It's impossible to choose just one, but these are some of my favourite foreign-language TV series:
The Bridge (or Broen, in Danish, Bron in Swedish)
Only one series of this fantastic Scandi-noir crime story has been shown on British television so far, but I can't wait for the next one to begin.
A Danish/Swedish co-production, The Bridge begins with the discovery of a dead body, half-way across the Oresund bridge, which links Denmark with Sweden. Thus the subsequent investigation has to be shared between the two countries.
The programme is utterly absorbing, with fantastic, subtle performances by all the main characters, and it's also gorgeous to look at (even by the very high standards of most Scandinavian crime series).
However, the best thing about The Bridge is one of its two main characters, the Swedish police investigator, Saga Noren, who is unrecognisable from the actress who plays her (Sofie Helin), so convincing is her portrayal of a woman with Aspergers syndrome.
The Bridge pulled off a remarkable feat: It made people watching it totally engrossed in the story, but also managed to make them laugh out loud - at Saga's complete inability to interact with colleagues and the public in accordance with societal norms.
if this makes Saga sound as if she's a merely a copy of Lisbeth Salander (from Stieg Larsson's Millennium trilogy), that's misleading, as she isn't. Saga isn't overtly tortured with angst like Salander, she's just very different from the norm... And all the more appealing for that.
The Killing (Forbrydelsen)
This series is where the U.K.'s passion for Scandinavian crime drama began, turning us away from American crime series, and into obsessive fans of what has now become known as "Scandinoir".
Sweden has a long history of excellent police procedurals, anyway, starting with the fantastic Martin Beck series of novels (by Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo), which almost every current crime writer cites as inspiration.
However, watching Forbrydelsen on television offered the added benefit of visual imagery, showing us Scandinavia as we'd never seen it before. (It also showed us why the Scandinavians are so famous for interior design, as did the other Scandi TV hits which followed in its wake, but that's another story).
The Killing had great scripts, subtle but utterly-convincing performances and - for the first time that I can recall in a crime series - it showed the aftermath of a crime from the perspective of the victim's loved ones, which made it incredibly moving, too.
The main character, police inspector Sarah Lund (played by Sofie Grabol), is complex, sometimes difficult to like, and - as is common with police officers in crime drama - she's totally committed to her work, to the exclusion of almost everything else.
I hated the U.S. Version of The Killing, though, so don't recommend that at all, and also felt that the second series of Forbrydelsen was poorer than series one and three.
Wallander (The Swedish version, made by Yellow Bird)
I'm a big fan of Henning Mankell's Wallander novels, but hate the British television series based on them, which starred Kenneth Branagh in the leading role. However, the original Swedish TV versions, starring Krister Eriksson as Kurt Wallander, are absolutely brilliant.
The production values are really high, as the first three films were made to be shown in cinemas, and this quality was retained throughout all the subsequent films which were made directly for TV.
Yellow Bird, the production company which made all the Swedish Wallander films, was founded by Mankell himself, and this may go some way to explaining how well the company adapted all his crime novels. (They were also involved in the production of the U.K. versions, starring Kenneth Branagh, however - which were nothing like as good.)
As usual with Scandinavian crime dramas, the programmes are stunning in terms of their visual imagery, and the performances are all very convincing.
Eriksson's Wallander is a masterpiece of understated acting, too - unlike the U.K. version. (Kenneth Branagh over-acted the tortured aspect of the character so much that it almost became funny, presumably by accident).
I should mention that some earlier TV versions of some of Mankell's novels were also made, this time starring Rolf Lassgard as Kurt Wallander - and, although purists argue which of Lassgard or Eriksson's portrayals are the best, I'd pick Eriksson every time.
His Wallander is easier to empathise with, and it's altogether a more subtle performance than Rolf Lassgard's.
Borgen
Borgen is another Scandinavian drama that's a huge favourite of mine - right up there with The Bridge and The Killing - though it isn't a crime drama, for a change.
The two series of Borgen (so far) were produced by the same production company which produced The Killing, and share that show's high production values.
Borgen tells the story of Birgitte Nyborg, who ends up as Prime Minister of Denmark, pretty much by accident - and who then has to juggle an unpredictable set of coalition partners and members of her own party (sound familiar?), along with the requirements of being a wife and mother.
Birgitte is incredibly charismatic, as are the other main characters - and the insights into how little power politicians really have in practice, and the way that events are portrayed by the media and spin doctors are highly realistic.
Even friends who claim not to be interested in politics (which is always a mystery to me) became hooked on the drama of Borgen.
Spiral (Engrenages)
Now we leave Scandinavia and travel to Paris, France - for Engrenages, or Spiral, as it's known in the U.K.
This series, like Borgen, moves beyond the confines of the police station and into the world of politics and the judiciary, focusing on a team of police officers, some lawyers, and a judge.
The main character, Capitaine Laure Berthaud, played by Caroline Proust, has the usual dysfunctional personal relationships (apart from with her team) and is overwhelmingly committed to her work - but the series is far more compelling and unusual than that fairly-typical description makes it sound.
The intricacies of the French judicial system, the ways in which this can handicap police, and the look at the wider social situation in France are all fascinating, and the performances of all the actors playing the main characters are really strong.
Inspector Montalbano (Il Commissario Montalbano)
If you feel like some light relief, after all the highly-realistic and often dark series mentioned above, then it's time for Inspector Montalbano, which is based on Andrea Camilleri's best-selling series of novels featuring the same character.
Funnily enough, this series was shot in conjunction with Swedish television, so it does still have a link to Scandinoir, though that's not obvious in anything other than the visual beauty of this series.
Inspector Montalbano, played by the rather gorgeous Luca Zingaretti, is often intolerant, always obsessed with food, and wearily realistic about the challenges of policing while trying to contend with the influence of the Sicilian Mafia.
Most of the show is filmed in the stunningly beautiful province of Ragusa, and the series is worth watching for the locations alone - as well as for all the beautiful people who appear in it. It can also be extremely funny.
