''Van der Valk'' is a

British television Regular television broadcasts in the United Kingdom started in 1936 as a public service which was free of advertising, which followed the first demonstration of a transmitted moving image in 1926. Currently, the United Kingdom has a collection ...

crime drama series that premiered in 2020, adapted from the

eponym An eponym is a person, a place, or a thing after whom or which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. The adjectives which are derived from the word eponym include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''. Usage of the word The term ''epon ...

ous series of crime thriller novels by

Nicolas Freeling Nicolas Freeling (born Nicolas Davidson; 3 March 1927 – 20 July 2003), was a British crime novelist, best known as the author of the "Van der Valk" series of detective novels. A television series based on the character was produced for the Brit ...

. Produced for the

ITV network ITV is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network. It was launched in 1955 as Independent Television to provide competition to BBC Television (established in 1936). ITV is the oldest commercial network in the UK. Since the passin ...

, it is a loose remake of the original ''

Van der Valk ''Van der Valk'' is a British television crime drama series produced for the ITV network. The first series ran from 1972 to 1992; followed by a remake in 2020. Created by Nicolas Freeling and based on his novels about a detective in Amsterd ...

'' series that ran from 1972 to 1992 on ITV. The

reboot In computing, rebooting is the process by which a running computer system is restarted, either intentionally or unintentionally. Reboots can be either a cold reboot (alternatively known as a hard reboot) in which the power to the system is physi ...

was created and written by Chris Murray, with

Marc Warren Marc Warren (born 20 March 1967) is an English actor, known for his British television roles. His roles have included Albert Blithe in '' Band of Brothers'', Danny Blue in '' Hustle'', Dougie Raymond in '' The Vice'', Dominic Foy in '' Stat ...

starring as police detective Van der Valk. Continuity with the original series is not preserved in the remake, which introduces revised and new characters as well as new storylines. ''Van der Valk'' premiered in the United Kingdom on 26 April 2020, the second series on 7 August 2022, and the third series on 18 June 2023.

Overview

Set against present-day

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

, police Commissioner Piet Van der Valk investigates challenging cases with his partner Lucienne Hassell, and colleagues in the National Police Force's major crimes division.

Cast and characters

Main

as Commissaris Piet Van der Valk *

Maimie McCoy Mary McCoy, professionally known as Maimie McCoy is an English actress. She portrayed Milady de Winter in ''The Musketeers'' (2014–2016), and is the female lead in the ITV reboot series ''Van der Valk'' (2020–). Early life McCoy was born in ...

as Inspecteur Lucienne Hassell *

Luke Allen-Gale Luke Allen-Gale is a British actor who has had roles in the apocalyptic series ''Dominion'' and in the ITV television show '' Monroe''. Career Born in Dorset, he trained at the Drama Centre London and made his acting debut in 2008 on ''Wallande ...

as Brigadier (Sergeant) Brad de Vries (Series 1–2) *

Elliot Barnes-Worrell Elliot Barnes-Worrell (born March 1991) is an English theatre and film actor known for his role as Easter in the ITV drama series '' Jericho'' (2016) and as Job Cloovers in the ITV crime drama series ''Van der Valk'' (2020). Early life Barnes ...

as Job Cloovers (Series 1–2) *

Darrell D'Silva Darrell Fitzgerald D'Silva (born 5 January 1964) is a British film and theatre actor, notable for his work with the Royal Shakespeare Company. Early life and education D'Silva was born in Rotherham, South Yorkshire. He is of Italian, Portugue ...

as Hendrik Davie, a police forensic pathologist *

Emma Fielding Emma Georgina Annalies Fielding (born 07 October 1964 in Catterick, North Riding of Yorkshire) is an English actress. Biography The daughter of a British Army officer, Colonel Johnny Fielding, and Sheila Fielding, she was raised Catholic and ...

as Hoofdcommissaris Julia Dahlman * Django Chan-Reeves as Sergeant Citra Li (Series 3) * Azan Ahmed as Sergeant Eddie Suleman (Series 3)

Recurring

Loes Haverkort Loes Haverkort (born 1981) is a Dutch actress. She has performed in movies, television shows and theaters. Career Haverkort did her acting course at the Maastricht Academy of Dramatic Arts. She has performed in the musical Soldier of Orange an ...

as Lena Linderman (Series 2–3) * Peter van Heeringen as Homeless Frank * Mike Libanon as Cliff Palache

Episodes

Series 1 (2020)

Series 2 (2022)

Series 3 (2023)

Production

Development

''Van der Valk'' is produced by

Company Pictures Company Pictures is an independent British television production company which has produced drama programming for many broadcasters. It was set up in 1998 by Charles Pattinson and George Faber, colleagues at BBC Films. Their first film was '' M ...

