The BBC announces all-star cast for new thriller The Gold, inspired by 'the crime of the century'

The Bodyguard, Bloodlands, Doctor Foster, Normal People – it's fair to say we're a nation who love a good TV drama, especially when the BBC are behind the camera. But what about new BBC dramas coming out in 2022?

Well, it looks like it's going to be another stellar year for BBC drama – with the book adaption of Sally Rooney's Conversations With Friends arriving on 15 May (see the official trailer below). One of our other favourite books, Everything I Know About Love, is also getting the small screen treatment — with first look images and a trailer recently being shared by the broadcaster.

Filming for the third and final season of Sally Wainwright's BAFTA-winning Happy Valley starring Sarah Lancashire is officially underway, with the BBC releasing the first look image of Lancashire reprising her role as the iconic Sergeant Catherine Cawood. The six-parter will also feature the return of James Norton and Siobhan Finneran, in addition to new cast members joining the series.

Elsewhere, Keeley Hawes has been cast as the lead of the BBC's upcoming drama Crossfire. Set in a luxurious resort in the Canary Islands, the thriller follows Keeley as Jo, a woman on holiday with her family whose world is turned upside down when shots ring out across the complex.

We're looking forward to new intimate drama Marriage, starring Nicola Walker and Sean Bean – first look pictures have just been released. The BBC has also announced major new crime drama Wolf, adapted from the acclaimed Jack Caffery novels and starring Humans actor Ukweli Roach.

And there's good news for fans of Jamie Dornan's dark drama The Tourist, political thriller Vigil starring Suranne Jones and Martin Freeman's crime series The Responder – all three shows have been renewed for a second season.

It's also been revealed that The Crown's Olivia Colman will take on the iconic role of Miss Haversham in an upcoming BBC adaptation of Charles Dickens' Great Expectations. Plus, we can't wait for Better, a new police thriller from the team behind This Is Going To Hurt, starring BAFTA-nominated Leila Farzad as a DI with a dark secret.

We're also looking forward to The Gold, with an all-star cast that includes Dominic Cooper and Downton's Hugh Bonneville. Inspired by the 'crime of the century', it promises to be incredible. See more below.

From true crime thrillers, lavish period dramas and the return of old favourites, we've rounded up the best TV shows from the BBC in 2022. Find out more about each show now below and prepare to never leave your sofa again...

Release date: TBC on BBC One

An impressive cast has been lined-up for new BBC drama The Gold, with Hollywood stars Dominic Cooper and Downton's Hugh Bonneville both on the call sheet.

Inspired by the true story of the iconic 1980s Brink’s-Mat robbery, The Gold will bring to life the ‘crime of the Century’ across six episodes on BBC One. It's being directed by Oscar-winning Aneil Karia of The Long Goodbye.

The BBC says: "On the 26 November 1983, six armed men broke into the Brink’s-Mat security depot near London’s Heathrow Airport, and inadvertently stumbled across gold bullion worth £26m. What started as 'a typical Old Kent Road armed robbery' according to detectives at the time, became a seminal event in British criminal history, remarkable not only for the scale of the theft, at the time the biggest in world history, but for its wider legacy.

"The disposal of the bullion caused the birth of large-scale international money laundering, provided the dirty money that helped fuel the London Docklands property boom, united blue and white collar criminals and left controversy and murder in its wake."

We can't wait, although filming only recently began in April so we won't expect The Gold to hit our screens until late 2022 or early 2023.

Release date: TBC

BAFTA-nominated Leila Farzad is set to star in Better, a brand new BBC thriller from the content studio behind hit Chernobyl and This Is Going To Hurt.

Set and shot entirely in Leeds, it's described as "one woman's epic battle towards redemption to reclaim the honour and honesty she handed over to a man many years ago".

Farzad stars as DI Lou Slack, a Yorkshire copper, whose success secretly lies on a foundation of deceipt and corruption, following a deal she struck in her past with Col McHugh (Broadchurch's Andrew Buchan), a successful property developer who just happens to be the head of a powerful citywide drug trafficking gang.

