Autumn 2023 is a blockbuster for new real-life documentaries, so here's what's coming up and where to watch them
A slate of exciting, shocking and downright jaw-dropping autumn 2023 documentaries is coming soon, so brace yourselves! If we have learnt anything over these past few years, it's that we are all obsessed with horrifying true crime cases, unsolved mysteries, bizarre once-in-a-lifetime events, and unforgettable stories of inspiration while sitting comfortably on our sofa with a drink in hand.
While our lives may seem wild and exhilarating or simple and chaos-free, it's always eye-opening to experience and learn more about other people's stories, sometimes through their own candid eyes or others around them. At times, it has been insightful to learn more about a particular topic that we already thought we knew everything about.
Case in point, if you thought you were a Kardashian expert, then the new docuseries House of Kardashian has promised to spill more truths about the most famous family in the world, and we cannot wait to learn more behind-the-scenes secrets about what propelled this family to the dizzying heights of global fame. For more documentaries centred on popular culture, you won't be bored with Coleen Rooney: The Real Wagatha Story because who can forget the drama between Coleen and Rebekah?
The allegations span a seven-year period at the height of his fame.
There are also more in-depth insights into the murder cases that shocked Britain, such as the brutal killings of Lin Russell and her six-year-old daughter Megan in the nineties. The decade was also when beloved television presenter Jill Dando was murdered, with her case the centre of a new Netflix documentary.
From murder to the truly unexplainable will be explored in Encounters, which is based on people's, erm, encounters with the extraterrestrial. Or if you're looking for something more controversial and current, why not check out Desperately Seeking Soulmate: Escaping Twin Flames Universe, about a still-active "love cult" with its former members spilling all the truths?
Needless to say, you'll be set for a very shocking autumn regarding the nine best new autumn 2023 documentaries.
Sky UKHouse of Kardashian
Plot: The House of Kardashian docuseries is the first series based on the famous KarJenner clan, which they have no editorial control over. So you have to expect it to be more explosive than ever, with the likes of Caitlyn Jenner, who was previously married to Kris Jenner, giving "first-hand testimony" on the famous clan's beginnings, rise to fame and scandals that have made them the most recognisable faces in the world.
Release date: 8 October on Sky Documentaries and NOW
NetflixEncounters
Plot: Do you believe in the extraterrestrial? For a lot of us, it's something we love to have a big ol' debate about, but for the people featured in this new docuseries, Encounters, it is all about getting people to believe them when they tell their stories about their interaction with otherworldly creatures. Submersible spacecraft, an alien encounter experienced by a group of children in Zimbabwe, and nonhuman intelligence interfering with the operations of a Japanese nuclear power plant are all stories told in this docuseries, which also include some very eyebrow-raising revelations from military whistleblowers.
Release date: 27 September on Netflix
Who Killed Jill Dando?
Plot: Who Killed Jill Dando? will attempt to look at the unresolved murder case of 37-year-old believed British broadcasting star Jill with fresh eyes. After she was killed by a single bullet on her London doorstep, authorities launched one of the most extensive homicide investigations in the history of the UK, but to no avail. Nigel Dando, Jill's brother, recently expressed his hopes that the new documentary will lead to new information about the murder of his sister.
Release date: 26 September on Netflix
Misan HarrimanThe Super Models
Plot: Back in the eighties and the nineties, Naomi Campbell, Cindy Crawford, Linda Evangelista and Christy Turlington took over the fashion scene as one of the most celebrated supermodels in the world. And The Super Models will look at the catwalk queen's rise to the top of the fashion game, promising to "revisit their iconic modelling careers and collective disruption of the '90s fashion scene". Speaking to British Vogue, Naomi said the series: "It's about our life and times together: our friendship, careers, our womanhood, our motherhood. As models, we don't have any rights to our image, so it feels good to be partners on our legacy – and in our own words."
Release date: 20 September on Apple TV+
Jeff SpicerThe Greatest Show Never Made
Plot: What would you have done if you left everything behind in the hopes of reality television stardom, only to find out that you had essentially been scammed? Well, for six people back in 2002, that was very much the case as they beat thousands of others to become a contestant in a show that was dubbed the "greatest reality show ever made". They all left their homes, jobs and partners to start their adventure in London... only to find out that the show didn't even exist. Now, more than twenty years later, the former reality show wannabes look back and try to piece the puzzles together on what happened in this Ashley Francis-Roy [pictured] directed doc.
Release date: October on Prime Video
Sky UK/ AlamyThe Russell Murders - Who Killed Lin and Megan?
Plot: As one of Britain's most shocking double murders, it was just a matter of time before the case of Lin Russell and her six-year-old daughter Megan was revisited as the subject of a new documentary. This three-part series goes back in time to analyse the massive police operation that happened concerning the horrifying murders, which took place on a quiet country lane in Kent in the summer of 1996, where miraculously Lin's nine-year-old daughter Josie survived despite sustaining significant injuries. The investigation led to the conviction of Michael Stone, who is currently serving a life sentence. Stone, who has been interviewed for an episode of the docuseries, still maintains his innocence. The doc also looks at claims that the nation's most notorious serial killer Levi Bellfied made that he actually committed the murders.
Release date: Available to watch on Sky Documentaries and NOW TV
DANIEL LEAL/Getty ImagesThe Fake Sheikh
Plot: The highly published case of undercover reporter Mazher Mahmood is explored in this three-part documentary. This Prime Video series chronicles his unlikely rise to journalistic fame, which even bagged him two Reporter of The Year accolades at The British Press Award, to how he utilised the misleading identity of the 'Fake Sheikh' to confuse and trap A-list celebrities, athletes and even members of the Royal family, which led to him being charged with the crime of perverting the course of justice and giving him the title of Britain's most notorious tabloid journalist.
Release date: 26 September on Prime Video
Ben Blackall/Disney+Coleen Rooney: The Real Wagatha Story
Plot: Sure, there have been several documentaries and fictional television shows surrounding the infamous Wagatha Christie trial involving Coleen Rooney and Rebekah Vardy. But in this new documentary on Disney+, Coleen herself will be interviewed about the trial, which was one of the UK’s highest-profile High Court defamation cases of recent years, which was a result of her playing amateur online sleuth to explain why private stories of herself kept getting leaked to the press. Her family, friends and key players involved in the resulting trial, which Vardy lost to Coleen, will also have their say in the series.
Release date: Later this year on Disney+
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Paul Octavious 2023Desperately Seeking Soulmate: Escaping Twin Flames Universe
Plot: Based on Alice Hines' investigation in the 2020 Vanity Fair article, Everywhere I Went, They Went With Me, Because They Were on My Phone": Inside the Always Online, All-Consuming World of Twin Flames Universe, the new Prime Video three-part docuseries Desperately Seeking Soulmate: Escaping Twin Flames Universe will shine a light on the alleged online love cult run by YouTube influencers Jeff and Shaleia Divine. The pair are the founders of Twin Flames Universe, an online group which is still active and promises members that they will find their "soulmate". However, real-life testimonies from former members highlight the extreme lengths and controversial tactics the group has allegedly been known for, such as influencing members' sexual orientation and making them change their gender identities.
Release date: 6 October on Prime Video
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