Ashley Jensen stars in new series of BBC drama Shetland

You have to feel sorry for fans of long-running TV shows, when the leading player decides the time has come to move on to pastures new, but it seems there’s always someone waiting in the wings.

Crime dramas are often – pardon the pun – victims of their own success.

John Nettles found fame as Jersey detective Jim Bergerac (and by being able to say Bureau des Etrangers without missing a beat) before making Midsomer his murder-prone stomping ground. When he stepped down after 14 years, Neil Dudgeon stepped smoothly in.

For three years, Ben Miller put on his best grumpy bloke act as DI Richard Poole in Death in Paradise, before being bumped off. Kris Marshall, Ardal O’Hanlon and Ralf Little were his equally popular successors.

So, while devotees of DI Jimmy Perez, AKA Douglas Henshall, may mourn the fact he is no more, there is good reason to cheer the return of this much-loved Scottish drama.

Its new leading lady is Ashley Jensen, whose CV is bursting at the seams with quality work (Extras, Ugly Betty and Catastrophe to name but three).

After 30 years away, Met detective DI Ruth Calder (Jensen) returns to Shetland on the trail of Ellen Quinn – the scared witness to a London gangland murder. Sadly, her family are the influential and notorious Bains, led by dominant matriarch, Grace.

Calder and DS Alison ‘Tosh’ McIntosh (Alison O’Donnell) discover her mother Stella and father Kieran haven’t seen Ellen since she left for London six months ago and are surprised to hear that she’s back in Shetland. Matters are made worse when armed London gangsters arrive on the Isles on a mission to silence Ellen.

On top of the twists and turns of the case, Calder is faced with figures from her past, including her ex-boyfriend Cal Innes and estranged younger brother Alan – now the minister of their late father’s old church.

As events gather momentum, Calder and Tosh are stunned by news of a brutal murder which has all the hallmarks of organised crime. However, there’s another shock in store for the team.

Ashley can’t hide her enthusiasm at the role. “I am absolutely thrilled to be joining Shetland as DI Ruth Calder,” she said.

“It’s such a hugely successful show and I am aware I have very big boots to fill since the departure of DI Perez, who was very much loved by fans.”

She was quick to ease fears about any changes to what makes the show such a hit with fans.

“There will be a different dynamic with Ruth amongst the regular characters and a few more new interesting characters to enjoy,” she said. “However, the integrity of the show and the world that has been created will remain very much in the same tone as the last seven seasons. It’s a real privilege to be asked to lead this show into a new chapter.

“I can’t wait to be working in Scotland again. I have missed it!”