Jenna Coleman Enters Her Detective Era with BBC Crime Drama 'The Jetty'

it is a truth universally acknowledged that every British actor of note must spend some time playing a detective of some type. Whether it's a grizzled veteran, a wide-eyed newcomer to the force, or someone whose unconventional career path has inexplicably landed them in the world of crime-solving, they've all done it. From David Tennant (Broadchurch) to Peter Capaldi (Criminal Record) and Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock) to Brenda Blethyn (Vera), British detectives are a dime a dozen these days, and even the biggest names have done their time in the crime drama trenches. Now it's Jenna Coleman's (Wilderness) turn. 

The former Doctor Who companion has taken on a wide range of roles since her time in the TARDIS ended, starring in shows as varied as Victoria, The Sandman, and The Serpent. Now she's leading the cast of The Jetty, a crime thriller that promises to explore questions of sexual morality, identity and memory, "in the places that the MeToo movement has left behind". 

The BBC has released our first look at Coleman as Detective Ember Manning, and it looks as appropriately monochromatic and bleak as any we've seen come before, complete with what one must assume is the titular jetty lurking behind her in the background. Coleman's Manning is a rookie detective who is called in to investigate after a fire destroys a holiday home in a scenic lake town in Lancashire. But as she digs further into these dark events, she'll find connections to everything from a podcast journalist investigating a missing person's case to an illicit love triangle involving a man in his twenties and two underage girls.  And as she gets closer to finding out the truth, the answers may force her to reevaluate everything she thought she knew about her life and the town she calls home.

Alongside Coleman, the series' ensemble cast includes Archie Renaux (Shadow and Bone), Laura Marcus (The Serpent Queen), Bo Bragason (Renegade Nell), Amelia Bullmore (The Buccaneers), Ruby Stokes (Lockwood & Co.), Tom Glynn-Carney (House of the Dragon), Weruche Opia (I May Destroy You), Matthew McNulty (Domina), Ralph Ineson (Nosferatu), David Ajala (Star Trek: Discovery), Nina Barker-Francis (The Flash), Miya Ocego (I Hate Suzie), Elliot Cowan (The Crown), Shannon Watson, Arthur Hughes (Help), and Dominic Coleman (Paddington).

“Working with the BBC and Firebird Pictures on bringing the complex and enigmatic character of Ember Manning to life has been an incredible experience," Coleman said in a statement. "I can’t wait for everyone to meet this new heroine and to find out what’s lurking beneath the surface of The Jetty.”

The four-part drama is produced by Firebird Pictures, one of BBC Studios’ owned production labels, which also worked with Coleman on Wilderness and The Cry. Written and created by Cat Jones (Harlots), the series is directed by Marialy Rivas (Young & Wild). Executive producers are Elizabeth Kilgarriff, Sarah Wyatt, Jones, Rivas, and Coleman, alongside Jo McClellan for the BBC.

The Jetty is slated to air in 2024 on BBC One and BBC iPlayer. The show doesn't yet have a U.S. distributor, but hopefully the popularity of its leading lady, as well as the American public's seemingly insatiable appetite for crime shows, means it'll land one sooner rather than later.