, NL Film,

ARD Degeto Degeto Film Gesellschaft mit beschränkter Haftung, GmbH (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Ton und Bild) is a film rights trader and production company of the ARD (broadcaster), ARD, based in Frankfurt am Main. Its shareholders are the ARD (broadcaster ...

, and

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...

, with

All3Media All3Media Limited is a British worldwide independent television, film and digital production and distribution company based in London, England. The All3Media group comprises more than 40 production and distribution companies from across the U ...

as international distributor. In this remake, Piet is unmarried and his sidekick Lucienne Hassell is

lesbian A lesbian is a Homosexuality, homosexual woman.Zimmerman, p. 453. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate n ...

. A key riff from the original 1972 series' distinctive theme music, "

Eye Level "Eye Level" is a 1972 single by the Simon Park Orchestra. It was produced originally for the De Wolfe Music Library and selected by Thames Television to be the theme tune for their Netherlands-based detective series ''Van der Valk''. Overview ...

", is echoed in the new theme music. In May 2020, Warren confirmed that the show would return for a second series, although production might be delayed due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. Nevertheless, with actors, crew, and logistics established, filming on season 2 began with safety measures in place on 3 June 2021. A third series was commissioned on 11 April 2022. Filming on Series 3 was completed in August 2022. With the departure of Elliot Barnes-Worrell and Luke Allen-Gale from the series, two new characters are introduced in Series 3: Sergeant Citra Li, played by Django Chan-Reeves, and Sergeant Eddie Suleman, played by Azan Ahmed.

Locations

Season 1 was filmed entirely in Amsterdam. Locations include the American Hotel, the

Rijksmuseum The Rijksmuseum () is the national museum of the Netherlands dedicated to Dutch arts and history and is located in Amsterdam. The museum is located at the Museum Square in the borough of Amsterdam South, close to the Van Gogh Museum, the St ...

Achtergracht The Achtergracht () is a short canal in Amsterdam, located between Frederiksplein and the Amstel, parallel to the Prinsengracht. The Achtergracht is located in the eastern part of the Grachtengordel (canal belt). History The original Achtergra ...

NDSM NDSM is a neighborhood in Amsterdam, Netherlands located on the former terrain of the Nederlandsche Dok en Scheepsbouw Maatschappij (NDSM) shipbuilding company. It is located in the Amsterdam-Noord borough along the IJ river and can be reached b ...

, the Tommy Hilfiger HQ on Danzigerkade in

Houthaven Houthaven is a neighbourhood of Amsterdam, Netherlands situated in the West borough. Literally meaning "lumber port", Houthaven is a port situated along the IJ in Amsterdam's western port. It is bordered by a dam in the IJ river to the north and t ...

, REM Eiland, Nieuwe Teertuinen,

Kadijken The Kadijken (), also known as Kadijkseiland or Kadijkenbuurt , is a neighbourhood to the north of Artis zoo in the centre of Amsterdam. The name "Kadijken" is the plural form of ''Kadijk'' and refers to the two main streets that traverse the nei ...

, Scharrebiersluis bridge,

Plantage Plantage is a neighbourhood of Amsterdam, Netherlands located in its Centrum borough. It is bordered by the Entrepotdok to the north, Plantage Muidergracht to the east and south and Nieuwe Herengracht to the west. In the centre of the neighbourhoo ...

, and the

Prinseneilandsgracht The Prinseneilandsgracht is a canal in the Centrum district of Amsterdam. It runs between Prinseneiland, an artificial island, to the east and the mainland to the west. Until after World War II (1939–45) the canal was bordered almost exclusively ...

. Season 2 was filmed in Amsterdam,

Utrecht Utrecht ( , , ) is the List of cities in the Netherlands by province, fourth-largest city and a List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the Provinces of the Netherlands, pro ...

, and

The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital of ...

. Locations include

Scheveningen Pier The Scheveningen Pier is a pleasure pier in the Dutch resort town of Scheveningen near The Hague. Opened in 1959, the current pier is the second in the town, the first being lost just after, and as a result of, the Second World War. History Wand ...

, the Muziekgebouw, A'DAM Tower, and Café Scheltema.

