secrets under wraps. Pope and her team are at the top of their game when it comes…
5
Tyler Perry's The Oval (2019)
★ 8.1/10Also drama
A seemingly perfect interracial first family becomes the White House's newest residents. But behind closed doors they unleash a torrent of lies, cheating and corruption.
6
Pearson (2019)
★ 7.3/10Also war & politics and drama
Powerhouse lawyer Jessica Pearson adjusts to the dirty world of Chicago politics.
7
White House Plumbers (2023)
★ 6.2/10Also drama
The true story of how Nixon’s own political saboteurs and Watergate masterminds accidentally toppled the Presidency they were zealously trying to protect.
8
War and Remembrance (1988)
★ 7.9/10Also drama and war & politics
Following the attack on Pearl Harbor, the extended Henry and Jastrow families navigate the personal, social and political impacts of World War II, including the Holocaust, the Battle of the Bulge, and the Pacific…
9
The State Within (2006)
★ 7.4/10Also drama and war & politics
The State Within is a six-part British television political thriller serial written and created by Lizzie Mickery and Daniel Percival, broadcast on BBC One from 2 November to 7 December 2006. After a plane explodes…
10
TURN: Washington's Spies (2014)
★ 7.2/10Also war & politics and drama
The story of New York farmer, Abe Woodhull, who bands together with a group of childhood friends to form The Culper Ring, an unlikely group of spies who turn the tide in America’s fight for independence.
11
Madam Secretary (2014)
★ 7/10Also drama and war & politics
After years away from the CIA, Elizabeth McCord is pulled back into the political arena. The newly appointed Secretary of State is tough, fair, and smart, driving international diplomacy, wrangling office politics, and…
12
The Kennedys (2011)
★ 6.5/10Also drama
The triumphs and tragedies of the most popular political family in American history.
13
A Small Light (2023)
★ 8/10Also drama and war & politics
Miep Gies didn't hesitate when her boss Otto Frank came to her and asked her to hide his family from the Nazis during World War II. For the next two years, Miep, her husband Jan, and the other helpers watched over the…
14
Our Friends in the North (1996)
★ 7.7/10Also drama and war & politics
Over the course of four decades, the personal lives of a quartet of Newcastle friends—Nicky, Geordie, Mary, and Tosker—intertwine with various political machinations, often for the worse: slum housing projects, police…
15
A Gentleman in Moscow (2024)
★ 6.7/10Also drama
Count Alexander Rostov finds himself going from riches to rags following the Russian revolution. A Soviet tribunal banishes him to the attic room of an opulent hotel, where, oblivious to the world outside, he discovers…
16
Generation Kill (2008)
★ 7.9/10Also war & politics and drama
The first 40 days of the war in Iraq as seen through the eyes of an elite group of U.S. Marines who spearheaded the invasion along with an embedded Rolling Stone reporter. A vivid account of the soldiers and of the…
17
Anatomy of a Scandal (2022)
★ 7/10Also drama
Sophie's privileged life as the wife of powerful politician James unravels when scandalous secrets surface — and he stands accused of a shocking crime.
18
Hostage (2025)
★ 6.8/10Also drama and war & politics
When the British prime minister's husband is kidnapped and the French president starts receiving threats, both leaders must face an impossible choice.
19
John Adams (2008)
★ 7.7/10Also drama
Adapted from David McCullough's Pulitzer Prize-winning biography, this lavish seven-part miniseries chronicles the life of Founding Father John Adams, starting with the Boston Massacre of 1770 through his years as an…
20
Army Wives (2007)
★ 7.5/10Also drama
Army Wives is an American drama series that follows the lives of four army wives, one army husband, and their families.