GRACE returns to ITV for a fifth series

We are delighted to announce that ITV has recommissioned the popular Brighton-based detective drama GRACE. Based on the internationally bestselling Detective Superintendent Roy Grace books by Peter James, the TV adaptation is now confirmed for a fifth series.

John Simm returns as Detective Superintendent Roy Grace for another four feature length films (4 x 120 minutes) which will air on ITV1 and ITVX. Also reprising their roles for series five are Richie Campbell (Top Boy, Stephen) who plays DS Glenn Branson, Zoë Tapper (Liar) as Cleo Morey, Laura Elphinstone (Chernobyl) as DS Bella Moy, Brad Morrison (Outlander) as DC Nick Nicholl and Sam Hoare (The Castaways) as ACC Cassian Pewe.

Series five will be based on four books from the Peter James series: DEAD IF YOU DON’T, DEAD AT FIRST SIGHT, NEED YOU DEAD and FIND THEM DEAD.

The opening episode of GRACE, based on the first Roy Grace novel, DEAD SIMPLE, was broadcast in March 2021 with John Simm starring in the lead role as the tenacious detective. It was a TV Pick of the Day across all the major UK newspapers, appeared on ITV 1’s prime Sunday night slot and viewing figures quickly reached more than 8.8 million, with glowing reviews.

The second series was broadcast in 2022, starting with LOOKING GOOD DEAD, which like the subsequent episode NOT DEAD ENOUGH, topped the chart as most-watched UK TV show of the night. DEAD MAN’S FOOTSTEPS and DEAD TOMORROW followed. The popular streamer Britbox brought the GRACE series to US and Canadian viewers in 2021, followed by further world territories. The third series, DEAD LIKE YOU, DEAD MAN’S GRIP and NOT DEAD YET, began airing in March 2023, with the fourth series date due to be announced soon.

The series has been commissioned by ITV’s Head of Drama, Polly Hill, and Drama Commissioner, Huw Kennair Jones. Huw will oversee production from ITV’s perspective.

Huw said: ‘We’re thrilled to be returning to Brighton and the world of Roy Grace and the team for another series of Peter James’ brilliant stories. Series five promises to deliver four more episodes full of surprises and intrigue that the ITV and ITVX audiences have come to love.’

GRACE is a co-production between Tall Story Pictures, part of ITV Studios, and Vaudeville Productions. Executive producers are Phil Hunter for Tall Story Pictures, and Andrew O'Connor and Paul Sandler for Vaudeville Productions, Kiaran Murray-Smith and Peter James. 

Executive Producer Phil Hunter said: ‘It’s fantastic that GRACE is back for a fifth series and we get to adapt another four of Peter's brilliant books for ITV. I can't wait to see the cast and crew assembled for what will be my first series. It's wonderful to be working with such a talented group of people who put their all into making a show they love.’

Author Peter James said: ‘When the first episode of GRACE aired in 2021, it was a dream come true. It is both heartening and astounding to me that we're already at series five! The continued success of GRACE is a testament to the outstanding cast headed by John Simm, and crew and, equally importantly, the fans, who have loved and devoted their time to these characters both on the page and now the screen. It is also a testament to just how faithfully ITV have adhered to both the characters and stories in the novels.’

The films will be written by Jess Williams, Guy Burt, Caroline Carver and Ed Whitmore. Kiaran Murray-Smith returns as Series Producer, Matthew Hamilton will co-produce the series. Production begins in Brighton this Spring. International distribution is handled by ITV Studios. Grace is a BritBox Original, available exclusively on BritBox in North America and Australia.

The paperback edition of the 19th book in the Grace series, STOP THEM DEAD, will be published by Pan Macmillan on 25 April 2024. Peter’s next book, THEY THOUGHT I WAS DEAD, reveals the truth behind the dramatic disappearance of Roy Grace’s first wife, Sandy. It will thrill readers of the Grace series and new fans alike with its gripping story of a woman on the run; Pan Macmillan will publish on 9th May 2024.  Peter is also currently writing the 20th Roy Grace title.

About Peter James
Peter James is the international bestselling author of many award-winning novels, repeatedly occupying the Number One slot on the Sunday Times bestseller charts in both hardback and paperback. Peter writes both thriller standalones and the hugely popular Brighton-set Roy Grace series, now adapted for ITV by screenwriter and ENDEAVOUR creator, Russell Lewis.

Peter’s books have been translated into thirty-eight languages, with worldwide sales of over twenty-one million copies and his Detective Superintendent Roy Grace series, set in Brighton, has given him 19 consecutive Sunday Times Number Ones. In 2015 WH Smith customers voted him the Greatest Crime Author of All Time and in 2016 he was awarded the coveted CWA Diamond Dagger, a lifetime achievement award for sustained excellence. In 2018 he received a Specsavers Honorary Platinum Bestseller Award and in 2024 he won four Silver Nielsen Bestseller Awards. Peter James has also written two books based on true crime stories, with former senior detective Graham Bartlett.

