crime drama

There’s a firm logic in the recent push to serve up more original drama by the likes of Channel 5 (Boleyn, The Drowning) and BritBox (The Beast Must Die, Crime). For viewers, a gripping drama is a calling card that helps define a channel in an increasingly crowded market.

Within the industry, it is a stake in the ground, a display of creativity and clout. So, it is fascinating to see that the pay-TV crime channel Alibi, owned by UKTV, has thrown its towel in the ring, and shown its full commitment with a succession of new shows in the second half of 2021.

The tenth series will start this month, which was filmed during the pandemic with just a three-month delay in production. 

Set on the French Caribbean island of Guadeloupe, the next two series will welcome back cast regulars and introduce new faces to Saint Marie.

The crime drama will continue to feature perplexing and mysterious murders and puzzles, with plenty of surprises in store for viewers. 

Executive producer Tim Key, promised that the next two series will keep viewers “on their toes.”

The six-part series, produced by Black Camel Pictures, is based on the Radio 4 drama written by Nick Walker. 

Nicola Walker will take on the role of DI Annika Strandhed. Known for being quick-witted and mysterious, Strandhed is the new head of a specialist Marine Homicide Unit, which investigates the brutal and bewildering murders that are discovered in the waterways of Scotland. 

Strandhed invites the audience into her world by breaking the fourth wall and revealing her thoughts on the cases and her own life. 

Clunes will reprise his role as the former London Metropolitan Police detective, DCI Colin Sutton, this time in pursuit of a notorious serial rapist who has been terrorising elderly people in south east London for 17 years.

Based on Sutton’s real life diaries, the series will recount the steps he took to serve justice.

Writer Ed Whitmore also wrote the first series, which told the real life story of the murder Amelie Delagrange on Twickenham Green in 2004.

The ten-part series is based on the novel of the same name by Ross Thomas and has added a modern spin on the pulp fiction genre.

The series sees straightforward and dogged detective Allegra Dill (Rosario Dawson) return to her eccentric hometown, San Bonifacio, after her sister is tragically murdered.

Dill finds herself trying to work through her grief, while searching for the killer and straightening out her corrupted hometown.

The true crime drama, written by George Kay, will uncover the shocking cat and mouse hunt for Peter Sutcliffe, also known as The Yorkshire Ripper, which was one of the biggest manhunts in British history.

The hunt for the Sutcliffe took place between October 1975 and January 1981, involving thousands of police officers and forever changed the British police force.

The six-part series is based on the book Wicked Beyond Belief: The Hunt for the Yorkshire Ripper by Michael Bilton and is produced by New Pictures.

Set in Bath, the series stars Tala Gouveia as the ambitious and determined DCI McDonald and Jason Watkins as the humble yet resourceful DS Dodds, with the new series seeing them tackle three new murder mysteries.

DCI McDonald was transferred from the Met Police in London and her fiery spirit is at odds with the modest DS Dodds, who is happy to work away in the background and avoid the spotlight.

Despite having nothing in common, they make an excellent crime-fighting duo and act as the ying to the other person's yang.

Written by Ben Richards and produced by World Productions, The Diplomat sees Laura Simmonds team up with her colleague and friend at the Barcelona Consul Alba Ortiz, to help protect British nationals who get themselves into trouble in the city.

Simmonds and Ortiz take on the roles of lawyer, counsellor and cop as they try to handle the stream of problems they face.

Written by Jason Richman, the series has been adapted from the graphic novel series of the same name created by Greg Rucka.

The series is set in Stumptown, a nickname for the city of Portland, and focuses on quick-witted former army veteran turned private investigator Dex Parios (Cobie Smulders), who is suffering from PTSD.

Parios deals with the cases that the police can’t get involved in and her intelligence and drive to do the right thing sees her excel at her job, but her reckless nature and tendency to ignore the rules frequently gets her into trouble.

Certainly, Jack and Harry Williams, the highly acclaimed brothers behind ITV’s Liar, had the issue of complexity in mind when writing the second series of the murder drama.