Yahoo News Silent Witness series 22 cast, stories and guest stars are revealed
Now that we've got all that Christmas cheer out of our system, it's time to talk about the BBC's long-running misery fest Silent Witness.
Five new two-part stories are coming in early 2019, bringing all the murder, deceit and washed-out colour grading you could want.
Emilia Fox, David Caves, Richard Lintern and the iconic Liz Carr are all back, plus a host of guest stars have been lined up for the new run too. We'll go through them story by story.
The first story, 'Two Spirits', focuses on the trans community, as a trans man is murdered and a trans activist is kidnapped. Gavin & Stacey star Andrew Knott, Waterloo Road's Heather Peace, The Bank Job's Johann Mysers and Lost in Austen's Jemima Rooper make appearances.
Story number two, 'Lift Up Your Hearts', sees a teenage boy die in a meth lab explosion, prompting his inspirational headteacher Noah Taylor to confront the drug dealers preying on his community.
Guest stars include former EastEnders star Samantha Womack, Black Mirror actor Dan Li, The Crouches actress Jo Martin, Patient Zero's Hara Yannas and Krypton's Colin Salmon (who appeared in Silent Witness' very first series!).
[Samantha Womack and Colin Salmon in Silent Witness series 22]
'To Brighton, To Brighton' is the third story, which is set in (you'll never guess) Brighton! Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman's Michael Landes, The Tudors' Sebastian Armesto, Downton Abbey's Samantha Bond and Cucumber's Fisayo Akinade all guest star in the episodes, which see a collection of dismembered body parts, covered in intricate Japanese tattoos, found in a Brighton waste dump.
Story four, 'Deathmaker', has Jack delving into his own dark past as Northern Irish terrorists are suspected of a bombing. The guest stars here include Derry Girls' Ian McElhinney, Coronation Street's Ray Fearon and theatre star Avita Jay.
And the final episodes, making up story number five 'The Ties That Bind', places Nikki in the spotlight as her abilities are doubted. The guest stars are Holby City's Art Malik, Black Mirror 'Crocodile' actresses Adelle Leonce and Kiran Sonia Sawar, Ballykissangel's Derlva Kirwan and Doctor Who's Ingrid Oliver (pictured below).
The main cast all point to the Brighton episodes being particularly worth looking forward to, even though the smell from the waste dump they filmed on was apparently unforgettable for all the wrong reasons, according to Emilia Fox and Richard Lintern.
Silent Witness returns with its first two episodes on Tuesday, January 8 and Wednesday, January 9 at 9pm on BBC One.
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