Sometimes you just want to sit down and switch off as you enjoy a favourite cozy crime show — here’s some returning (we think!) in 2025
The interest in cozy crime shows never seems to wane. There seems to be one on at sometime or other every day of the week on broadcast channels, and that’s where we put our attention as we look ahead to 2025. Even if we end up streaming from iPlayer, ITVX or U (and don’t forget our recent look at the UKTV service), these shows still command large audiences, and often run for many seasons.
Anyway, time to grab a cup of tea, sit back and enjoy…
The Paraverse shows — the franchise that started in the paradise of the Caribbean
Death in Paradise — the show began in 2011 (yes, thirteen years ago), and now as of Christmas 2024 we are on the fifth lead detective in the form of Don Gilet’s DI Mervin Wilson. We don’t know much about his backstory, but we do know he will be with us for the next series. With the current popularity of The Traitors, we expect to see this show resume some time in February. If previous series are a guide, we can expect a settling down period then a rearrangement of the rest of the team.
For now, though, the team is unchanged.
Beyond Paradise — with two series under its belt, the Kris Marshall (Humphrey) and Sally Bretton (Martha) led series is finding some rhythm and we also have a Christmas special to look forward to. As to 2025, we anticipate a March date for the next series. We also know there’s a returning face, in the form of Archie Hughes (Jamie Bamber) — yes, Martha’s ex is back on the scene. What does this mean for the show? Will there be heartbreak? Is it true the 2025 Christmas special have already been filmed?
There’s a lot for fans to get their teeth into.
Return to Paradise — while the latest spin-off, starring Anna Samson, has only just aired in the UK, the Australian audience saw it a few months earlier. At the time of writing there’s no official renewal, but we fully expect there will be. In that case, expect UK audiences to find out just what happens in Mackenzie Clarke’s (Samson) tangled web of relationships. Will Ardal o’Hanlon’s DI Jack Mooney make another appearance, perhaps in person?
As soon as we know more, we will let you know.
Off to Cambridge
Two shows whose leads both studied in Cambridge, the city is fast becoming a hotbed of murder — at least on TV!
Professor T — this show has had three series so far, with this years being arguably the strongest of the show’s run to date. It began with the Professor in prison, and ended with major revelations and something of a reset for several, if not most of, the main characters.
Speaking earlier in December on 5 Live, lead Ben Miller confirmed series 4 was fully complete, and his expectation was we might see it in the spring.
Ludwig — the new kid on the block (or should that be courts [and definitely not quads!]), brought David Mitchell as puzzle solver Ludwig and his twin brother, the latter being a DI married to Anna Maxwell-Martin’s character. The show was quickly renewed after the final episode broadcast, even though most here at Cultbox had caught them all on iPlayer and fully anticipated a renewal.
While we don’t know for certain it will broadcast in 2025, cozy crime has the benefit of (generally) simpler location filming and lower post-production costs (CGI for example not generally being a major requirement). We fully expect series 2 to arrive next autumn.
Not forgetting Stratford-upon-Avon
One of the many pleasant surprises we had here at CultBox Towers was the news of the renewal of Shakespeare & Hathaway for a fifth series. Series 4 ended with a little-publicised Christmas Special in December 2022, and it seemed that was it for one of our favourite afternoon BBC One shows.
How wrong we were. Jo Joyner, Mark Benton and Patrick Walshe McBride are all back and series 5 will premiere exclusively on UKTV’s specialist crime drama channel, Alibi next year before launching later on the BBC and iPlayer. Series one to four are available on iPlayer.