The BBC has released a first look at its upcoming crime thriller, Virdee, featuring a cast of familiar faces, including actors from Call the Midwife, Death in Paradise and Game of Thrones.
The Bradford-set series, which is based on author AA Dhand’s best-selling novel series, follows dedicated detective Harry Virdee, who is estranged from his Sikh family after marrying Saima, a Muslim woman. When a young dealer is murdered following a turf war between gangs, Harry’s duty as a cop clashes with his ties to gang members. Intrigued? Keep reading for all you need to know…
Game of Thrones star Staz Nair leads the cast as Harry Virdee, alongside Aysha Kala (Criminal Record, Call the Midwife) as his on-screen wife Saima and Vikash Bhai (Crossfire) as Saima’s brother, Riaz.
Kulvinder Ghir (Foundation, Blinded By The Light) and Sudha Bhuchar (Expats, Rules of the Game) play Harry’s parents, Ranjit and Jyoti, while Elizabeth Berrington (Good Omens, Death in Paradise) portrays Harry’s boss DS Clare Conway and Danyal Ismail (The Outrun) plays Harry’s new partner, DS Amin.
The six-parter is directed by Mark Tonderai (Gotham, Doctor Who, Foundation), Milad Alami (Bullshit, When the Dust Settles) and Mo Ali (Hijack, Cobra), while award-winning composer Hans Zimmer (Interstellar, The Dark Knight) is working on the title theme with James Everingham for Bleeding Fingers. Composer Shashwat Sachdev will also feature.
© Magical Society / Vishal Sharma / BBCThe full synopsis reads: “A turf war is brewing in the underbelly of the city with the police losing its grip on gang rivalries as they spill out onto the streets of Bradford. When a young dealer is murdered, Harry’s duty to uphold the law clashes with his links to members of the crime gangs. With his personal life in chaos, he must hunt down whoever is targeting those around him.
© Magical Society / David Gennard / BBC“Whilst the killer holds the entire city to ransom, Harry realises that he is going to need the help of his brother-in-law Riaz, a drugs kingpin who runs the largest cartel in the county. Pulled together in an alliance that could ruin them both, Harry must make a choice: save himself and his family or save his city. He will not be able to do both.”
Rounding out the cast are Nina Singh (The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry), who will play Harry’s niece and crime reporter, Tara Virdee, alongside Manjinder Virk (The Arbor) as Harry’s sister, Mandip.
© Magical Society / Vishal Sharma / BBCTomi May (Justice League), Andi Jashy (Gangs of London), Hussina Raja (Look at Us), Yousef Naseer (Ackley Bridge), Akshay Kumar (Double Blind), Madiha Ansari (Home Sick), Nichola Burley (Wuthering Heights), Javed Khan (A Murder At The End of the World) and Ramon Tikaram (Brassic) also star.
The series has been adapted for the screen by AA Dhand.
© Magical Society / David Gennard / BBCVirdee will be released on BBC One and BBC iPlayer. A release date has yet to be announced.
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