Get your crime fix this week
While the 19th series of Silent Witness prepares to debut on screen next year, Unforgotten promises a new take on the world of forensic pathology with Sanjeev Bhaskar and Nicola Walker bringing a fresh eye to long-forgotten crimes.
Their opening case sees the duo - DCI Stuart (Walker) and her colleague, Det Sgt “Sunny” Khan (Bhaskar) - going back 40 years as they check out a “cold” murder case when the bones of a young man are found beneath the foundations of a demolished house. This investigation also begins to unravel the lives of four people - Father Robert Greaves (Bernard Hill), Sir ‘Frank’ Philip Cross (Trevor Eve), Lizzie Wilton (Ruth Sheen) and Eric Slater (Tom Courtenay) - who have been waiting for this moment.
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Hide AdOver on BBC1 there’s no let-up on the crime front for Ms Walker (Last Tango in Halifax) who is back on duty, albeit demoted, as Det Sgt Jackie ‘Stevie’ Stevenson, in River (Tuesday).
This six-part thriller sees her playing the ex-partner and colleague of British detective, Det Insp John River - played by Swedish actor Stellan Skarsgard (Mamma Mia! and The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo) - a cranky cop traumatised by the shooting of his partner.
The big-name line-up also includes Eddie Marsan - known to fans of Sky Atlantic drama Ray Donovan as Ray’s brother Terry - as a notorious killer who haunts River; Lesley Manville (An Adventure in Space and Time) as Chief Insp Chrissie Read; Sorcha Cusack (Father Brown) as Stevie’s mother, Bridie, and Sherlock’s Georgina Rich as police psychiatrist Rosa.
These two newbies line-up in the schedules with plenty of comings and goings from favourites, old and new.
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Hide AdLast night it was a return to cracking crime in Oxford for the ninth time in Lewis (ITV1) at the same time as P45s were being handed out to the UCOS team in New Tricks (BBC1) which has now been disbanded after 12 series,
It’s also journey’s end tonight for The Great British Bake Off (BBC1) - will it be Nadiya, Tamal or Ian to lift the title? - followed by a last-minute consultation with Suranne Jones as Doctor Foster.