{"id":241190,"date":"2026-01-19T18:28:09","date_gmt":"2026-01-19T18:28:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/241190\/"},"modified":"2026-01-19T18:28:09","modified_gmt":"2026-01-19T18:28:09","slug":"6-unmissable-lesley-manville-dramas-coming-to-the-bbc-channel-4-and-more","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/241190\/","title":{"rendered":"6 \u201cunmissable\u201d Lesley Manville dramas coming to the BBC, Channel 4 and more"},"content":{"rendered":"

One of the best things about actress Lesley Manville<\/a> is that she never stops working, consistently delivering us one brilliant drama after another. And recently, she\u2019s been especially busy, because she\u2019s serving up not one but 6 unmissable series in 2026 alone. Phew! If 2026 was the year of Suranne Jones (remember Frauds<\/a>, Hostage, Film Club?), then 2026 is the year of Lesley Manville. <\/p>\n

For starters, we\u2019ve got the return of the pinnacle of crimes dramas<\/a>, otherwise known as Sherwood, after a two-year wait, which might well be the best TV news we\u2019ll get all year. There\u2019s also the third (and sadly final) instalment in Anthony Horowitz’s bestselling Susan Ryeland series, Marble Hall Murders and remember the manipulative Dahlia Archer from Prime Video\u2019s Citadel<\/a>? She\u2019s back, too. So, settle in, because these are the new Lesley Manville dramas coming soon to the BBC, Channel 4, Prime Video and more.<\/p>\n

Sherwood \"tx<\/p>\n

Photographer:\/\/BBC<\/p>\n

BAFTA-winning James Graham has conjured up a glorious third instalment of his hit crime drama and, thankfully, Lesley has been confirmed to return as widow Julie Jackson. The drama is set in the Nottinghamshire former mining community of Ashfield and takes inspiration from how the community was rocked by two grisly killings in 2004 that led to a huge manhunt involving police officers from all over the country. Following the dramatic conclusion of series 2\u2019s Branson and Sparrow family feud as Daphne Sparrow (Lorraine Ashbourne) watched Ann Branson (Monica Dolan), the matriarch of her criminal family, disappear into the depths of the reservoir, series 3 will introduce us to a new family – the Wood family. But Stephen has promised we\u2019ll be returning to other strands, too, including Daphne\u2019s \u201clong-kept secret past\u201d. Sherwood series 3 is coming to BBC One and BBC iPlayer<\/a> in 2026. <\/p>\n

Citadel \"lesley<\/p>\n

Courtesy of Prime Video<\/p>\n

It\u2019s been called better than Slow Horses, so it\u2019s only right that spy drama, Citadel, should return to Prime Video for a second series. If you don\u2019t remember what it\u2019s all about, series 1 starred Richard Madden and Priyanka Jonas as two spies who had their memories wiped when their agency, Citadel, was destroyed by powerful criminal syndicate Manticore. Lesley played the manipulative Dahlia Archer, the UK Ambassador to the US, who was also a Manticore agent. Now, it\u2019s back to work as Manticore is on the cusp of establishing a new world order that could potentially destroy everything. Citadel series 2 is coming to Prime Video<\/a> in 2026. <\/p>\n

Cold Storage \"three<\/p>\n

StudioCanal<\/p>\n

Based on the popular David Koepp book, this darkly comedic sci-fi-thriller picks up several decades ago when a highly infectious, constantly mutating micro-organism, which is capable of extinction-level destruction, is contained in a military facility. Fast-forward to the present day and, as temperatures rise underground, the micro-organism finds a way to escape. Is it still as dangerous? Yes \u2013 and if left to spread, it will uncontrollably multiply around the world. Lesley and Liam Neeson are among those fighting off humans and animals that have seemingly been affected by the fungus \u2013 and they\u2019ve got their work cut out, to say the least. Cold Storage will be released in UK cinemas on Friday 20th February. <\/p>\n

Midwinter Break \"lesley<\/p>\n

Focus Films<\/p>\n

This might well be Lesley\u2019s most gut-wrenching role yet. Based on Northern Irish writer Bernard MacLaverty\u2019s 2017 novel of the same name, film will examines the fraying of a long-term marriage in heartbreaking detail. The story revolves around retired couple, Stella (Lesley) and Gerry (Ciar\u00e1n Hinds), who take a trip to Amsterdam together. But what once might have been an enjoyable break for them both quickly becomes a painful, potentially life-altering one, as they\u2019re confronted with troubled memories from the past. Midwinter Break will be released in UK cinemas in 2026. <\/p>\n

Marble Hall Murders\"tx<\/p>\n

BBC<\/p>\n

Following 2024\u2019s Moonflower Murders, the third and final instalment in novelist Anthony Horowitz’s bestselling Susan Ryeland series is here. Lesley Manville and Tim McMullan reprise their roles as Susan Ryeland, the book editor who all too often finds herself involved in baffling murders, and literary detective Atticus P\u00fcnd. Now, the pair must solve the murder of Miriam Crace, described as “the most famous children\u2019s author in the world”. The Marble Hall Murders is coming to BBC One and BBC iPlayer in 2026. <\/p>\n

Mrs Harris Goes to Paris \"mhp_09547_rellen<\/p>\n

D\u00c3\u00a1vid Luk\u00c3\u00a1cs<\/p>\n

You\u2019ll be pleased to hear this heartwarming film has recently arrived on Channel 4 – so there\u2019s no need to wait to watch it. Lesley is superb as the titular Mrs Harris, a widowed cleaning lady in 1950s London who falls in love with a couture Dior dress and decides she simply has to have it. That means embarking on an adventure to Paris, where she ends up having quite the influence on the fashion house. A wonderfully charming, endlessly joyous watch. Mrs Harris Goes to Paris is now available to watch on Channel 4<\/a>. <\/p>\n

READ MORE TV NEWS HERE<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"One of the best things about actress Lesley Manville is that she never stops working, consistently delivering us…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":241191,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[53796,14753,141835,156,80549,141834,111,139,69,16505,437],"class_list":{"0":"post-241190","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-tv","8":"tag-bbc-one","9":"tag-channel-4","10":"tag-crime-drama","11":"tag-entertainment","12":"tag-lesley-manville","13":"tag-lesley-manville-dramas","14":"tag-new-zealand","15":"tag-newzealand","16":"tag-nz","17":"tag-prime-video","18":"tag-tv"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/241190","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=241190"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/241190\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/241191"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=241190"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=241190"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=241190"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}