'Professor T' Season 3 First Look Photos Has Jasper in a Pickle

Though it followed the same contours as the Belgian series, Professor T Season 2's cliffhanger was one of the show's best decisions of the sophomore outing. Fans of the original series who knew that Professor Jasper Teerlinck (Koen De Bouw) ended the second set of 13 episodes by shooting a police inspector to death in cold blood in front of a crowd of witnesses would have spent most of the Season 2 finale uncertain if the U.K. version would have Ben Miller's Professor Jasper Tempest make the same decision. Having Jasper shoot an unlicensed gun in the police station (a felony offense in the U.K.) but not at the episode's antagonist was a brilliant way to split it.

It also gives Professor T Season 3 the same place to start as its Belgian counterpart, but with less of a struggle for the viewer (and the series) to find its way out of this pickle. Professor T has been hauled off to prison, where he will remain until he has served his time on the gun charges. However, no one has to deal with the uncomfortable fact that the show's hero committed murder, only that he knocked someone out with the butt of a gun.

It also allows fans of the series to enjoy something that they might otherwise not have been able to: the sight of Jasper Tempest coming up against his most significant challenge to date: living in a community prison where the upkeep is not currently conforming to his standards of cleanliness. How can a man be expected to work under these conditions?

Obviously, in these circumstances, one does not work. One teaches themselves to play chess. It's the only way to handle such living conditions.

Here's the Season 3 synopsis, which does not go past the first episode, or at least not beyond the opening episode's circumstances:

Set against the stunning backdrop of one of the world’s most prestigious educational institutions, Cambridge University, the next season of the multi-awarded crime drama will see Professor T banged up in prison and with his career on the line as he is forced to make a momentous decision. The formidable duo of Jasper’s mother, Adelaide and his therapist Dr Helena will be on hand to offer their own unique brand of support.  

Miller (Death in Paradise) once again returns as the titular Professor, with Emma Naomi (Bridgerton) as his sidekick, DS Lisa Donckers, Barney White (Petrichor) as DS Dan Winters, Andy Gathergood (Four Lives) as DI Paul Rabbit, Juliet Aubrey (Whitstable Pearl) as DCI Christina Brand, Sarah Woodward (Queens of Mystery) as Ingrid Snares, and Douglas Reith (Downton Abbey) as The Dean. Frances de la Tour (Enola Holmes) returns as Adelaide Tempest, with Juliet Stevenson (The Long Call) as Jasper's therapist, Dr. Helena Goldberg. 

Season 3's episodes will be directed by Belgian helmers Dries Vos (The Couple Next Door), with Eagle Eye co-founders Jo McGrath and Walter Iuzzolino returning as executive producers. 

Professor T Season 3 returns to the U.K. on ITV in March 2024 and will debut on PBS in the fall.