''In the Dark'' is a four-part British crime drama that premiered on

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, ...

from 11 July to 1 August 2017. The series is an adaptation of the

Mark Billingham Mark may refer to: Currency * Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark, the currency of Bosnia and Herzegovina * East German mark, the currency of the German Democratic Republic * Estonian mark, the currency of Estonia between 1918 and 1927 * Fin ...

novels, ''Time of Death'' and ''In The Dark''. It is written by

Danny Brocklehurst Danny Brocklehurst (born June 1971 in Hyde, Cheshire) is an English screenwriter and playwright. He has won both BAFTA and Royal Television Society writing awards. He was featured in the writers' section of the ''Broadcast magazine'' Hot 100 ...

and stars

MyAnna Buring MyAnna Buring (; born 22 September 1979 as Anna Margaretha My Rantapää) is a Swedish actress, known for her roles in ''The Descent'', ''Kill List'', '' The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1'' and '' Part 2'', ''Ripper Street'', ''The Witc ...

as detective Helen Weeks. Production and global distribution was handled by BBC Studios.

Synopsis

''In the Dark'' consists of two separate two-part stories centring around detective Helen Weeks. In the first two-parter, Helen finds out that she is pregnant and becomes involved in a case in which the husband of her childhood best friend is accused of kidnapping two young girls. In the second two-parter, a heavily pregnant Helen is pulled into the dark side of urban

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

as she deals with an unexpected tragedy.

Cast and characters

as DI Helen Weeks
p. 1p. 2p. 3
of the Manchester Metropolitan Police. * Ben Batt as DI Paul Hopkins, Helen's partner and fellow detective in the Greater Manchester Police. *

Emma Fryer Emma Fryer is a British stand-up comedian, actress and writer from Coventry, best known for playing Tania in BBC Three's ''Ideal'', Janine in E4's '' PhoneShop'' and Gaynor in BBC Two's ''Home Time'', which she co-wrote with Neil Edmond. In 20 ...

as Linda Bates, the wife of Stephen Bates who is the main suspect in the abduction of two young girls. * David Leon as DI Adam Perrin, a detective in the Manchester Metropolitan Police and Helen's former fling *

Pearce Quigley Pearce Quigley is an English actor of the stage and screen. He plays Will in the BBC Radio 4 Sitcom ''Alone''. Theatre credits ''The Seagull'' (Royal Court); ''Paul'' (National Theatre); '' Journey's End'' (Comedy Theatre); ''My Night with R ...

as Trevor Hare, the owner of a pub in Helen’s hometown of Polesford. * Ashley Walters as DI Tim Cornish, a North Derbyshire Police officer leading the abduction case. * Matt King as Phil Hendricks, a forensic scientist. *

Jamie Sives Jamie Sives ( ; born 14 August 1973) is a Scottish actor. Sives was born in Lochend, Edinburgh. He studied at Leith Academy and worked as a scaffolder, as a postman, and as a club doorman in Edinburgh before turning to acting full-time. In 2 ...

as DCI Jack Gosforth, Week's superior at the Manchester Metropolitan Police *

Georgia Tennant Georgia Elizabeth Tennant (; born 25 December 1984) is an English actress and producer. She played Detective Inspector Samantha Nixon's daughter Abigail in ''The Bill'', Jenny in the ''Doctor Who'' episode " The Doctor's Daughter" and Lady Vivi ...

as Jenny, Helen's sister. Tennant previously portrayed a character named Jenny in the '' Doctor Who'' episode "

The Doctor's Daughter "The Doctor's Daughter" is the sixth episode of the fourth series of British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. It was broadcast on BBC One on 10 May 2008. Set on the planet Messaline, the episode features Georgia Moffett as Jen ...

" (2008). * Sinead Matthews as Paula Days, an old acquaintance from Helen's childhood. *

Clive Wood Clive Wood (born 8 May 1954) is an English actor, known for his television roles in ''Press Gang'' (1989–93), ''The Bill'' (1990), '' London's Burning'' (1996–99), and as King Henry I in ''The Pillars of the Earth'' (2010). His stage roles inc ...

as Robert Weeks, Helen's father. *

Jessica Gunning Jessica Gunning is an English television and theatre actress. She was educated at Holmfirth High School near Huddersfield before attending Rose Bruford College, graduating in 2007.

as DC Sophie Carson, the North Derbyshire Police officer on the field in the abduction case. *Kevin Sutton as Gavin Sweeney, Paula's husband. *

Tim McInnerny Tim McInnerny ( ; born 18 September 1956) is an English actor. He is known for his many roles on stage and television, including as Lord Percy Percy and Captain Darling in the 1980s British sitcom ''Blackadder''. Early life McInnerny was bor ...

as Frank Linnell * Eleni Foskett as Charli

Episodes

Production

Filming for the series began in April 2017 in Manchester and Marsden.

Reception

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was f ...

''s Michael Hogan gave the first episode three stars out of five, noting that: "''In the Dark'' did show promise and could yet come good. It was taut and tensely atmospheric with an intriguing premise which found its heroine caught in the middle between police and prime suspect." Reviewing the first episode, ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

''s Sam Wollaston concluded that: "''In The Dark'' is by no means a trope-free zone...But once you have accepted that, it's a crisp opener (of four) – pacy, thoughtful and skilfully constructed, with multiple strands I am eager to see twisted together again."

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:In the Dark (miniseries) 2017 British television series debuts 2017 British television series endings 2010s British crime television series 2010s British drama television series BBC high definition shows BBC television dramas 2010s British television miniseries British crime drama television series English-language television shows Television shows based on British novels Television shows set in Derbyshire BBC television miniseries Television series by BBC Studios