Shetland actress Alison O'Donnell has teased that there are "disturbing twists" in the new series.
The hugely popular star, who plays Alison "Tosh" Macintosh in the hit BBC drama, will be seen joining forces with London cop DI Ruth Calder (Ashley Jensen) as they race to save a fleeing witness from gangland killers.
Following the departure of Douglas Henshall’s DI Jimmy Perez, Tosh has stepped into the role of acting DI at the Lerwick police station.
"She has an easy rapport with Sandy [Steven Robertson] and Billy [Lewis Howden] and the team seems to be functioning well and not dealing with anything too grizzly. She also has a great connection with Harry [Tibu Fortes], the new procurator fiscal, who really champions her,” says Alison.
But the relatively peaceful time on Shetland is wrecked by the new case, which is at the heart of Shetland season 8.
"A young woman from Shetland, Ellen Quinn [Maisie Norma Seaton], is living in London and getting herself involved in some pretty dubious schemes with her flatmate. This leads to her being in the wrong place at the wrong time and bearing witness to a very serious gangland killing. She flees the scene but not before being spotted and followed, all the way home to Shetland.
"Met police officer DI Ruth Calder — played by the wonderful Ashley Jensen — is first at the scene and when her boss establishes that Ellen is from Shetland and has almost certainly headed home, he sends Calder after her and back to her childhood home.
"Calder and Tosh must team up and put their respective skillsets and knowledge together to try and find Ellen, which will take them on a journey neither of them could ever have imagined, with ever more disturbing twists leading them deeper and deeper into a world of secrets and ultimately, to the truth behind it all.”
So, do Tosh and Ruth get on? What's their relationship like?
"It is new and fragile and their policing styles don't always marry up. But these are two confident, experienced women who recognise the value of working together and pooling resources, and who respect each other, even though they don't always see eye to eye. There are moments when Calder must accept that her tough, urban approach isn't the best way to get results from a small island community and there are moments when Tosh must step aside and let Calder lead with all of her expertise in organised crime. There are moments of fracture, of doubt, and there are times when they really click and are absolutely on the same page.
"Like any close relationship with someone you have to work alongside intensely, there are moments when it flows and moments when it doesn't but they are both fiercely committed to their work, they always have that in common, and it is this dogged pursuit of truth and justice that is the engine that drives them as a team.”
Shetland season 8 will be released on BBC One on Wednesday 1 November at 9 pm. There's no word yet on a US release date.
