BAFTA nominee John Hannah (“The Last of Us,” “Four Weddings and a Funeral”) is set to lead “Death in Benidorm,” a new detective drama series launching on the Paramount Skydance-owned U.K. network Channel 5.
The show — which is currently a working title — comes from Blackbox Multimedia and Clapperboard and centers around Dennis, a former detective trying to escape his past who swaps the chaos of the U.K. for a quieter life running a bar in Benidorm. But when tourists start turning up dead, he’s reluctantly drawn back into detective work — egged on by his barmaid Rosa, a crime drama superfan.
As per the synopsis, with Dennis’ real-world experience and Rosa’s encyclopaedic TV knowledge, “each episode sees the duo tackling a new murder in paradise, whilst trying to remain on the right side of the local Spanish cops.”
Playing Rose is Carolina Bécquer as Rosa, while additional cast includes Ariadna Cabrol as Maria and Damian Schedler Cruz as Jesùs.
“Death in Benidorm” — which sounds more-than-a-little inspired by the BBC’s long-running series “Death in Paradise” — was commissioned by Greg Barnett, commissioning editor at 5 and is co-produced by Blackbox Multimedia (“The Ex-Wife,” “The Serial Killer’s Wife,” “This Time Next Year”) and Clapperboard (“The Teacher,” “The Game,” “The Madame Blanc Mysteries”) with ZDF Studios onboard as international distributor.
“I am thrilled to have John Hannah on board,” said Barnett. “He’s absolutely perfect for the role of Dennis — a character with sharp intellect, dry wit, and life experience — and from what I’ve seen already, viewers will fall in love with him.”
Chiara Cardoso and Camilla Hammer are executive producers for Blackbox Multimedia, Mike Benson and Andy Morgan for Clapperboard, Robert Franke, VP drama for ZDF Studios with Viviane Richard, executive drama in Franke’s team, acting as associate producer. Ian Jarvis (“The Completely Made-Up Adventures of Dick Turpin”) created the series, with Simon Delaney (“Death in Paradise,” “The Young Offenders”) on board as Director. Yasmine Akram (“Flack”), Claire Downes (“The Completely Made-Up Adventures of Dick Turpin,” “The Outlaws”) and Tom Parry (“Your Christmas or Mine,” “Your Christmas or Mine 2”) are writers.
“Death in Benidorm is such a witty and charming addition to the cosy crime genre, and John Hannah truly encapsulates this,” added Richard. “We’re thrilled to be working with Blackbox to bring these sharply written scripts to life and, we can’t wait to share it with audiences around the world.”
“Death in Benidorm” is now filming on location in Spain and is set to air on 5 in 2026.
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