The BBC says: "Better is a fast-paced and utterly compelling thriller, shot through with wit and humour, that explores the complex and powerful bonds of loyalty and family, set in a world where everyone has their own version of “right” and “wrong”. Examining the power of human conscience and the need for redemption, Better examines the ties that bind, the ties that define, and the ties that break."

Release date: 15 May

We've finally been given an air date for the highly anticipated adaptation of Sally Rooney's debut novel, Conversation with Friends, which will air on BBC Three from Sunday, 15 May. We've also just been treated to an official trailer by the BBC.

Following the release of first look images and a previous teaser trailer, it's fair to say we can't wait for the steamy new BBC drama to land. The creative masterminds behind Normal People are back for the new adaptation, which stars Sex Education's Jemima Kirke, who will take the role of Melissa, and Joe Alwyn (The Favourite) who plays Nick. The cast also includes newcomer Alison Oliver as Frances and American Honey star Sasha Lane as Bobbi.

Set in Dublin, the series explores the nuances and complexities of relationships. It follows the four main characters – Frances, Bobbi, Nick and Melissa – as their lives and loves become intertwined with devastating results. The series consists of 12 half-hour episodes, which will all be available to watch on BBC iPlayer from Sunday, 15 May. We can't wait.

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Release date: TBC

It's been announced that The Crown's Olivia Colman will star in a new BBC adaptation of Charles Dickens' Great Expectations. The Oscar-winner will take on the iconic role of Miss Haversham in the new six-part series about the life of orphaned hero Pip.

Created by Steven Knight, the series will be produced by the same team behind the BBC's 2019 take on Dickens' A Christmas Carol.

It's reported that the cast will also include Dunkirk star Fionn Whitehead as Pip.

Release date: TBC

Jamie Dornan will be returning as 'The Man' in BBC One and HBO's dark comedy thriller The Tourist for a second season, from The Missing writers Jack and Harry Williams.

The series set Down Under followed Dornan's enigmatic character as he recovered from a car accident and seemingly suffered from amnesia. Along the way he met officer Helen Chambers, played by Danielle Macdonald, and a waitress named Luci, Line of Duty's Shalom Brune-Franklin.

BBC's Chief Content Office Charlotte Moore said in a statement: "In its first 30 days, 12 million people watched The Tourist – that's twice as big as the largest show, Stay Close, on Netflix. The power that the BBC has to reach millions of people is far greater than we perhaps realise."

Release date: TBC

Martin Freeman will be back on the beat in BBC2 crime thriller The Responder.

The drama followed Freeman as Scouse urgent response officer Chris Carson as he came up against all sorts of difficult and nefarious characters and struggled to keep a grip on his mental health.

More details are due to be released soon.

Release date: TBC

Suranne Jones will be reprising her role as DCI Amy Silva in submarine thriller Vigil.

The series followed Silva as she boarded the eponymous nuclear-powered vessel to investigate a suspicious death on board. Once underwater, Silva was met with resistance and subterfuge from members of the Royal Navy and MI5, who attempted to sabotage her case.

Rose Leslie starred as Kirsten Longacre, a fellow police officer and former love interest of Silva's in the drama, and fans will be hoping for her return too. More details are set to be released soon.

Release date: TBC 2022

Ukweli Roach will lead BBC One's six-part crime drama Wolf, adapted from the acclaimed Jack Caffery crime novels by Mo Hayder.

BBC says: "DI Jack Caffery is a young man searching for himself. Obsessed with the neighbour he believes murdered his ten year-old brother in the nineties, Jack finds himself trying to right the wrongs of others, but at what cost? In an isolated house in Monmouthshire, the wealthy Anchor-Ferrers family find themselves the victims of a psychopath’s cruel games, trapped and terrorised. When the two narratives collide, it’s a thrilling, nail-biting and deeply disturbing race against time."

The cast also includes Sacha Dhawan (Doctor Who, Marvel’s Iron Fist), Iwan Rheon (Game of Thrones, Riviera), Sian Reese-Williams (Hidden, Line of Duty) and Juliet Stevenson.

Release date: TBC 2022

First look images have just been released of BAFTA winners Nicola Walker and Sean Bean in new BBC drama Marriage.

