This week’s crime drama lineup is packed with major returning detective series and high-profile new releases, bringing together some of the biggest names in crime drama.

Missed Call (Channel 5, 13–17 April)
Missed Call follows a mother (Joanna Scanlan) who travels to southern France when her daughter Katie disappears during a school exchange trip, only to find a community unwilling to talk. As she begins her own investigation, the series uncovers buried secrets and simmering tensions beneath the surface of an idyllic town.

Bergerac – Season 2 (U&Drama, 16 April)
Bergerac is back with detective Jim Bergerac — portrayed by Brassic star Damien Molony —facing one of the most challenging cases of his career when a wealthy woman is murdered and shocking events unfold at a wedding reception. Forced to confront a troubling past investigation, Bergerac must navigate personal demons, family strain and mounting pressure from law enforcement. The first series had an impressive 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes…excited to see what S2 brings. Also starring Robert Gilbert, the brilliant Lesley Sharp, Charles Dale, Turlough Convery, Georgina Rich and Jonathan Aris.

The Murder Line (ITV1, 18 April)
The Murder Line is a taut new thriller starring Minnie Driver, beginning with the discovery of two dead criminals at the US-Canada border. As local officer Henry Roland (Stephen Amell) investigates links to his past, a web of crime, drug deals and dangerous connections begins to emerge, pulling multiple lives into its orbit. The Guardian calls it a “crime caper on the edge of excellence’’.

Criminal Record – Season 2 (Apple TV+, 22 April)
Criminal Record returns with Peter Capaldi and Cush Jumbo as rival detectives — one a seasoned veteran and the other early in her career — who are drawn into a complex case following the stabbing of a young man at a political rally. What begins as a murder investigation quickly escalates into an undercover operation involving a far-right terror plot, testing loyalties and exposing the difficulty of uncovering truth in modern policing.

The Cage (BBC One / iPlayer, 26 April)
The Cage stars Sheridan Smith and Michael Socha in a tense Liverpool-set thriller centred on a high-stakes heist that pushes its characters to their limits. Two casino workers discover they’re both stealing from the same safe, entangling them with each other, the gangster they’re robbing, and the police. As loyalties fracture and desperation builds, the five-part series explores the risks people take when everything is on the line.

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