Silent Witness has ‘knocked it out of the park’ as it returned for season 28 on the BBC with two new cast members.
Last night, Silent Witness opened with a disturbing mystery as they investigate the death of an elderly and vulnerable woman found in a cave.
Dr Nikki Alexander (Emilia Fox) and Jack Hodgson (David Caves), however, did have additional help in the form of new recruits – Maggie Steed as Harriet Maven, the head of The Lyell Centre, and Francesca Mills as crime analyst Kit Brooks.
On X, viewers described the forensic team shake-up as a ‘breath of fresh air’ and said they would cancel all their Monday plans to watch the new season.
@mynamemolly_ raved: ‘Just a fantastic start to the series! Really enjoying the new characters’ dynamic so far, even if I am still salty about Velvy and Cara not getting much of a goodbye! But such a fascinating subject, and @EmiliaFox & @MrDavidCaves on top form as ever.#SilentWitness.’
Echoing their sentiment, @kirstie1971 said: ‘Had a binge watch of #SilentWitness last night. Love that’s its back. The new characters are great too. That’s my #Monday evening sorted for the next few weeks @EmiliaFox @MrDavidCaves.’
@rookery_hornet enthused: ‘Watched the first 2 episodes #SilentWitness Well done to the writers for covering a sensitive topic. The 2 news characters are a breath of fresh air. @BBC @MrDavidCaves @EmiliaFox#MaggieSteed (I still think of #PieintheSky ) @FrannMills.’
@Trustno1Walker added: ‘Well, what can I say, you guys have done it again. A storyline that needed highlighting, fantastic #jakki scenes and a brilliant new boss. Love Harriet already. You knocked it out of the park, as always. Cant wait for more #SilentWitness.’
In the final scenes of the last season, Jack finally popped the question to Dr Nikki, delighting fans – and Emilia teased there would be more romance to come.
The 50-year-old said: ‘There’s a real running theme of love through the whole series. Of course, that’s great, because it resonates with the Jack and Nikki relationship. I’m very excited by all the stories in this series. They are written by four of our very strongest writers.’
Emilia also said the she had a strong bond with David off screen, describing him as ‘kind, good and a real anchor.’
She said: ‘He’s an incredibly skilled actor, which makes it very easy to play opposite him. But we also have a familiarity and a trust in each other. I trust him more than any other actor I’ve ever worked with.
‘We’ve stood side by side for so long. How lucky it is to have that friendship, on screen and off screen. I really love working with him.’
Silent Witness – which focuses on a team of forensic pathology experts – first aired on the BBC in 1996.
The lead pathologist Dr Sam Ryan was played by Amanda Burton, who departed during the eighth season.
She was replaced by Emilia’s Dr Nikki – who has acted in Silent Witness for more than 20 years.
Silent Witness continues tonight at 9pm on BBC One and iPlayer.
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