Marriage sees married couple Ian (Bean) and Emma (Walker) negotiate the ups and downs of their 30-year marriage.

TheBBC's synopsis reads: "We see them dealing with the insecurities, the ambiguities, the hopes and the fears that are part of all marriages as the drama explores the risks and the gifts of a long-term intimate relationship."

Bean said: "I'm thrilled to be playing opposite the talented Nicola Walker and I’m looking forward to bringing Stefan’s intimate scripts to the screen."

Walker added: "This is a unique project. Stefan has created such a beautiful, funny and complicated world and I’m excited to be stepping into Ian and Emma’s marriage with Sean."

Release date: TBC on BBC One

Created and written by Declan Lawn and Adam Patterson, this new police procedural follows three rookie police officers working in Belfast, a uniquely dangerous place to be a police officer.

BBC's synopsis reads: "Grace (Siân Brooke), a mother of a teenage boy, has made the decision in her 40s to leave her steady job as a social worker to join the Police Service of Northern Ireland. Having previously worked in social care she straddles a fine line between the personal and professional.

"It’s the biggest gamble of her life, and just a few weeks into the job, she’s making so many mistakes that her decision no longer looks like a winning bet.

"Her fellow rookies are Annie (Katherine Devlin), who struggles with the fact that her chosen path may mean having to leave everything she's ever known behind, and Tommy (Nathan Braniff), who is desperate to prove himself, despite being disastrously inept at the practical side of frontline response policing.All three are new police officers in their probation period with the PSNI, the odds are at least one of them isn’t going to last.

"The pressure is immense, but if they succumb to it, they won’t survive. Often the rookie officers don’t know the extent of the peril they are in, or who they can trust. What’s it like to have to hide your job from neighbours, friends and even family? How do you distinguish between who needs your help and who wants you dead simply because of the uniform you wear?"

Release date: TBC 2022

Filming for the third and final series of Sally Wainwright's award-winning Happy Valley began n in West Yorkshire earlier this year, with the BBC releasing the first look image of Sarah Lancashire as Sergeant Catherine Cawood.

The six-parter will also feature the return of James Norton and Siobhan Finneran as Catherine's nemesis, the murderer and sex-offender Tommy Lee Royce, and Catherine's sister, the recovering addict Clare Cartwright, respectively.

The synopsis reads: "When Catherine discovers the remains of a gangland murder victim in a drained reservoir it sparks a chain of events that unwittingly leads her straight back to Tommy Lee Royce.
'Her grandson Ryan is now sixteen and still living with Catherine, but he has ideas of his own about what kind of relationship he wants to have with the man Catherine refuses to acknowledge as his father. Still battling the seemingly never-ending problem of drugs in the valley and those who supply them, Catherine is on the cusp of retirement."

Sarah Lancashire said: "It's time to let the dog see the rabbit."

James Norton added: "To take on Tommy one final time is a wonderful and daunting privilege, and something I’ve been looking forward to since we wrapped the last series, 6 years ago. I’m so excited to be working with the insanely talented Sally and Sarah again. Thinking we should all go on one last barge holiday, for old times' sake."

Con O’Neill will reprise his role as Clare’s recovering alcoholic boyfriend Neil Ackroyd. George Costigan will return as Nevison Gallagher, with Charlie Murphy as his daughter and Catherine’s police colleague Ann.

Amit Shah (The Other One, The Long Call), Mark Stanley (The Girl Before, White House Farm) and Mollie Winnard (All Creatures Great and Small, Four Lives) join the cast for series three, and will play pivotal roles in Happy Valley’s final chapter.

Release date: TBC 2022

The BBC has released the first look image of Keeley Hawes in upcoming thriller Crossfire. Set in a luxurious resort in the Canary Islands, the drama begins with Keeley's Jo sunbathing on her hotel room balcony while on a dream holiday with her family and friends.

The BBC says: "Her world is turned upside down when shots ring out across the complex. Gunmen, out for revenge, have, in an instant, turned a slice of paradise into a terrifying heart-breaking hell."