Successful nationwide tours of the stage plays of THE PERFECT MURDER (2014), DEAD SIMPLE (2015,) NOT DEAD ENOUGH (2017), THE HOUSE ON COLD HILL (2019), LOOKING GOOD DEAD (2021) and WISH YOU WERE DEAD (2023) have packed theatres in dozens of British cities, and garnered magnificent reviews. His stage shows to date have grossed over £17 million at the box office. Several of his works are optioned for film.

Peter took part in the launch podcast of the Queen’s Reading Room in January 2024, having had the Grace series featured on the Royal Reading Room previously.

Praise for GRACE
‘For fans still coming to terms with the end of Endeavour, the third series of Grace has arrived just in time to fill the Brit detective void… a world-weary detective; a younger sidekick; and plenty of knotty cases to be solved.’ – Poppie Platt, The Sunday Telegraph

‘Simm plays the lead with elegant understatement’ – Mail On Sunday

‘John Simm is very good as gentle DS Roy Grace’ – Carol Midgley, The Times

‘John Simm is perfectly cast as our morose hero.’ – The Sunday Times

‘Darkly compelling’ – Tim Oglethorpe, The Daily Mail

‘A stirring return’ – TV Times, 5-star review

‘A very effective appetite-whetter… The unpretentious storytelling makes this an easy watch, helmed by the always watchable Simm.’ – The Mail on Sunday, Pick of the Day

‘It’s a good’un... John Simm was pleasingly understated as Detective Superintendent Roy Grace and the adaptation was well done by Russell Lewis, creator of ENDEAVOUR. Richie Campbell was great as Roy’s colleague, DS Branson, bringing just the right amount of energy to proceedings... If ITV can find room in the schedules, another Grace instalment would go down nicely.’ – Anita Singh, The Telegraph

‘Roy Grace doesn’t have any obvious gimmick to mark him out, but he swiftly establishes himself as a solid addition to the Sunday-night pack… Chilling.’ – James Jackson, The Times, Critic’s Choice

‘Grace and Branson’s race to find Michael made for truly nail-biting TV and there were great performances, with Simm as watchable as ever as the shrewd, yet vulnerable Grace… With more to come later this year… I’ll certainly be tuning in.’ – Gwendolyn Smith, The i

‘There is a reason why Peter James’s novels have sold all over the world, and one of the main ones is that… Detective Superintendent Roy Grace is a well-written and believable character… Simm makes for a likeable lead and the atmospheric Brighton setting is well used.’ – Sarah Hughes, The Sunday Telegraph, The Very Best of the Week Ahead

‘Simm gives [Roy Grace] a winning sense of humour beneath all the grit… Campbell is smooth foil, playing Branson quietly enough that Simm doesn’t have to be enormous to stand out. Brighton’s mix of pretty shoreline, faded glamour, criminal past and contemporary hipsterism makes it a ripe spot for some murder. The action feels rooted in its setting…It’s almost inconceivable Simm hasn’t already been in a long running franchise… and I expect the wait’s over.’ – Ed Cumming, The Independent

‘Few people do moody, angst-ridden men better than John Simm, who takes on the role of Grace. With so many books in hand, this series could run and run.’ — The best television shows in the UK this April, Prospect Magazine

Six Blake Friedmann titles selected as The Bookseller’s Season Highlights

We are delighted to share that a fine array of six Blake Friedmann authors have been picked by The Bookseller in their Spring/Summer Buyers’ Guide Season Highlights. Three of our authors’ titles were selected in the Fiction guide, and a further three in the Non-Fiction guide.

Top Row: GROW WHERE THEY FALL by Michael Donkor (Fig Tree); THEY THOUGHT I WAS DEAD by Peter James (Pan Macmillan); PASSIONTIDE by Monique Roffey (author photo: Marcus Bastel).
Bottom Row: NEWBORN by Kerry Hudson (Chatto & Windus); MY FAMILY MEALS by Grace Mortimer; EVERY KIND OF PEOPLE by Kathryn Faulke (Fig Tree).

The nominated titles in fiction are: GROW WHERE THEY FALL, the stunning second novel by Michael Donkor (Fig Tree, 7 March); the much-anticipated THEY THOUGHT I WAS DEAD: Sandy’s Story by Peter James, which spins off from the bestselling Roy Grace series to uncover the long-speculated mystery of Sandy’s disappearance (Pan Macmillan, 9 May); and PASSIONTIDE, a powerful new Caribbean-set novel by Costa Prize winner Monique Roffey (Harvill Secker, 27 June).

