Created by RTS Award-winning writer Nicole Taylor (Three Girls), the emotional thriller focuses on wealthy couple Dan (Compston) and Emily (Rundle) who are head over heels in love and live a beautiful house just outside of Glasgow.
Their lives seem perfect, but there is one thing missing: a baby.
A chance encounter introduces them to Kaya – played by Mirren Mack in her television debut – an 18-year-old from the other side of the city.
Some 20 years in the making, Sally’s Wainwright’s new television drama, Gentleman Jack, was originally rejected by every broadcaster she took it to. The story of an openly gay woman who farmed in 19th-century rural Yorkshire was considered a non-starter by TV networks. Starting this month, the topic is getting eight hours of BBC One Sunday-night primetime.
It’s common for writers to describe their latest work as a “passion project” – often industry-accepted shorthand for what they hope is infectious enthusiasm for their new offering.
The anthology series continues from the live Halloween special that aired back in 2018, and will showcase six new original stories written by Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton.
In 2018, BBC iPlayer received requests for 3.6 billion programmes throughout the year.
Among the top ten requested shows per series included Bodyguard, Killing Eve, McMafia, Doctor Who, Keeping Faith, The Cry, Dynasties, Our Girl, Bing and MOTD Live.
“In 2018 we saw people who use iPlayer increasing the amount of time that they spend watching programmes on it,” said Dan McGolpin, Controller of Programming for the BBC.
Alesha Dixon and Diversity’s Jordan Banjo are set to present Syco Entertainment’s latest talent show The Greatest Dancer for BBC One.
Set in New Zealand during the 1860s, the series follows British adventurer Ana Wetherell (Eve Hewson) who falls in love with fortune hunter Emery Staines (Himesh Patel), and is plunged into a world of tragedy, mystery and revenge.
The couple must overcome numerous barriers put in their way, particularly from the spiteful Lydia Wells (Eva Green) and rich boy Francis Carver (Marton Csokas).
Inspired by Tana French’s Dublin Murder Squad novels, the series follows detectives Rob Reilly (Killian Scott) and Cassie Maddox (Sarah Greene).
It sees the pair attempt to solve the murders of a young ballerina and a vivacious free-spirited woman.
Set during the height of the Celtic Tiger financial boom, the two murders, seemingly unrelated, are revealed to be connected through the cruel elements in both cases.
Series five, which began filming in Manchester last month, sees the devastating effects of the 1929 financial crash. Tommy Shelby, played by Cillian Murphy, is now a Labour MP and takes on the responsibility of not just his family, but the electorate as well.
Other new cast members to debut in the Bafta award-winning drama are Brian Gleeson, Elliot Cowan, Charlene McKenna, Andrew Koji, Daryl McCormack, Kate Dickie and Emmet J Scanlan.
The new series takes place after a time-jump of ten years, which fans of the books by Winston Graham (on which the series is based) have been expecting. Horsfield, who has written every episode of the four previous series has a cunning approach to seamlessly weaving in this passage of time.
The drama will pick up in the wake of the shocking death of Ross Poldark’s long time paramour and, latterly, enemy Elizabeth Warleggan.
Halfway through 2018, it already seems clear who some of the leading contenders will be in the actor categories of next year’s Bafta and RTS awards: Benedict Cumberbatch and Anthony Hopkins for their title roles in Patrick Melrose and King Lear, and Ben Whishaw and Hugh Grant as Norman Scott and Jeremy Thorpe in A Very English Scandal.
