The best of the year
Our annual guides to the finest cultural treats
Towards the end of each year our culture editor and correspondents draw up their selection of the best books, films, albums, podcasts—and more—released over the previous 12 months. They pay no attention to others’ selections, fame nor popularity. What counts is quality. We’ve brought together the selections from several recent years for you to explore. In many cases the thumbnail descriptions of a given year’s finest cultural accomplishments contain links to the article-length reviews. Great films of 2019, great television series of 2020, great albums of 2021, great books of 2022—we have them all.
2023
The best television shows of 2023
Exceptional comedies, crime dramas, and psychological thrillers have come to the small screen this year
2022
The best books of 2022
Their subjects include financial scandals, a witness to the Holocaust and cell theory
The best albums of 2022
Ten records that The Economist’s music critics enjoyed this year, from pop to hardcore punk
The best podcasts of 2022
They explored America’s democracy, the death of an artist and why people throw dinner parties
The best films of 2022
As well as Hollywood blockbusters, this year’s list includes French, Indian, Iranian, Irish and Swedish movies
2021
The best films of 2021
The Economist’s watch list, including “Summer of Soul”, “The Power of the Dog” and “Titane”
The best albums of 2021
Desert blues, folk and punk rock are included in The Economist’s recommended playlist this year
The best podcasts of 2021
They were about economics, reality television, the German far right and the GameStop saga
2020
The best books of 2020
They were about corruption, revolutionaries, Glasgow in the 1980s, John Maynard Keynes and musical lives
The best podcasts of 2020
They offered culinary advice, investigated catastrophes and told personal stories
The best television series of 2020
These excellent shows made the long evenings and weekends in isolation tolerable
The best films of 2020
They were about investigative journalism, abortion and 20th-century black British life
2019
The best books of 2019
They were about the IRA, Harper Lee’s lost work, rational economics and an Ohio housewife