A story of survival and resilience, Crossfire is an edge-of-your-seat nail-biting thriller yet also emotional, intimate and relatable. With the unsuspecting holidaymakers and hotel staff forced to make monumental split-second life or death decisions, the consequences will linger long after the final shots are fired.

The series has been created and written by Louise Doughty (author of Apple Tree Yard), marking her first original series for television.

The cast also includes Josette Simon (Small Axe, Riviera), Anneika Rose (Deadwater Fell, Line of Duty), Lee Ingleby (The A Word, The Serpent Queen, Criminal UK), Daniel Ryan (The Bay, Home Fires), Vikash Bhai (The Stranger, Limbo), Hugo Silva (Nasdrovia, The Cook of Castamar), Alba Brunet (Operation Mincemeat, Paraiso, The Mallorca Files), Shalisha James-Davis (Alex Rider, I May Destroy You) and Ariyon Bakare (His Dark Materials, Good Omens).

Release date: TBC 2022

Vigil's Connor Swindells, Jack O'Connell, Game of Thrones star Alfie Allen, Atomic Blonde's Sofia Boutella and Dominic West star in Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight's SAS Rogue Heroes.

The BBC says: "Rich with action and set-pieces, SAS: Rogue Heroes is the exhilarating story of renegade men taking monumental risks in extraordinary circumstances.Cairo, 1941. David Stirling (Swindells) - an eccentric young officer, hospitalised after a training exercise went wrong - is bored. Convinced that traditional commando units don’t work, he creates a radical plan that flies in the face of all accepted rules of modern warfare. He fights for permission to recruit the toughest, boldest and brightest soldiers for a small undercover unit that will create mayhem behind enemy lines.

"More rebels than soldiers, Stirling’s team are every bit as complicated, flawed and reckless as they are astonishingly brave and heroic."

Steven Knight said: "It has been a privilege to work on a project which tells the story of a renegade band of soldiers who used wit and imagination as much as firepower to halt the march of Fascism across North Africa during the darkest days of World War Two. This is a war story like no other, told in a way that is at once inspired by the facts and true to the spirit of this legendary brigade of misfits and adventurers."

The BBC confirmed filming has wrapped and that the series will arrive in 2022.

Release date: TBC 2022

First look images of BBC One's adaptation of Kit de Waal’s award-winning debut novel My Name is Leon have been released.

Malachi Kirby (Small Axe, Devils & Black Mirror), Monica Dolan (A Very English Scandal), Doctor Who's Christopher Eccleston, Olivia Williams (The Father) and Sir Lenny Henry have joined the cast along with newcomer Cole Martin (pictured above) taking the lead in his first ever TV role.

Set in 1980s Britain, this one-off TV movie written by Shola Amoo, tells the uplifting – and incredibly moving – story of nine-year-old Leon; a mixed-race boy who fights to keep his family together as his single-parent mother suffers a devastating breakdown and he gets separated from his brother, as they're both forced into care.

Set against the backdrop of the race riots in the 1980s, the tale is told through Leon’s eyes as we follow his journey — full of energy and hopefulness despite the hardships he encounters — and witness the touching relationship between him and his foster carer Maureen.

Release date: TBC 2022

The first look images for Steven Moffat's mystery thriller Inside Man have been released, featuring David Tennant in his role as a small-town Vicar.

The synopsis for the four-part mini-series is being shrouded in secrecy for now, but the BBC has teased that it will follow a prisoner on death row in the US, a vicar in a quiet English town, and a maths teacher trapped in a cellar, as they cross paths in the most unexpected way.

The impressive ensemble cast also includes Stanley Tucci in the title role, It's a Sin's Lydia West and The Pursuit of Love's Dolly Wells.

Release date: TBC 2022

BBC Two will air French historical drama Marie Antoinette, a feminist depiction of the life of the ill-fated iconic queen from the writer of The Favourite.

The eight-part series will tells the story of the modern and avant-garde young queen (Emilia Schüle ) who was only 14 when she left Austria to marry the Dauphin of France. Fighting against rumours that undermined her reputation, she navigated the rules of the French court under pressure to continue the Bourbon line.

