Sally Phillips to Headline 1970s-set Cozy Crime 'The Hairdresser Mysteries'

It was mid-July 2025 when we first got word of The Detection Club, a forthcoming mystery series reportedly in the works from BritBox and the BBC. However, at the time, neither production studio would confirm the series, which was reportedly going to be based on the real-life group that included some of the most famous mystery writers of the day, including Agatha Christie, G.K. Chesterton, and Dorothy L. Sayers. It turns out the BBC was holding back on confirming the series because there were actually two shows in the works. The second will be The Hairdresser Mysteries, a completely original series starring Bridget Jones' Sally Phillips.

As we've been reporting, cozy crime series starring actors whose careers broke big in the 1990s and 2000s have been ratings magnets in 2025, with Acorn TV seeing some of its biggest successes to date with a lineup of them. While Sally Phillips is not a household name in the U.S., the Bridget Jones movies are beloved favorites on both sides of the pond, and Phillips has also turned up in popular series like the 2018 adaptation of Vanity Fair and HBO's Veep. More recently, audiences have seen her in supporting cameos in Hulu's Queenie, and Tubi's Big Mood. 

The Detection Club half of the announcement notably does not list any cast as yet playing the members of the legendary 1930s-era society; it continues to only list Christie, Chesterton, and Sayers as the show's central trio. However, the group had dozens of members, and previous fictionalized stories about their exploits usually include several other major members. Here's one of the more recent rosters, from Europe Comics' 2020 graphic novel. 

Despite the lack of cast, the announcement does come with The Detection Club's first official synopsis:

The Detection Club, set in 1930s London, the golden age of detective fiction, sees the mysterious society of the three most famous crime writers of our time, Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers, and G.K. Chesterton, join forces to solve real-life murders. Honing their craft within the hallowed walls of a secret London location, the three writers come together after receiving an invitation that leads them to their first real murder case. The series follows the trio as they work together to crack cases, all to the despair of D.I. Greenway, a young, rookie, real-life detective. 

The series will run ten episodes for its first outing, with Father Brown scribe Kit Lambert on board as lead writer. Other behind-the-camera talent is expected to be announced in due course, along with the cast.

There's much more information on The Hairdresser Mysteries, which is described as "an original, homegrown" period drama set in the 1970s. Here's the official synopsis:

The Hairdresser Mysteries sees a high-end hairdresser, Lily Petal, opt out of the competitive city scene to buy a small village shop at the top of a cobbled street. Everyone tells their hairdresser everything, and soon she is at the hub of her new village’s secrets and revelations, and with her own brand of uncannily highly developed, intuitive empathy and understanding, solves the village mysteries.

Phillips stars as Lily Petal; further casting is expected in due course when the show gets closer to filming. 

The series was created by Jim Cartwright (Johnny Shakespeare), who serves as lead writer and penned all six episodes with Mark Catley (Call the Midwife) and David Semple (Shakespeare & Hathaway: Private Investigators). Directors Paul Gibson (Midsomer Murders), Jermain Julien (Grantchester), and Tracey Larcombe (Silent Witness) split helming duties, with Grainne O’Boyle producing. Executive producers include Will Trotter & Oliver Kent for Mill Bay Media and Herbert L. Kloiber & James Copp for Night Train Media. Notably, despite previous reports listing BritBox as the American home for The Detection Club, both shows are listed in the BBC press release as looking for distribution.

Neither The Detection Club nor The Hairdresser Mysteries has a formal release date, but both are slated to film in the West Midlands in the U.K. in 2026, and probably won't reach the U.S. until 2027.