Broadchurch

Broadchurch
Genre	Crime drama
Format	Serial drama
Created by	Chris Chibnall
Written by	Chris Chibnall Louise Fox
Directed by	James Strong Euros Lyn
Starring	David Tennant Olivia Colman Jodie Whittaker Andrew Buchan Vicky McClure Arthur Darvill David Bradley Pauline Quirke Jonathan Bailey Matthew Gravelle Carolyn Pickles Will Mellor Simone McAullay Joe Sims Adam Wilson Jacob Anderson Susan Brown Tanya Franks Charlotte Beaumont Tracey Childs
Composer(s)	Ólafur Arnalds
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language(s)	English
No. of series	1
No. of episodes	8
Production
Executive producer(s)	Jane Featherstone Chris Chibnall
Producer(s)	Richard Stokes
Cinematography	Matt Gray
Running time	44–46 minutes
Production company(s)	Kudos Film and Television
Broadcast
Original channel	ITV
Original run	4 March 2013 (2013-03-04) – present

Broadchurch is a British television crime drama broadcast on ITV, involving the death of a young boy and the search for his killer, produced by Kudos and starring David Tennant^[1] and Olivia Colman.^[2] Casting was announced in June 2012, with filming commencing in Clevedon in August as well as in West Bay in Bridport.^[3] The series is set on the Dorset coast.^[4][5] It premiered on 4 March 2013 at 9:00pm on ITV.^[6] In January 2013, the series was bought by BBC America, where it was shown in the United States beginning August 7, 2013.

The first series achieved high ratings for ITV, winning critical acclaim, and generating a large amount of publicity around the "whodunit" mystery. After the first series ended, ITV announced that Broadchurch would return for a second series.^[7]

The Fox Broadcasting Network announced that they would produce a remake of Broadchurch for US audiences to air in the 2014–15 season, called Gracepoint, and reprising David Tennant in the lead role.^[8]

Development

Series creator Chris Chibnall described the project as a labour of love; he had always wanted to create a big ensemble drama exploring how a death might affect a community set in an area where he has lived for the last decade. The location of the series was partly inspired by the fact that he lived near the Jurassic Coast in Dorset.^[9] In 2011, he wrote the first episode and asked ITV drama commissioner Laura Mackie to read the script. Soon afterwards, she greenlit production.^[10] The series was filmed between August and November 2012, predominantly on the Jurassic Coast at West Bay in Dorset, with the town of Clevedon just outside Bristol doubling as the fictional town of Broadchurch, with interior scenes of the police station shot in studios in Bristol.^[10][11]

The secrecy surrounding the conclusion of the first series was well-noted. Olivia Colman confirmed in an interview with Graham Norton that only four cast members knew the identity of the murderer during filming.

The complete series of Broadchurch was released by Acorn Media UK on 20 May 2013.^[12]

While ITV commissioned it for a one-off series and creator Chris Chibnall had described the show as "not set up as a returning franchise" and said, "nothing about [Broadchurch] was devised as a big ITV returning banker".,^[13] the final episode concluded with the caption "Broadchurch will return" suggesting a second series. ITV confirmed a second series shortly after.

Characters

Police officers

• Detective Inspector Alec Hardy (David Tennant) – Alec is an experienced detective from the city who has recently arrived in Broadchurch, wanting a quiet life after a scandal-tinged work history, after having been involved with a major murder trial — in which the suspect was released free of charge after crucial evidence was lost. Initially he and Ellie are hostile to each other as he was chosen over her to head the investigation and due to their differing personalities and views. As the case drags on, his health begins to fail and he suffers a heart attack in Episode 6. He is divorced, and has a fifteen year old daughter who lives with her mother.

• Detective Sergeant Ellie Miller (Olivia Colman) – Ellie is Alec's colleague, and has a personal connection to Danny's murder, having been friendly with the Latimer family for a number of years. She has lived in Broadchurch all of her life, and her son Tom, who houses a dark secret of his own, had been best friends with Danny. Ellie is deeply affected by the murder, and resents Alec for taking the job she was promised by Superintendent Jenkinson. She acts as liaison with the Latimer family, relaying information which is given to her, and attempting to piece together the events leading up to Danny's death.

• Chief Superintendent Elaine Jenkinson (Tracey Childs) – Elaine is Alec's and Ellie's boss, and tries to settle Alec into life in Broadchurch. Although she is aware of his past, she does not use it against him, and offers him Ellie's promotion in her absence, having been on a family vacation for three weeks. Ellie is furious when she learns Elaine has given her job to Alec, despite being promised the promotion herself. She has never been referred to as Elaine by Ellie.