"The all-female writing team, led by Deborah Davis, brings a unique portrayal to her character, drawing out modern feminist comparisons," Banijay Rights CEO Cathy Payne said.

Release date: TBC

BBC's award-winning drama Waterloo Road is returning after six years. The new series will be set in a comprehensive school in Manchester, and focus on the challenges that teachers, parents and pupils face amidst the ongoing pandemic.

The original show aired on the BBC from 2006 - 2015, and was set in both Rochdale and Greenock. It launched the careers of Jenna Coleman and Bridgerton stars Rege-Jean Page and Phoebe Dyvenor.

The revival of Waterloo Road will boost drama production skills in the North of England and help to reshape the BBC's drama slate to better reflect, represent and serve all parts of the country.

Piers Wenger, Director of BBC Drama, said: "Waterloo Road is the perfect lens through which to explore post-Covid Britain, from the perspective of those who have arguably been affected most: young people in education. We are thrilled to be returning to this brilliant format – its thrills and spills, unmissable characters and high drama – at a time when audiences across Britain need it most. And to be collaborating with the brilliant Cameron Roach and Wall To Wall on its return."

Release date: TBC 2022

Shane Meadows (This Is England) is turning his hand to his first ever BBC period drama, adapting Benjamin Myers classic novel based on the true story of the Yorkshire Cragg Vale Coiners — with filming for the fictional series officially underway as of September 2021.

The BBC say: "Set against the backdrop of the coming industrial revolution in eighteenth century Yorkshire, the compelling drama follows the enigmatic David Hartley, as he assembles a gang of weavers and land-workers to embark upon a revolutionary criminal enterprise that will capsize the economy and become the biggest fraud in British history."

Starring Michael Socha, Downton Abbey’s Sophie McShera, Cara Theobold, 1917’s George MacKay and Peaky Blinders star Samuel Edward-Cook.

The six-part series for the BBC is currently filming in Yorkshire and Nottinghamshire, so we imagine it will hit screens at some point in 2022.

Release date: TBC 2022 on BBC One

Roadkill's Iain De Caestecker and Joanna Vanderham will lead BBC One's three-part thriller set in Glasgow.

The series will tell the story of Gabe (De Caestecker), an ordinary man who works as an emergency call handler for the Scottish Ambulance Service in Glasgow.

BBC's synopsis reads: "His world is turned upside down when he receives a desperate life-and-death call from a woman who appears to know him. With Gabe under pressure to work out who she is, he makes a decision that threatens to have devastating consequences."

The cast also includes Sharon Rooney, Line of Duty's Taj Atwal, Vigil's Daniel Portman and Bodyguard's Stuart Bowman.

Release date: TBC 2022 on BBC One

Hot off the heels of The Serpent and Line of Duty, comes another brilliant-looking BBC crime drama, this time inspired by two real-life Nottinghamshire murders and the subsequent man hunt of Robert Boyer and Terry Rodgers in 2004.

The new series will star Liar's Joanne Froggatt, David Morrissey, Robert Glenister, Philip Jackson, and Lorraine Ashbourne and — despite being based on true events — will be a fictional dramatic portrayal.

The official BBC synopsis says, Sherwood sees "two shocking and unexpected murders shatter an already fractured community leading to one of the largest manhunts in British history".

"Suspicion is rife and the murders threaten to inflame historic divisions sparked during the Miners’ Strike that tore families apart three decades before.

"To solve the murders, police inspectors Ian St Clair, from the local constabulary, and Kevin Salisbury from the Met, must reunite and bury a rivalry that stretches back to 1984, in an attempt to heal wounds, and catch a killer. But can a community repair itself as more is discovered about those who live there, and whether they really are who they say they are?"

Release date: TBC

Along with all the other BBC commissions mentioned below, the network also announced that another BBC production was in the works with the award-winning creator of I May Destroy You, Michael Coel.

While we don't have any specific details just yet, Piers Wenger, head of BBC drama commissioning, said earlier this week that another project is in the works with the "unequalled" star and that "more news about that to follow in due course".

