BBC TV series...

Sherlock is very well done, too.  It's an update similar to Elementary on CBS--and probably where CBS got the idea for their show.  I enjoy both shows, but Sherlock has that Brit style that I like a lot.  
 
I've also been watching the shows you mention.  

Luther is too dark for my wife too. I like Strike Back on Cinemax but have only seen a few episodes.. it has a bit of an undercurrent that I may not like when it developes... not sure. I really like Homeland on Showtime and Justified on FX. Not much good on right now...
 
J

I saw one episode of Broadchurch.  While it had its appeal, it's not something I'll likely follow on a regular basis.  I haven't seen Sherlock or Copper, but have seen them advertised as my wife is a recording enthusiast when it comes to Dr. Who and all of those shows are advertised during Who time.

I think the third series of Sherlock will start up on BBC-America in October.  They'll probably re-broadcast the first two series leading up to that.  While it may not be absolutely necessary to see them in sequence, it will be helpful to get the background on how Holmes meets Watson since the series takes place in modern times.  

For me, half of the appeal of watching Broadchurch is in seeing David Tenant play a different role than the 10th Doctor.  Luther is pretty dark.  It's well done and has interesting characters, but it is a little much.  Sherlock was great (I'm still waiting for more).  In my opinion, the BBC Sherlock is better than Elementary.
 
There's some good stuff there.  In addition, a British series (or "season" in the colonies) often lasts for about six episodes.  As an American viewer, watching a series end just as you're beginning to enjoy it is a bit frustrating.    We're used to getting approximately three to four times that number of episodes per year.  Of course, one could argue that the reason British shows seem so well done in comparison to their American counterparts is the fact that they take more time to produce.
 
One could also argue that it has more to do with the number of working brain cells in Hollywood.

UbiquitousBubba
 
As an American viewer, watching a series end just as you're beginning to enjoy it is a bit frustrating.

Couldn't disagree more.  As an American viewer, it's nice to know that the series you're watching will actually end with closure.  I've lost count of the number of US series I started enjoying that tanked in the ratings.  The networks just shut them down ... no ending, no resolution, no "thanks for you loyal folks who actually watched" ... instead, just a "screw you, loyal viewers, but we're going to try some different crap that will appeal to those with less intellegence than you've exhibited".
 
Furthermore, how many US series have bitten off more than they can chew in order to fill the requesite 22 episode annual order?  British shows seem to have a better sense as to when to call it a wrap.  If they've got more to say, they'll schedule another six or eight shows as a follow up.

SteveStrummerUK

Moshkiae
Haven't had a TV for 6 years!
 
Not sure I missed anything...

About 6 years of TV, I should imagine

Which would include a full two years of commercials.

+1 for Whitechaple.
 
 
One to watch out for next Wed is "Wipers Times" on BBC2.

When Captain Fred Roberts discovered a printing press in the ruins of Ypres, Belgium in 1916, he decided to publish a satirical magazine called The Wipers Times - "Wipers" being army slang for Ypres. Full of gallows humour, The Wipers Times was poignant, subversive and very funny. Produced literally under enemy fire and defying both authority and gas attacks, the magazine proved a huge success with the troops on the western front. It was, above all, a tribute to the resilience of the human spirit in the face of overwhelming adversity. In his spare time, Roberts also managed to win the Military Cross for gallantry.