Happy Valley may be over but there are plenty of TV dramas and thrillers to sink your teeth into this month. We've already had the launch of BBC's The Gold and Better as well as Channel 5's The Catch, but there are four new series landing in the next week or so.
ITV has confirmed the long-awaited series five of Unforgotten will hit screens on Monday, February 27. The hugely popular drama, written by Chris Lang, will feature Nicola Walker's replacement.
Nicola Walker starred in the series in the lead role of DCI Cassie Stuart from 2015 to 2021. Now award-winning actress Sinead Keenan will take on the lead role, playing the new character DCI Jessica James.
Read more: All the unmissable dramas coming to ITV, BBC, Channel 5 and Netflix in February 2023
As well as Unforgotten, the broadcaster has also confirmed the return of Endeavour on Sunday, February 26. The final series will see actor Shaun Evans reprise the title role of DS Endeavour Morse for the very last time.
And if that's not enough to get stuck into the BBC has also confirmed the Death in Paradise spin-off, Beyond Paradise, will make its debut on Friday, February 24, while Channel 5's new drama Desperate Measures, starring Amanda Abbington, will start on Tuesday, February 21. Here's everything you need to know.
Desperate Measures - February 21
Desperate Measures is the brand new drama from Channel 5. The original series, which is made up of four episodes, kicks off on the channel on Tuesday, February 21.
It stars Sherlock's Amanda Abbington as a mother trying to pay off her son's debts to a dangerous gangster and Luther's Warren Brown as her ex-partner, Patrick. An intense trailer has been released and a voiceover can be heard saying: "Sometimes in life, you find yourself in an impossible situation. Where your choice to look after the ones you love means having to do the wrong thing but for the right reason."
Beyond Paradise - February 24
DI Humphrey Goodman (Kris Marshall) and his fiancée Martha Lloyd (Sally Bretton) return on Friday, February 24 for the Death in Paradise spin-off Beyond Paradise. The pair's comeback follows their nail-biting will-they-won’t-they romance reached its emotional finale in Saint Marie in 2017.
A synopsis reads: "A new adventure awaits as we find them arriving in Shipton Abbott, Martha’s hometown near the beautiful Devonshire coast, having left London. As they embark on their new life the couple are quickly thrown in at the deep end as Martha sets out to pursue her dream of running her own restaurant and Humphrey joins the local police force."
Endeavour - February 26
Critically-acclaimed detective drama, Endeavour, returns to ITV1 for the ninth and final series on Sunday, February 26. The Morse prequel sees actor Shaun Evans reprise the title role of DS Endeavour Morse for the very last time.
Alongside Evans, the series sees illustrious stage and screen actor Roger Allam return as DCI Fred Thursday. The final instalment of the popular drama has once again been written by Endeavour creator Russell Lewis who has penned each of the 36 screenplays across the last decade.
A synopsis reads: "The new series, set in the early 70s, finds Endeavour and Thursday entering a new era of change both professionally and personally with the return of some familiar faces along the way including Sam, played by Jack Bannon (Pennyworth), who arrives back from Northern Ireland following his service in the British Army.
"Filmed in and around Oxford the strong ensemble cast reunited with Shaun and Roger includes Anton Lesser (Killing Eve, Game of Thrones) who returns as CS Reginald Bright, Sean Rigby (Gunpowder) as DS Jim Strange, James Bradshaw (Close to The Enemy) as Dr Max DeBryn, Abigail Thaw (Miss Scarlet and the Duke) as Dorothea Frazil, Caroline O'Neill (The A Word) as Win Thursday and Sara Vickers (Watchmen) as Joan Thursday."
Unforgotten - February 27
Unforgotten's brand new murder mystery will explore the lives of several central characters – Jay, played by Rhys Yates (The Outlaws, Silent Witness), Martina Laird (Summerland, The Bay) as Bele, Tony played by Ian McElhinney (Game of Thrones, Derry Girls), and Max Rinehart (Jekyll and Hyde, Miss You Already) as Karol – who on the face of it appear seemingly unconnected to the victim. Hayley Mills will also play Tony’s wife Emma.
The new series opens with the clock ticking down to DCI James’ first day in her new job with an unforeseen and devastating introduction to her family life. Determined to make a good first impression with her new colleagues will Jess be in the right frame of mind to deliver and inspire the team? You can read more about Unforgotten here. For more showbiz and television stories get our newsletter here.
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