Release

Broadcast

The show premiered in the United Kingdom on ITV on 26 April 2020, with series 1 consisting of three 90-minute episodes. In the Netherlands, ''Van der Valk'' debut on

NPO 1 NPO 1 (''NPO een'', formerly Nederland 1 until 2014) is the first national television station in the Netherlands. It launched on 2 October 1951. It provides public broadcasting and currently exists next to sister channels NPO 2 and NPO 3. Severa ...

on 1 January 2020. In Germany, the series premiered on

Das Erste Das Erste (; "The First") is the flagship national television channel of the ARD association of public broadcasting corporations in Germany. ''Das Erste'' is jointly operated by the nine regional public broadcasting corporations that are member ...

on 1 June 2020. In the United States, it debut on

on 13 September 2020. In Australia, it premiered on

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

on 4 April 2020, and in New Zealand on

Vibe ''Vibe'' is an American music and entertainment magazine founded by producers David Salzman and Quincy Jones. The publication predominantly features R&B and hip hop music artists, actors and other entertainers. After shutting down productio ...

on 25 May 2020. In Belgium, it debut on VRT 1 on 4 September 2020. In the UK, ''Van der Valk'' series 1 averaged 7.1 million viewers. The second series premiered in the UK on 7 August 2022, and in the U.S. on 25 September 2022. In 2022, distribution of ''Van der Valk'' became available in Italy on

Discovery Discovery may refer to: * Discovery (observation), observing or finding something unknown * Discovery (fiction), a character's learning something unknown * Discovery (law), a process in courts of law relating to evidence Discovery, The Discovery ...

, France on

France Télévisions France Télévisions (; stylized since 2018 as ) is the French national public television broadcaster. It is a state-owned company formed from the integration of the public television channels France 2 (formerly Antenne 2) and France 3 (former ...

, Norway on

NRK NRK, an abbreviation of the Norwegian ''Norsk Rikskringkasting Aksjeselskap, AS'', generally expressed in English as the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation, is the Norwegian government-owned radio and television public broadcasting company, and ...

, Sweden on

TV4 TV4 or TV 4 may refer to: *TV4 (Poland), a private Polish television station *TV4 (Sweden), a Swedish television network **TV4 Group, owners of the Swedish television station *South African Broadcasting Corporation TV4, a channel operated by the st ...

, Croatia on HRT, and Spain on

Cosmopolitan Cosmopolitan may refer to: Food and drink * Cosmopolitan (cocktail), also known as a "Cosmo" History * Rootless cosmopolitan, a Soviet derogatory epithet during Joseph Stalin's anti-Semitic campaign of 1949–1953 Hotels and resorts * Cosmopoli ...

. The series was also acquired by

NHK , also known as NHK, is a Japanese public broadcaster. NHK, which has always been known by this romanized initialism in Japanese, is a statutory corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television license fee. NHK operates two terrestri ...

in Japan,

ViuTVsix ViuTVsix is a free-to-air English language general entertainment television channel in Hong Kong operated by HK Television Entertainment (HKTVE), whose parent company, PCCW, also operates IPTV platform Now TV and media streaming service Viu. Th ...

in Hong Kong,

DirecTV DirecTV (trademarked as DIRECTV) is an American multichannel video programming distributor based in El Segundo, California. Originally launched on June 17, 1994, its primary service is a digital satellite service serving the United States. It ...

in Latin America and BBC Global Channels in Africa. In June 2023, ITV announced that the third series would premiere on 18 June 2023. The series premiered first in Denmark on

TV 2 Charlie TV 2 Charlie is a Danish television channel owned by TV 2. It was launched on 1 October 2004. The channel shows own productions and British criminal dramas (like ''Dalziel and Pascoe'', ''A Touch of Frost'' and ''Silent Witness''.) It broadcasts ...

3 January 2023, then debuted on ABC in Australia on 24 March 2023, and on PBS in the US on 3 September 2023.

Home media

Season 1 was released on DVD in Region 2 by Dazzler Media on 11 May 2020, and in Region 4 by

on 20 May 2020. It was released in Region 1 by PBS on 13 October 2020. The Season 2 DVD was released first in Region 4 on 13 April 2022, followed by Region 2 on 22 August 2022, and Region 1 on 11 October 2022.

References

External links

* * * {{epguides, VanDerValk_2020
''Van der Valk''
at

''Van der Valk''
at NL Film
''Van der Valk''
at

''Van der Valk''
at

2020 British television series debuts 2020s British crime television series 2020s British LGBT-related drama television series 2020s British mystery television series British crime television series British detective television series English-language television shows Lesbian-related television shows Television shows based on British novels Television shows set in the Netherlands ITV television dramas Television series by All3Media