Unforgotten season 6: Release date speculation and latest news
Season 6 is officially in production!
Warning: This article contains major spoilers for Unforgotten season 5.
It's been a year since Unforgotten was last seen on our screens, but there's good news for fans - as production on the sixth season has now begun.
The readthrough for the new season took place in central London on Tuesday 12th March, kicking off filming for season 6, meaning it'll only be a matter of time before we get some first-look pictures and more exciting details.
Each season tackles a new, intriguing case and interlinking set of characters, with the story this time around actually being worked on by creator Chris Lang since the Brexit referendum in 2016.
So, a long time coming, to say the least.
Last season was the first under the helm of new lead DCI Jessica James (Sinéad Keenan), who joined the team in the wake of Cassie Stuart's (Nicola Walker) death.
The season was as much about grief as it was an exploration of the mystery murder case at hand, so we can't wait to see what's in store for Jessica and Sanjeev Bhaskar's Sunny.
Speaking about stepping back into the role in season 6, Keenan said: "I am absolutely delighted to be stepping into the world of Unforgotten once more. To be involved with the incredible team at Mainstreet on yet another set of stellar scripts from Chris Lang, with the brilliant Andy Wilson at the helm, is a real treat.
"And to get to work again with Sanjeev, Carolina, Jordan, Pippa, and Georgia is an absolute joy. To call it work is a total misnomer. I can’t wait to get started!"
With that, read on for everything you need to know about the sixth season of Unforgotten.
Will there be an Unforgotten season 6?
Yes! The series was renewed back in April 2023 after the season 5 finale had aired on ITV1.
The renewal announcement was likely for the crime drama, especially seeing as season 5's premiere episode alone was the most-watched programme on ITV in 2023, going on to become the number 1 drama on ITV1 and ITVX last year.
The fifth season averaged over 8 million viewers, so it's safe to say many people will be tuning in to see what happens in season 6.
Series creator Chris Lang previously revealed that he did have ideas for season 6. On the set of Unforgotten season 5, he teased to RadioTimes.com and other press that the dynamic between DCI James and DI Khan (Sanjeev Bhaskar) could very well be making a return.
Lang said: "Certainly, if they asked me, I’d do a season 6. I've got a season 6 in my head. So yeah, it's down to the broadcaster, whether they asked me to do it.
"It's a unique show, in that it's got a format that is self-contained, but with a certain degree of serialised elements through the characters. And as long as people keep watching it, and we can keep making it well… at the point where either I don't feel I can contribute to it, or make it better, obviously I'd stop. But at the moment we haven't hit that point yet."
Lang continued: "It's incredibly difficult to sit down and create it from a blank page, so you need huge reserves of energy and enthusiasm to push you through creating six episodes. And it’s often very emotionally draining stories that you're telling as well, which require lots of research into really dark areas.
"So as long as I have the appetite to keep doing that, and as long as the audience keep coming back to it, there's no reason why I couldn't keep going on."
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Unforgotten season 6 release date speculation
As of now, there has not been a confirmed release date for Unforgotten season 6.
But with the news of the sixth season now going into production, we're sure a release date will be announced in due course.
Unforgotten season 5 hit our screens early in 2023, so it looks like we could be looking at a late 2024 or early 2025 release date on the cards.
For season 5, Keenan was only revealed as the next lead when filming kicked off in March 2022, so knowing that the filming and production process took less than a year, there could be hope for the ITV drama to return to our screens sooner than we think. Watch this space.
Unforgotten season 6 cast speculation
Sinéad Keenan's DCI Jessica 'Jessie' James and Sanjeev Bhaskar's DI Sunny Khan will be returning in season 6, so fans can anticipate seeing how their initially rocky dynamic continues to level out to be a very heartwarming working relationship.
Their investigating team will also be reunited to tackle more cold cases, with Jordan Long as DS Murray Boulting returning, as well as Carolina Main as DS Fran Lingley, Pippa Nixon as DC Karen Willets and Georgia Mackenzie as pathologist Dr Leanne Balcombe.
It's now been confirmed who else will be joining the cast in new roles, with the likes of Victoria Hamilton (Cobra) and MyAnna Buring (The Responder) joining, as well as acting newcomers Max Fairley and Elham Elas.
Legendary British actors Jan Francis and Damien Molony will also star, with Andrew Lancel (Bolan’s Shoes) reprising his role as Jess’s husband Steve and Kate Robbins (The Couple Next Door) as her mother Kate.
The series is always home to a guest cast of amazing talent who star as people somehow involved in the case, with the synopsis reading: "In the meantime, we’re introduced to outspoken television commentator Melinda Ricci (MyAnna Buring), who is based in Ireland and renowned for her forthright views, Martin 'Marty' Baines (Max Fairley), an autistic man who lives with his mother, Dot, in Deal, Kent, Asif Syed (Elham Elas), an Afghan who speaks fluent English and is training for his UK citizenship test, and Juliet Cooper (Victoria Hamilton), who is a history lecturer and faculty head at a central London University.
"Each of these characters live separate lives, yet they are intrinsically linked by their past and it’s for Jess, Sunny and their team to unravel these connections in search of the truth, and ultimately who perpetrated the cold case murder."
The confirmed cast list for Unforgotten season 6 is as follows:
- Sinéad Keenan as DCI Jessica 'Jessie' James
- Sanjeev Bhaskar as DI Sunny Khan
- Jordan Long as DS Murray Boulting
- Carolina Main as DS Fran Lingley
- Pippa Nixon as DC Karen Willets
- Georgia Mackenzie as Dr Leanne Balcombe
- MyAnna Buring as Melinda Ricci
- Andrew Lancel as Steve
- Kate Robbins as Kate
- Max Fairley as Martin ‘Marty’ Baines
- Elham Elas as Asif Syed
- Victoria Hamilton as Juliet Cooper
- Jan Francis as TBC
- Damien Molony as TBC
What could Unforgotten season 6 be about?
This new season of Unforgotten has nearly been a decade in the making, according to series creator Chris Lang.
Speaking on the announcement of filming getting underway on the new season, Lang said: "I'm incredibly excited to be about to start filming the sixth series of Unforgotten, with a story that has been gestating for nearly eight years, since 23rd June 2016, when our country seemed to fracture in two.
"The UK, and indeed the world, has today never seemed more divided, and series six attempts to try and understand how we got to where we are now and, perhaps more importantly, where we can go from here."
The series synopsis for season 6 reads: "When suspected human remains are discovered on Whitney Marsh, Jess and Sunny are called to the scene, ditching their respective plans for the evening much to Jess’s husband Steve’s chagrin.
"With Dr Balcombe’s expert analysis of the human spine, it’s evident the remains are relatively recent and her guess is the body was put there already dismembered. With this knowledge, Jess and Sunny begin to search the area believing other body parts may not be too far away."
Each of the new six episodes has been written by Lang and will be directed by Andy Wilson (Ripper Street, Spooks), who has been the sole director at the helm of each of the previous 30 episodes across the previous five seasons.
Is there a trailer for Unforgotten season 6?
Not yet, seeing as filming for season 6 has just got under way.
But we're sure it'll be very soon before we get a new trailer for season 6. In the meantime, how about a rewatch of the season 5 trailer to whet your appetite for now?
Watch it below.
Unforgotten seasons 1-5 are available to stream on ITVX.
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