UNFORGOTTEN: CASTING ANNOUNCED FOR SEVENTH SERIES OF HIT ITV CRIME DRAMA AS FILMING BEGINS

ITV, Mainstreet Pictures and MASTERPIECE announce that filming has commenced on the seventh series of the multi-award-winning crime drama Unforgotten, created and written by award-winning screenwriter Chris Lang.

Sanjeev Bhaskar (DI Sunny Khan) and Sinéad Keenan (DCI Jess James) return to lead the new series, reprising their acclaimed on-screen partnership as the team investigates a complex and emotionally charged cold case.

Joining Sanjeev and Sinéad for the seventh series are Sophie Rundle (After the Flood, Gentleman Jack, Peaky Blinders), Julian Rhind-Tutt (Kill Jackie), Jo Hartley (Adolescence, Passenger), Paul Kaye (The Hack), Nicholas Burns (The Serpent Queen), Natalie Simpson (Trigger Point), Kirsty J Curtis (Joan, Harlots), Andrew Tiernan (Joan, Happy Valley), Ben Bailey Smith (Black Mirror), Dominic Coleman (Bridgerton, The Jetty).

Plus David Fynn (Daddy Issues, Lazarus), India Brown (Honey Bunch, Invasion), Sonya Nisa (Waterloo Road, Damsel), Joshua Sher (Lynley, Vera), Rachel Atkins (The Hack, Grantchester), Roger Dipper (Malice, Sherwood), Cameron Jack (River City, The Wheel of Time), Mark Jax (Jack Ryan, Merlin), Joe McNamara (Call the Midwife), Yazdan Qafouri (I Came By), and celebrated British actors Paula Wilcox (Coronation Street, Trying) and Philip Martin Brown (Darkest Hour, Waterloo Road).

Directed by Andy Wilson, who has overseen all six previous series, the drama opens with the chilling discovery of human remains in the crawl space of a house in Ladbroke Grove, London. Early forensic analysis suggests the body is that of a child and has been deliberately concealed for several years.

The investigation takes a deeply personal turn for the team when a DNA match links the victim to a previously closed historic case, compelling DI Sunny Khan and DCI Jess James to revisit the original inquiry and unravel the truth behind a decades-old crime.

The investigation into the young victim's life leads the team to a new cast of characters whose present-day lives conceal dark secrets, including a troubled social worker, Mary Brock (Sophie Rundle), a respected inmate, Lacee Cook (Kirsty J Curtis), a struggling addict, Hugh Swafham (Julian Rhind-Tutt), and a tenacious journalist, Ruby Allenford (Natalie Simpson).

Jess and Sunny’s loyal police team also reassemble, featuring Jordan Long as DS Murray Boulting, Carolina Main as DS Fran Lingley, and Pippa Nixon as DC Kaz Willets. Georgia Mackenzie also returns as Pathologist Dr Leanne Balcombe. Other returning cast members include Andrew Lancel (I Fought the Law, and The Thief, His Wife and The Canoe) as Jess’s ex-husband, Steve, and Kate Robbins (The Couple Next Door, Afterlife) as her mother, Kate.

Produced by Deborah Morgan, who served as line producer for series five and six, the new series will showcase a diverse range of locations across the UK, setting the scene for the new investigation. These include the central London location of Ladbroke Grove, the coastal setting of Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, and locations in Coventry and Halifax, as well as Reading Prison.

Across six series, Unforgotten has reached 28 million viewers and been streamed 121 million times, making it the third most-streamed drama in ITVX history. The series has featured regularly in ITV’s Top 10s for over 11 years, with the past two series ranking as ITV’s number one drama of the year.

Commented ITV’s Drama Commissioner, Huw Kennair Jones: "It’s always beyond exciting to return to the brilliant world of ‘Unforgotten’ and this series promises to be no different...

"Once again Chris Lang has created a compelling set of characters interwoven in an intriguing and enticing story, one that will keep Jess and Sunny and the audience guessing until the very end. We’re thrilled that once again, Andy Wilson is directing every episode and with the brilliant team at Mainstreet Pictures producing, it’s going to be another fantastic series."

Commented Sally Haynes and Guy de Glanville, Executive Producers for Mainstreet Pictures: “It is a true honour and privilege to be making another series of Unforgotten for ITV. We are so excited to be bringing another powerful and deeply emotional story, written by the exceptional Chris Lang, to the screen, directed by the brilliant Andy Wilson, and brought to life by our stellar cast, led by Sinéad Keenan and Sanjeev Bhaskar...

"The commission of a seventh series reflects the continued success of the series and the enduring loyalty of its audience, made possible by the incredible support of Polly Hill and Huw Kennair Jones at ITV, and Susanne Simpson at Masterpiece.”

More details will be announced in due course.