Finders Keepers on Channel 5 is a 'buried treasure' thriller with plenty of twists and more than a few turns. Formerly called The Hoard, it stars Neil Morrissey, Fay Ripley and James Buckley.
The four-part drama follows a keen metal detectorist Martin (Neil Morrissey) and his brash, wheeler dealer son-in-law Ashley (James Buckley) who, on a 'bonding trip' to Somerset, stumble upon a buried treasure worth millions, and that's where their troubles start...
Neil Morrissey says: “I’m delighted to be jalongside the wonderful James Buckley and Fay Ripley. Martin is a character that most people will relate to, he’s a normal guy with a relatively happy life. But when he’s suddenly presented with this opportunity of a lifetime, there’s no telling what he might be capable of.”
Here's everything you need to know about Finders Keepers on Channel 5...
Finders Keepers release date
Finders Keepers is a four-part thriller that began on Channel 5 on Wednesday, January 17 2024 at 9pm, with episodes running weekly at the same time finishing up on Wednesday February 7.
We'll update as soon as we hear an official international and US air date. As the show is commissioned by the team from Paramount it could be shown on Paramount Plus in the US but this will also need confirming.
Is there a trailer for Finders Keepers?
Yes there's now a trailer to show how Finders Keepers plays out! Take a look below...
Finders Keepers plot
Finders Keepers follows the story of Martin (Neil Morrissey) who is a keen detectorist. While he goes to rural Somerset on a boys bonding trip with his son-in-law Ashley (James Buckley), the discover a hoard of buried Saxon treasure and it's potentially worth millions. Legally, this find should be declared, but wily Ashley spots an opportunity to look after No1 and as pressures are building at home between Martin and his wife Anne (Fay Ripley), usually straight as an arrow Martin can’t help be tempted by what Ashley proposes. If they sell it on the black market, they could be set for life and Ashley has the connections to make it happen. But with a hoard this amazing, could it really be that easy? After all, they might not be the only ones out for its spoils...
Finders Keepers cast — Neil Morrissey on playing Martin Stone
Leading the cast of Finders Keepers is Neil Morrissey as metal detectorist family man Martin Stone. Neil says: "If you met Martin in real life, you might be bored by him! He’s a local historian, he has a small engineering firm, and nothing exciting ever happens to him. But he is under financial pressure, and you find out that his daughter’s fiancé, Ashley, is also facing money trouble through his own naivety or idiocy!
"Martin is a detectorist, and he agrees to take Ashley out to join in his hobby, even though it’s the last thing on Earth he wants to do. And when they find this hoard of Saxon treasure, he makes one bad decision and it all goes wrong. It’s a story of consequences and it gets a bit angry in places – some scenes will shock you! I can’t reveal too much about them, but there was a stuntman; it was very exciting!
"James Buckley is hilarious. He’s got funny bones and we had big laughs on set. He kept adding in extra lines here and there – I really had to hold it together!"
* Neil Morrissey has previously starred in Men Behaving Badly, Line of Duty, The Syndicate and Waterloo Road.
James Buckley on playing Ashley Taylor
James Buckley plays crafty and very dodgy Ashley who is Martin's son-in-law and is out to make plenty of cash from what he and his father-in-law have found.
James Buckley says: “Ashley is a guy who’s confident in his convictions, despite some questionable morals, but I have a feeling he might have bitten off more than he can chew with this one. He is a bit of a pain. I don’t think I’m giving too much away when I say that everything goes wrong in this story, and he’s one of the main reasons why! But I loved playing him.
"What spoke to me was that these characters were all just normal people being put in an abnormal situation. To me, that’s what television should be about – seeing how ordinary people will react to something.
"The story does get extremely dark very quickly, which is super-exciting. Ashley and Martin are out of their depth and they’re involved with all these shady people and gangsters. But, just by looking at me and Neil, you can see we’re no action movie stars! We’re two ordinary blokes, and this is just a true portrayal of how ordinary guys would handle such a situation.
"I absolutely loved working with Neil, and I’d jump at the chance to do it again. He has got a fact about everything, and he’s very easy to talk to."
