BBC, BritBox walk down Hope Street

L-R: Amara Karan, Ciaran McMenamin, Brid Brennan and Des McAleer

UK pubcaster the BBC and streaming service BritBox have jointly commissioned a crime drama set in Northern Ireland.

Hope Street has been greenlit for BBC1’s daytime schedule in the UK and BritBox’s North American service.

Produced by Paul Marquess and Donna Wiffen and their Federation-backed European prodco Long Story TV, the coproduction is being supported by Northern Ireland Screen.

The series is set in the fictional town of Port Devine on the Northern Ireland coast. It will focus on Port Devine’s police department and the mysterious arrival of English detective constable Alimah Kahn, the first Muslim police officer in the town’s history.

The cast includes Brid Brennan (Brooklyn), Des McAleer (The Crown), Ciaran McMenamin (Primeval) and Amara Karan (The Night of).

Created by Susanne Farrell (Dirty God) and Marquess (London Kills), Hope Street is written by Farrell, Jess Lea (Eastenders), Christine Murphy (Emmerdale), Stuart Drennan (Hollyoaks) and Shazia Rashid (Eastenders). Wiffen (The Bill) and Marquess exec produce for Long Story TV.

Filming will begin later this month. Season one will air on BBC Daytime and BBC1 Northern Ireland in 2022, and will exclusively premiere on BritBox – a joint venture between BBC Studios and commercial broadcaster ITV – in North America.