Since then, Wenger has gone on to reveal more details in an interview with Deadline, about what Coel's upcoming BBC series might entail and links it might have to her previous projects:

"It’s truly in Michaela’s head and it’s not for me to second guess that too much at this point. It’s at relatively early stages, but I wanted to let the fans of I May Destroy You know that there is a new show coming along."

Adding: "What relationship that show will have with the original series, [is for Michaela to decide]. There’s a relationship between Chewing Gum and I May Destroy You. There’s a through line to her thinking. I suspect there may be elements [of I May Destroy You] but it’s really too early to say anything specific."

We could not be more excited to see what the star has in store for us next...

Release date: TBC

From the mind of Candice Carty-Williams (pictured here), author of bestselling novel Queenie, comes this story of what happens when fame collides with family.

The official synopsis reads: "Bosco Champion. The golden boy of the Champion family and a UK rap sensation before he was jailed is home from prison, and he’s ready to dominate the music industry once more.

"Since she can remember, his younger sister Vita has been his personal assistant, running around after him, getting him out of trouble and hiding his various misdemeanours. But when Vita’s own talent is discovered by Bosco’s rival, Belly, she steps out of her brother's shadow to become a performer in her own right, setting the Champion siblings against one another in their quest to both reach the top spot in the charts, and to be the star of the family.

"Even their parents, soundman turned radio DJ Beres and nineties R&B one hit wonder Aria, can’t stop Bosco and Vita from splitting the Champion family down the middle as they go head to head in a very public and messy battle. In fact, it might be in their best interests to keep Bosco and Vita apart…"

Described by Carty-Williams as a "love letter to the Black British music scene", we can't wait to watch this new BBC drama.

Release date: TBC

Inspired by her 2019 book Skint Estate, author Cash Carraway is adapting the wild tale of trying to escape life trapped below the poverty line to the small screen — and it's been announced that the BBC drama will star none other than This Country's Daisy May Cooper, who the author describes as "brilliant".

Carraway says: "The show is about a brash yet intelligent working-class single mum who not only lives in extreme inner-city poverty but a state of ridicule and humiliation as she attempts to improve her life.

"She’s immoral and shocking and purposefully vile, and swaggerous and quite amazing really – but obviously I would say that as it’s inspired by my life... It isn't a woeful tale of poverty porn, it's a love story in the detritus between a mother and her daughter.... A woman who refuses to hand over her spirit regardless of how hard it’s kicked in."

She hopes Cooper will bring her signature "warmth and humour" to the performance of a woman 'that says "f-you" to the expectations of how women perceived to be at the bottom of society are expected to behave.'

Release date: TBC 2o22

Soon-to-be a published novel, Wahala, by Nikki May, is being adapted to screen by BAFTA-nominated Rocks writer Theresa Ikoko (pictured here).

The story will follow three thirty-something Anglo-Nigerian friends living in London, trying to navigate a world that 'mixes roast dinners with jollof rice.'

The official BBC synopsis says: "Simi, Ronke and Boo have been best friends for years, sharing every aspect of their careers, family lives and relationships with one another. But when the beautiful, charismatic and super wealthy Isobel infiltrates their friendship group, mounting tensions, unravelling bonds and unearthed secrets have shocking and tragic consequences."

Ikoko has described the series as "Big Little Lies meets Girlfriends meets Peckham!" She also adds that it will be a great celebration of Nigerian British culture, for which she proudly bears the flag.

Release date: TBC 2022 on BBC One and Amazon Prime

Emily Blunt is set to star in an upcoming Western drama from the BBC — and from the sounds of things, it's going to be brilliant.

The six-part series has been described as a "high-octane epic Western' by the broadcaster, with the official synopsis reading:

"Set in the mythic mid-American landscape in the year of 1890, The English follows Cornelia Locke (Emily Blunt), an Englishwoman who arrives into the new and wild landscape of the West to wreak revenge on the man she sees as responsible for the death of her son.

"Upon meeting Eli Whipp (Chaske Spencer), an ex-cavalry scout and member of the Pawnee Nation by birth, they join together and discover a shared history which must be defeated at all costs, if either of them are to survive."