* James Buckley is best known for starring as Jay in hit comedy series The Inbetweeners and its spin-off movies.
Fay Ripley on playing Anne Taylor
Fay Ripley plays Martin's wife Anne Stone. She says: ‘Anne and Martin are just going about their daily lives and she doesn’t expect anything to come around the corner other than retirement. But, lo and behold, a whole lot gets delivered!
"I think the appealing thing about the show is that it explores a situation that could happen to anyone, and my character could be any of us. The series starts off fairly innocently and then it gets very dark. It isn’t just about finding the treasure, it’s also about everything that happens when you start to lie.
"It’s hard for Anne, though, because for a lot of this story, she doesn’t have all the information. Martin hides it from her, so she only becomes aware of the crimes committed when they’re very far in. So her motivation is protection and survival, whereas I think Martin’s more natural at being a criminal! If I were in Anne and Martin’s situation, I’d definitely ring the police!"
* Fay Ripley is the star of long-running comedy drama Cold Feet in which she played Jenny Gifford from 2007 to 2020. She's also starred in other dramas such as Doc Martin and Monday Monday.
Who else is starring in Finders Keepers?
Other cast in Finders Keepers include former EastEnders star Rakhee Thakrar as DS Carole Doyle, Brendan Coyle (aka Mr Bates in Downton Abbey) as Denys Elland who arrives in episode 3 (see more below), Jessica Rhodes as Martin and Anne's daughter Laura Stone and Shane Attwooll as Greg ‘Rocky’ Rock.
Jessica Rhodes says: "I thought Laura would be a really fun character to play. She’s a straight down the line, ballsy girl living in the countryside, who is trying to move forward with her life and career. She graduated from Exeter University with a first-class maths degree and since then she’s been helping her dad run his business for a couple of years, doing the accounts. Now she's engaged to Ashley and the breadwinner in their relationship – she’s the one putting the money away to buy a house and contribute towards the wedding. So she wants to get a new job and start her new life. She’s close to her mum and dad, but she’s really practical and focused on the next step."
Rakhee Thakrar on playing DS Carol Doyle
Rakhee Thakrar, the former EastEnders star who plays DS Carole Doyle, says: "She’s been drafted in from the Met to work in this very quiet little town, and right from the start she thinks she’s above it. She’s there as a punishment and she really doesn’t want to be there. She’s bored by the very thought of what she believes is coming her way, which is art and antiquities cases. It’s not the place anyone wants to go to. The way the story unravels, she looks into this case and discovers there’s might be more crime to it than just not declaring a hoard of treasure. So she really wants to chase it, because she’s always looking for the shiniest thing in the room. She wants to get her guy and she won’t stop even if it’s inconvenient for the police team that she's working with. She’s got tunnel vision, which has got her in trouble in the past, that’s why she’s ended up here."
Dan Sefton on how a true-story inspired his drama Finders Keepers
Where did the idea come from for Finders Keepers, Dan?
Dan Sefton says: "I read a newspaper article about some people in Shropshire who had dug up artefacts and decided to try to flog them in London. It clearly didn’t go well, because they didn’t get very far, but it was one of those interesting little stories, which I thought could make a good drama. The area where I live in Somerset has a lot of Saxon history and that got me thinking that this could be an interesting rural noir type of story, going in a very different direction to something like [hit BBC comedy] Detectorists, which has got such warmth to it."
Neil Morrissey plays Greg McConnell in your ITV drama The Good Karma Hospital. Did you have him in mind for the role of Martin?
Dan says: "Yes, when we got the commission, he was the first person I wanted to ask. I felt that he plays the nice guy so well, not in a simpering way, but just as a very identifiable good bloke.
How would you describe the series?
Dan says: "It’s probably darker than you might think. Neil, Fay and James are naturally comedic, but it’s a thriller. It walks an interesting line – I really hope the audience enjoys it."
Finders Keepers episode guide (with a few spoilers)
Here's a brief guide to the four episodes of Finders Keepers. Look away to avoid spoilers..
