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Entertainment Now | October 15 - 21, 2022 By Sarah Passingham TV Media T he grey skies of Glasgow's coastline cover an unusu- ally high number of mur- ders at sea in "Annika," the brand-new, Scotland-set po- lice procedural starring "Last Tango in Halifax" actress Nicola Walker as Annika Strandhed. "Annika" premieres on this side of the Atlantic on PBS Master - piece this fall, beginning Sunday, Oct. 16. Check your local listings for your premiere date. A legend among her detective peers, DI Strandhed lands in Glasgow with her teenage daughter, Morgan, portrayed by Silvie Furneaux ("Red Rose"), to head up their newly formed Ma - rine Homicide Unit. Strandhed is quickly partnered with keen new cop DS Tyrone Clarke, played by "Blindspot" star Ukweli Roach, who joins her as she dives into solving murders committed at sea. Having also portrayed the ex- pert detective in the BBC Radio 4 series "Annika Stranded" (this TV series is a continuation of the BBC radio original), Walker is an Annika pro — and passionately possessive of the character. "No one else is playing her," she told Drama Quarterly shortly after wrapping filming on the se- ries. "I know it's another detec- tive and I apologize only for that. No one else was going to be An- nika. I would have found that re- ally difficult to let go." It is rare that a performer gets the chance to bring a character to life across different forms of media over nearly a decade — the radio show "Annika Strand- ed" aired from 2013 to 2020 — and Walker seemed to revel in the chance to carry on in the role. "You put it [Annika's story] on camera and suddenly it just com- pletely opens out," she noted lat- er on in the same interview. "It was a real challenge; I enjoyed it." One thing that really sets "An- nika" apart from other police procedurals other than its uniquely specific subject of ma- rine murder is the cheeky humor woven into the series. Annika herself is witty, cracking jokes to break the tension, but the levity doesn't just come from the dia- logue, skillfully written by series creator Nick Walker (who also penned "Annika Stranded"), "Holby City" writer Lucia Haynes and "Adam" (2021) writer Fran- ces Poet. In a move that feels like it is referencing the direct-to-audi- ence voice of the radio show, DI Strandhed breaks the fourth wall and speaks directly to the camera while she's sorting things out, whether regarding the details of a murder case or those of her personal life. The move has been popularized in dramedies since it was impeccably deployed by cre- ator and star Phoebe Waller- Bridge ("Run") in BBC/Prime Vid- eo's "Fleabag," a series that was also developed from a more inti- mate medium, Waller-Bridge's award-winning 2013 one-wom- an show of the same name. "Annika" also makes use of lit- erary references throughout the series, tying in yet another artistic medium. A news release from PBS Masterpiece notes that DI Strandhed employs a unique base of knowledge for fighting crime: "Annika's strikingly effec- tive MO is to link the crime under investigation to her obsessive reading of literature and mythol- ogy." This is immediately clear given the series premiere's title, "Cap- tain Ahab's Wife," a reference to Herman Melville's 1851 novel "Moby Dick," and fans can be sure that Annika certainly has more literary tricks up her sleeve for the rest of the six-episode season. A new place, a new job, a new school and new people don't come without growing pains for Annika and Morgan, however. To help smooth the transition to Glasgow, Morgan begins visiting a local therapist, Jake Strathearn, portrayed by "Luther" actor Paul McGann. Also a part of the Glasgow package are the rest of the members of Annika's depart- ment, her right-hand man DS Mi- chael McAndrews (Jamie Sives, "Crime") and forensic expert DI Blair Ferguson (Katie Leung, "The Nest"). Sharing a season premiere date with "Annika" on PBS Mas- terpiece is the smash hit British period detective series "Miss Scarlet and the Duke." Set in Vic- torian-era London, Eliza Scarlet (Kate Phillips "Peaky Blinders") takes over her father's detective business, becoming London's first female detective. The titular duke, meanwhile, is Scotland Yard Det. William Wellington (Stuart Martin, "Jamestown"), Eliza's longtime friend, who as- sists with her cases. Debuting its second season the same night as "Annika," "Miss Scarlet and the Duke" left fans with many unanswered questions regarding Eliza's father and the duke, who had become very close with Eliza throughout the mystery series' first season. The knockout PBS Masterpiece premiere night doesn't end there, either. It continues with another brand-new British mystery series debut: "Magpie Murders." Also premiering Sunday, Oct. 16, the series stars "Phantom Thread" (2017) actress Lesley Manville. Manville plays Susan Ryeland, a book editor who receives an un- solicited, unfinished manuscript that sets her on the sleuthing ad- venture of a lifetime. If you love recent detective se- ries featuring well-written, thorny but warm leads like HBO's "Mare of Easttown" or BBC's "Happy Valley," then "Annika" needs to be at the top of your watch list. Make sure to check your local PBS listings and catch the premiere of "Annika" on PBS Masterpiece, beginning Sunday, Oct. 16. Silvie Furneaux in "Annika" 'Annika' investigates Glasgow's marine crime 2 | Cover story Grindstone Charlie's 1 x 4" Moore's Home Health 5 x 2"

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