Grace stars John Simm and Zoë Tapper reveal tragic start to season 5
"It's quite heightened, but great to play – you need some dramatic tension and so as actors it's much better to play something like that."
The last season of Grace came to an emotional end for the detective, as he found his wife Sandy, bringing to an end the mystery which had plagued him since the very start of the series, but she tragically took her own life soon after.
In a note left for Roy, Sandy revealed that he had a son he never knew about called Bruno, and she asked him to take care of him. This came right as he and his new partner Cleo were expecting a baby.
Roy and Cleo stars John Simm and Zoë Tapper recently took part in a Q&A ahead of the show's upcoming season 5, and the pair revealed the new episodes will begin on a heartbreaking note for the couple, with it being revealed that Cleo lost the baby.
Simm explained: “When we find Cleo and Roy, they are dealing with the loss of a child, which has obviously happened between the series. You realise quite quickly what's happened.
"And they're also trying to deal with Bruno, who's now kind of living with them, and they both have to try and bond with Bruno, through obviously tragic circumstances, what happened to Sandy and etc in the previous series."
He continued: "So, yeah, it's quite heightened, but great to play – you need some dramatic tension and so as actors it's much better to play something like that. And so it was a lovely challenge, actually."
Meanwhile, Tapper said that it was "very different" for her coming back into the new season, as Cleo is at home for the beginning of the new run, coming to terms with the loss.
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She said: "You find out very early on that she's lost the baby, so that's the sort of first image you have of her and of them is dealing with this really devastating loss.
"They were really poignant, moving scenes to film and interesting in another way, because I think for Cleo, her work is so integral to who she is as a person, and she's on bereavement leave at the beginning of this series, and Roy has had to go back to work, so they're separated in their grief as well.
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"So I felt very isolated, she felt very isolated to me as a character at that beginning, the place where you where you first see her. But as with how this series always goes, she's then faced with quite a lot to deal with in among all of that too."
Alongside Simm and Tapper, Richie Campbell, Laura Elphinstone, Brad Morrison and Sam Hoare will all be back, while Craig Parkinson will not be returning as Norman Potting, having left the series at the end of season 4.
Grace season 5 will air this spring with seasons 1-4 available to stream on ITVX.
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Authors
James Hibbs is a Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering programmes across both streaming platforms and linear channels. He previously worked in PR, first for a B2B agency and subsequently for international TV production company Fremantle. He possesses a BA in English and Theatre Studies and an NCTJ Level 5 Diploma in Journalism.
