'Gritty' BBC police drama leaves viewers and critics hooked as it returns for new series

A ‘gritty’ new police drama has left viewers and critics absolutely HOOKED after returning for a new series on BBC One and iPlayer.

We’re all suckers for a good crime drama at the moment, aren’t we? Whether it’s tense Richard Armitage show Red Eye, RTE hit Kin, twisty Nicola Walker series The Split or Disney+ detective period drama Shardlake, we love everything about the mysterious world of plot twists and brooding coppers.

Of course, thanks to the power of streaming services, we’re able to binge-watch many of these in no time at all – something that truly is a blessing and a curse.

After watching an entire series in one sitting, we’re then left with the crashing low of realising that we have to wait ages for our new fix.

Thankfully, there’s one hit show that has just returned to the BBC for more, meaning existing fans can tune in for a new instalment, while others can sit down to start from the beginning, knowing that there are now two entire seasons to get through.

It's just returned for a new series (BBC)

Written by Liverpudlian and former police responder Tony Schumacher, the first series followed urgent response officer Chris Carson (Martin Freeman) as he took on the night shift in Liverpool, while also struggling to keep his personal life and mental health under control.

And now, Freeman is back for a new series of The Responder, which premiered on BBC One on Sunday evening.

You can watch the trailer here:

“Martin Freeman stars as an urgent response officer trying to stay on the straight and narrow,” BBC says of season two.

“But when he crosses a top drug dealer, he starts to fall back into old ways.”

While episodes are being shown on BBC One each week, you can watch the series in full via iPlayer if you’ve not got the self-restraint – which is exactly what many fans have been doing.

After landing five-star reviews from the likes of The Guardian and The Telegraph, the show has also gone down brilliantly with viewers.

It's had glowing reviews from critics and viewers alike (BBC)

“Pretty sure if I binge the whole second series of The Responder in one day I will end up and emotional wreck,” one person tweeted yesterday.

“Just cant seem to stop though. So so good.”

Someone else said: “Just finished The Responder S2, as good and gritty as S1. Martin Freeman and Bernard Hill (RIP) both excellent but Josh Finan and Emily Fairn stole the show again for me.”

A third commented: “The second series of The Responder on BBC is one hell of a piece of drama & I’m using the word ‘hell’ deliberately. So gripping I devoured it all in one go and the acting from everyone is outstanding.”

A fourth added: “Watching #responder. Gritty and dark but Martin Freeman is so, so good.”

You can watch The Responder weekly on Sundays at 9pm on BBC One, or watch series one and two via BBC iPlayer.

Topics: BBC, TV And Film, Entertainment

Jess Hardiman

Jess is Entertainment Desk Lead at LADbible Group. She graduated from Manchester University with a degree in Film Studies, English Language and Linguistics. You can contact Jess at [email protected].

@Jess_Hardiman