New ITV Crime Drama 'Manhunt' stars Martin Clunes as DCI Colin Sutton

by **Jill Havern** 20.12.18 19:56

New ITV Crime Drama 'Manhunt' stars Martin Clunes as DCI Colin Sutton (CMOMM member 'oatlandish')

What is new ITV crime drama Manhunt about, and when is it on TV?
Martin Clunes stars as real-life murder detective DCI Colin Sutton in the new drama, who discovered a link between the murder of Milly Dowler and two other murder cases

New ITV Crime Drama 'Manhunt' stars Martin Clunes as DCI Colin Sutton Clunes10

ITV is revealing a brand new crime drama in 2019: Manhunt starring Martin Clunes.

The Doc Martin star is preparing for a very different type of series with the new drama, based on the real-life murders by serial killer Levi Bellfield.
Manhunt is based on the memoirs of former Met police detective DCI Colin Sutton, and is written by Silent Witness and Rillington Place screenwriter Ed Whitmore.

What time is Manhunt on ITV?

The three-part detective drama is set to begin on Sunday 6th January 2019 at 9pm. ITV has also confirmed that the series will air nightly, with episode two on Monday 7th and episode three on Tuesday 8th.

What is Manhunt about?

The drama is based on the memoirs of the London detective DCI Colin Sutton, who led the investigation into the murder of Amélie Delagrange during the 2000s.
In August 2004, Amélie Delagrange, a 22-year-old French student who was visiting the UK, was found dead on Twickenham Green with head injuries after a brutal attack with a blunt object.
Over the three-part series we follow DCI Colin Sutton, who has little previous experience of murder investigations, as he tries to solve the case.
Sutton painstakingly and carefully connects the dots as he attempts to track down the serial killer Levi Bellfield.
Over his investigations, DCI Sutton made the crucial link between the murder of Delagrange and other victims killed in south west London, including Marsha McDonnell and Milly Dowler.
The case of Milly Dowler, the 13 year old who disappeared on her way home from school in Walton-on-Thames in 2002, remains one of the most high profile murder cases in the UK. Her body was discovered in Yateley Heath Woods six months after she went missing.
The series has proved controversial for dramatising these cases, with charities and residents questioning the decision to film in Walton-on-Thames where Milly Dowler went missing.
However, Polly Hill, head of drama at ITV, said the series focussed on the efforts of DCI Sutton, using his personal memoirs to show “how a dedicated and resilient police officer was determined to leave no stone unturned.”
Ed Whitmore, who has written extensively for the crime drama Silent Witness, adapted the script using DCI Sutton’s original memoirs. He has previously worked on some macabre shows, which tackle similar subjects, such as Rillington Place, a three-part drama which looks at the murders centred on the home of the serial killer John Christie in the 1940s and early 1950s.
Manhunt is directed by Marc Evans, who has worked on Trauma and Safe House, and is produced by Phillipa Braithwaite, whose credits include Doc Martin, Arthur & George and Sliding Doors.

Who stars in Manhunt?

Martin Clunes is DCI Sutton. He is best known on ITV for playing the grouchy GP Doc Martin of Portwenn, but this role is set to be a very different challenge for the actor.
He has described this role as a “huge departure” and says that it comes with a real sense of responsibility.

Polly Hill, ITV, said: “I am delighted that Martin Clunes is to play Colin Sutton, in what will be a powerful and unmissable performance.”
Welsh actor Celyn Jones meanwhile will play killer Levi Bellfield. The cast also includes Cornelius Booth, Kiera Bell and Michèle Belgrand.

Manhunt airs at 9pm on ITV from Sunday 6th January 2019