In Non-Fiction, the titles selected are: NEWBORN by Kerry Hudson, her beautiful memoir detailing her experience of building a family without a blueprint to work from (Chatto & Windus, 1 February); EVERY KIND OF PEOPLE, a heartbreaking and uplifting debut memoir by a community care worker (Fig Tree, 11 July); and MY FAMILY MEALS by Grace Mortimer, a fresh collection of simple but delicious five-ingredient recipes (HQ, 18 July).

The Bookseller is the UK’s weekly trade magazine for the publishing industry: their biannual Buyer’s Guides, listing almost every book publishing in the UK, are highly influential catalogues, used by bookshops to select stock they want to order; by the press looking for books to feature and review, and authors to interview; and by other literary enthusiasts who want to know what’s coming out when and what to get excited about.

Congratulations to all of our authors whose upcoming publications have been selected!

Peter James wins at Nielsen BookData Bestseller Awards

Photo credit: Isobel Dixon

Already a Nielsen Bestseller Platinum Winner, this year Peter James took home four Silvers from the Nielsen BookData Bestseller Awards – the highest number of awards awarded to a single author this year.

Based on UK sales volumes, the awards honour authors whose books have surpassed sales thresholds – Silver (250,000 sales), Gold (500,000 sales), and Platinum (1,000,000 sales).

This year’s prize-giving ceremony was held in Ham Yard Hotel with awards presented by comedian Shaparak Khorsandi. Nielsen said 199 million print books were bought in the UK in 2023, with a value of £1.83bn, with around seven in every 10 books purchased in print formats.

Peter’s silver winning titles were DEAD AT FIRST SIGHT, DEAD IF YOU DON’T, FIND THEM DEAD, and LEFT YOU DEAD, all published in the UK by Pan Macmillan. As reported in Bookbrunch, Peter joked  ‘I'm glad I've been doing some strength work in the gym’ as he accepted the framed certifications.

Other authors to have their work celebrated by the awards include Elif Shafak, Sally Rooney and Richard Osman. You can view  the full list of winners and prizes here.

Andre Breedt, managing director of Nielsen BookData, said: ‘We are thrilled to be able to host these awards once again in person and celebrate the success of authors and the teams that support them… The Bestseller Awards are unique, recognising the achievement of any author across all genres by the ultimate measurement, book sales.’

Peter received an Honorary Platinum Award in 2018, for selling over five million copies of his Roy Grace series in the UK over ten years.

The latest instalment of the Roy Grace series, STOP THEM DEAD, was published in September 2023 and went straight to Number 5 in the Sunday Times Bestseller chart after just three days on sale.It will be out in paperback on 25 April 2024. Peter’s next novel, THEY THOUGHT I WAS DEAD, will be published as a lead hardback in May 2024 by Pan Macmillan and reveals the astonishing reasons behind Sandy Grace’s sudden disappearance.

About Peter James

Photo credit: Mark Dixon

Peter James is the international bestselling author of many award-winning novels, repeatedly occupying the Number One slot on the Sunday Times bestseller charts in both hardback and paperback. Peter writes both thriller standalones and the hugely popular Brighton-set GRACE series, now adapted for ITV. Peter was featured in the launch podcast of the Queen’s Reading Room in January 2024, having had the Grace series featured on the Royal Reading Room previously.

Peter’s books have been translated into thirty-eight languages, with worldwide sales of over twenty-one million copies and his Detective Superintendent Roy Grace series, set in Brighton, has given him nineteen Sunday Times Number Ones. In 2015 WH Smith customers voted him the Greatest Crime Author of All Time and in 2016 he was awarded the coveted CWA Diamond Dagger, a lifetime  achievement award for sustained excellence. Peter James has also written two books based on true crime stories, with former senior detective Graham Bartlett, with a newly expanded edition of BABES IN THE WOOD re-issued in January 2024.

Successful nationwide tours of the stage plays of THE PERFECT MURDER (2014), DEAD SIMPLE (2015), NOT DEAD ENOUGH (2017), THE HOUSE ON COLD HILL (2019), LOOKING GOOD DEAD (2022), and WISH YOU WERE DEAD (2023) have packed theatres in dozens of British cities, and garnered magnificent reviews. Several other Peter James novels are optioned for film and in further development.

Praise for Peter James

‘Peter James is one of the best crime writers in the business’ – Karin Slaughter

‘Probably the closest we’ll get to a British Stephen King’ – The Financial Times

‘Meticulous research gives his prose great authenticity’ – Sunday Express

‘Peter James has penetrated the inner workings of police procedures, and the inner thoughts and attitudes of real detectives, as no English crime writer before him.’ – The Times

‘Peter James is one of the most fiendishly clever crime fiction plotters’ – Daily Mail

‘In my thirty-four years of policing, never have I come across a writer who so accurately depicts “The Job’’ – Detective Investigator Pat Lanigan, Office of the District Attorney, NYPD

‘One of the most consistently readable crime writers.’ – Daily Mail          

‘A master plotter’ – The Bookseller

 

Visit Peter’s website

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