Ugly Betty star Ashley Jensen will return as Agatha Raisin for a full season of Sky1’s quirky crime drama.

Following the success of last year’s one-off Christmas special, Agatha Raisin and The Quiche of Death, Sky1 has commissioned eight new 60-minute episodes.

The new season will see Jensen resume her role as the notorious Agatha, alongside Mathew Horne (Gavin and Stacey) as her best friend Roy and Katy Wix (Not Going Out) as Ashley’s cleaning lady Gemma.

Adapted by Stewart Harcourt (Love & Marriage) and Chris Murray (Midsomer Murders) from MC Beaton’s books, the eight stories will be ‘Walkers of Dembley’, ‘Hell’s Bells’, ‘Wellspring of Death’, ‘Potted Gardener’, ‘Vicious Vet’, ‘Day the Floods Came’, ‘Witch of Wyckhadden’ and ‘Murderous Marriage’.

The cast also includes Jamie Glover (Luther) as Agatha’s on-off love interest James, with Matt McCooey and Jason Barnett returning as PC Wong and DI Wilkes.

Adam McDonald, Director of Sky 1 commented: “The Quiche of Death quickly established itself as a favourite amongst Sky 1 customers so I’m delighted to be welcoming Agatha Raisin and her escapades back to the channel. Fortunately, thanks to the incredibly talented MC Beaton we had another 24 brilliant stories to choose from.”

Agatha Raisin begins filming on location in the Cotswolds this summer.

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