Unforgotten’s Sanjeev Bhaskar on Sunny's backpack reaching “weird status"
Bhaskar compared the item to "Colombo’s raincoat" and promised he will once again reveal its contents on social media.
If there's one thing Unforgotten fans are particularly excited to see in season 5, beyond the introduction of new DCI Jessica James of course, it's got to be the return of Sunny's backpack.
The backpack has become something of a viral phenomenon as the series has continued, due to its consistent feature as a part of Sunny's wardrobe, so much so that star Sanjeev Bhaskar has taken to tweeting out the random contents added to it each day by the costume department.
Bhaskar was recently asked whether the backpack makes a return for the fifth season, to which he said: "It absolutely does. It’s reached that [same] weird status as Colombo’s raincoat. And once again, the costume department fill it with all manner of bric-a-brac and ridiculous items, which I duly photographed, and will absolutely put out there after the episodes.
"It’s a really strange thing, because the backpack got so much attention after the first series, I just didn’t expect it. It’s a minor prop, really. It wasn’t focused on or featured particularly, but people noticed it for some reason."
Bhaskar also recently teased the unique mystery that fans can expect to see in season 5, with the suspects this time around being of all different ages - to reveal the reason for which would be "spoiler-y".
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Meanwhile, it has already been revealed that Sunny will be at "loggerheads" with the new DCI at the start of the season, with Jessie star Sinéad Keenan saying: "When they meet, it is loggerheads. It’s passive aggressive, jibes, in a way it’s jostling for position.
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"It’s not until episode four, once the shock of her news dissipates a bit, that she really tries to get herself together. And we hope they can start working together as opposed to beside each other."
Let's hope they can, as creator Chris Lang has revealed he already has plans for a sixth season of the hit show.
Unforgotten season 5 will air on ITV1 and ITVX on Monday 27th February 2023, and all four previous seasons are currently 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.
