Bergerac reboot heads to BBC Two and iPlayer after becoming one of UKTV's biggest drama hits

The rebooted version of Bergerac is coming to BBC Two and iPlayer after breaking records at UKTV.

• Hit crime drama Bergerac arrives on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer on Friday 24 July.

• The series launches with a double bill from 9pm.

• The reboot drew 1.8 million viewers for its opening episode, making it one of U&DRAMA’s biggest-ever programmes.

One of UKTV’s biggest drama successes is set to reach an even wider audience, with the acclaimed reboot of Bergerac making its BBC Two debut later this month.

The six-part crime drama, starring Damien Molony as legendary detective Jim Bergerac, will begin airing on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer from 9pm on Friday 24 July, launching with a double bill.

The move follows the series’ impressive performance on UKTV, where its opening episode attracted 1.8 million consolidated viewers across U and U&DRAMA, making it the second highest-rated programme in U&DRAMA’s history at the time. UKTV, which commissioned the reboot, is owned by BBC Studios.

The modern take on the much-loved detective drama introduces viewers to a very different Jim Bergerac from the one audiences remember.

Rather than the confident detective of the original series, viewers first meet Bergerac as a broken man struggling with grief following the death of his wife. On leave from the police force and battling his own personal demons, his life is far from stable.

However, everything changes when a member of one of Jersey’s wealthiest families is murdered. Chief of Police Uma Dalal, played by Sasha Behar, believes Bergerac is still the island’s finest detective and brings him back to investigate the high-profile case.

As he attempts to solve the murder, Bergerac must also rebuild his personal life, convincing his daughter Kim, played by Chloé Sweetlove, and his mother-in-law Charlie Hungerford, played by Zoë Wanamaker, that he is finally getting his life back on track.

The investigation soon uncovers secrets within the influential Wakefield family, headed by businessman Arthur Wakefield, portrayed by Philip Glenister. At the same time, someone from Bergerac’s past returns with a shocking accusation that threatens to derail both the case and his fragile recovery.

The supporting cast also includes Pippa Haywood as Margaret Heaton, Robert Gilbert as Barney Crozier, Aidan McArdle as Pete Benedict, Timothy Renouf as Julien Wakefield, Stephen Wight as John Blakely, Ayesha Antoine as Chloe Havron and Celine Arden as Kara.

The reboot has been written by Toby Whithouse (The Red King, Being Human), alongside Brian Fillis (Trust, Sirens), Catherine Tregenna (The One That Got Away, Three Pines) and Polly Buckle (Love Rat, A Discovery of Witches). Directing duties are shared by Colm McCarthy (The Bastard Son & the Devil Himself, Peaky Blinders) and Sean Spencer (The Lazarus Project, A Town Called Malice), while Banijay Rights is handling international distribution.

The new series pays tribute to Robert Banks Stewart’s original Bergerac, which starred John Nettles and ran for nine series on the BBC between 1981 and 1991. While the original featured a new investigation in each episode, the reboot takes a more serialised approach, with a single character-driven murder mystery unfolding across all six episodes.

Following its strong ratings and positive reception on UKTV, the BBC Two broadcast gives a fresh audience the chance to discover the acclaimed reimagining of one of British television’s most iconic detective dramas.

Season 2 of Bergerac starts on U&Drama and UKTV soon.

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