Episode 1: Wednesday Janaury 17
When dull history buff Martin Stone reluctantly takes wide boy sone-in-law Ashley Taylor on a bonding day out to hunt for historical finds in rural Somerset, they unearth a treasure trove of Saxon coins and jewellery worth half a million. Law-abiding Martin’s keen to do the right thing and declare the find. But when wheeler-dealer Ashley claims he knows someone who could help them sell it on the black market, Martin’s head is turned…
What follows is a criminal caper, as Ashley’s dodgy contact turns out to be a dangerous criminal, who’s also under the watchful eye of DS Carole Doyle (Rakhee Thakrar). Meanwhile, Martin’s oblivious wife Anne (Fay Ripley) is wooed by another man, and his daughter Laura has second thoughts about marrying Ashley! But with the situation spiralling out of control, Martin finds himself in danger…
Finders Keepers episode 1 recap: is Martin a dead man walking?
Episode 2: Wednesday January 24
Everything unravels for hapless detectorist Martin and his wheeler-dealer future son-in-law Ashley following their disastrous meeting with an antiques dealer in London. With the stolen Saxon gold stashed in Martin’s garage, and gangster Rocky threatening violence if he doesn’t get his share, Martin explores other ways to sell the hoard. But things take a horrifying turn when Ashley’s fiancée, Laura, finds herself unwittingly embroiled in their misdemeanours!
Episode 3: Wednesday January 31
Things unravel fast this week for unlikely criminal duo Martin (Neil Morrissey) and Ashley (James Buckley) following Rocky’s chilling abduction of Martin’s daughter Laura. Although Laura is released unscathed, both Anne (Fay Ripley) and DC Carole Doyle (Rakhee Thakrar) begin to ask searching questions. Last ditch hopes of selling the Saxon treasure and paying off Rocky for good lie with a wealthy antiques collector Denys Elland played by Brendan Coyle, aka Downton Abbey valet Mr Bates. Denys has agreed to fund the archeological dig at detectorist Martin’s brother’s farm. With gangster Rocky piling on the pressure, hapless duo Martin and Ashley are increasingly desperate to get rid of their stolen Saxon treasure, and decide to sell the entire hoard to Denys. But, as Denys considers their offer, things take a terrifying turn. Can Denys be trusted?
Episode 4: Wednesday February 7
DS Carole Doyle has had a hunch about detectorist-turned-criminal Martin Stone right from the start. So as the rollercoaster thriller reaches its nerve-wracking conclusion, she gets dangerously close to nailing him for stealing the Saxon gold! However, following last week’s shocking curveball, Martin’s wife Anne has finally discovered Martin’s misdemeanours and decides to concoct a dubious plan to keep him out of jail. But with their future son-in-law Ashley refusing to stick to the script, will Carole finally crack the case?
"Martin's digging himself further into this hole, and Carole’s getting closer to the truth," says Rakhee Thakrar, who plays the determined cop. "But the whole plot zigs just when you think it’s going to zag – it’s not a conventional ending!"
Behind the scenes and more on Finders Keepers?
Finders Keepers was filmed in 2023. It's created by Seven Sea Films and was ordered for Channel 5 by Paul Testar, Commissioning Editor, Drama, Channel 5 & Paramount+. The thriller is directed by Philip John (Outlander, Good Karma Hospital, Iron Fist) and written by Dan Sefton (Good Karma Hospital, The Mallorca Files, Trust Me), who is also Executive Producer for Seven Seas Films. Seven Seas Films also sees Simon Lupton as Series Producer and Barry Read as Line Producer. Nicola Shindler and Davina Earl are Executive Producers for Quay Street Productions.
Paul Testar says: “We are thrilled to be working with the talented teams at Seven Seas Films, Quay Street Productions, and ITV Studios to bring this unique thriller to Channel 5 audiences. I can’t wait to see this brilliant cast on our screens.”
Simon Lupton adds: “Seven Seas Films is delighted to be able to bring the characters and story Dan has created to life. Martin is going to find temptation a frighteningly powerful adversary, which takes him into situations he is painfully unprepared for. We hope the viewers are thrilled by the twists and turns as he struggles to keep control and save his family. We are extremely grateful for the opportunity provided by Channel 5 and ITV Studios, and the support of Quay Street Productions, which enables us to share this rollercoaster ride with audiences.”