Latimer family

• Beth Latimer (Jodie Whittaker) – Beth is Danny's and Chloe's mother, and Mark's wife. She works at the Broadchurch Tourist Bureau. She is completely overwhelmed by Danny's death, and struggles to cope, telling Ellie that she is further away from herself than she has ever been. She struggles to trust her husband, who was unable to account for his whereabouts on the night of Danny's disappearance. She is currently pregnant with her third child; Beth confides in Reverend Coates about her pregnancy. She also finds solace in Steve's information about Danny's death.

• Mark Latimer (Andrew Buchan) – Mark is Danny's and Chloe's father, and Beth's husband. He is a plumber. After Danny's death, he began desperately grieving for his son, becoming determined to find the killer. His alibi is called into question when he is unable to account for his whereabouts on the night of Danny's death, but has a secret which he needs to keep: he has been having an affair with hotel owner Becca. He is also best friends with employee Nigel, and asks Nigel to provide an alibi for him on the night of Danny's death. Beth later discovers his affair with Becca.

• Chloe Latimer (Charlotte Beaumont) – Chloe is Beth's and Mark's 15-year old daughter. She is a student currently studying for her GCSEs. Chloe is overwhelmed by her brother's sudden death, but her relationship with an older boy, Dean, is another source of stress. She and Dean are having sex and at 15 she is below the age of consent; Dean is concerned that their relationship will be discovered and he will be charged. Chloe is the first to be contacted by a member of the national press in relation to Danny's death.

• Daniel "Danny" Latimer (Oskar McNamara) – Danny (11) is Beth's and Mark's only son, and the victim of the murder. Shortly before his death, a consignment of petrol was stolen from a nearby farm, and he was spotted on CCTV riding through the town centre on his skateboard at 3am. Moments before he died, he was seen bleeding, standing atop the cliffs below which he was found. The police were informed by newsagent Jack that Danny had an argument with a Royal Mail delivery driver on the morning of his death, a fact which currently seems insignificant but may hold a clue as to the motive behind his murder.

• Liz Roper (Susan Brown) – Liz is Danny's and Chloe's grandmother, Beth's mother, and Mark's mother-in-law. She is a bursar at the local school that Danny attended. She is completely at a loss following her grandson's death, but manages to be the one who holds her family together. She suspects that Mark may be involved in Danny's death after he is hauled in by the police for questioning, although later changes her mind when he is released without charge.

Miller family

• Joe Miller (Matthew Gravelle) – Joe is Ellie's husband, and Tom's and Fred's father. Joe is a house-husband, but before the birth of his children, was a paramedic. He does his best to support his wife throughout the murder investigation, but appears not to notice his son Tom's strange behaviour. In the final episode, Joe is revealed to have killed Danny.

• Tom Miller (Adam Wilson) – Tom is Ellie's and Joe's elder son, and said to be Danny's best friend, though Tom denies this. He is a pupil in the final year of primary school. After Danny's disappearance, Tom wiped seven messages from Danny from his mobile phone, as well as deleting files from his laptop. He later asks Paul Coates about how to ensure that files are permanently deleted from a hard drive. When interviewed by the police, he also clams up about the circumstances surrounding Danny's death.

• Fred Miller (Benji Yapp) – Fred is Ellie's and Joe's younger son. Joe has been looking after Fred since he gave up his paramedic job.

Journalists

• Maggie Radcliffe (Carolyn Pickles) – Maggie is the editor of the Broadchurch Echo. She is furious when her junior reporter, Olly, makes the decision to tweet the identity of the murder victim and make it common knowledge. She is determined to work with the police, and wants Olly to act with integrity as a journalist. When she uncovers information about Susan, she confronts her, and tries to discover why she has changed her name. However, Susan threatens her, and warns her to stop trying to find information about her.

• Oliver "Olly" Stevens (Jonathan Bailey) – Olly is Ellie's nephew and a budding reporter for the Broadchurch Echo. An early mistake, in which he tweets the identity of the murder victim, leads the national press to Broadchurch, a decision which alienates him from his aunt, Ellie Miller, and his boss, Maggie. He soon forms a relationship with Daily Herald reporter Karen, and works with her to uncover information about Danny's murder. When he confronts Jack with the information about his former sex conviction, Jack threatens to kill him. Olly is very ambitious and seeks a job for a national newspaper like the Daily Herald. and hopes Karen will help him get there. It is revealed in the exclusive video that he was finally offered a job and turned it down to stay in Broadchurch.

• Karen White (Vicky McClure) – Karen is a high-flying reporter for the Daily Herald, who is determined to get to the bottom of the murder, and to uncover the whole story. She is not fazed by the sensitivity of the murder, and instantly locks horns with Alec, and threatens to expose his shadowy past about the former case in which he failed the family of the victim. On the instructions of her boss, Len, she manipulates the Latimer family into revealing information about Danny's life, and uses Beth as an empathetic figure to try and coax information out of the public pertaining to Danny's murder. In the aftermath of the publicising of the murder case, she finds herself antagonised by the townsfolk, especially Maggie and Olly.

• Len Danvers (Simon Rouse) – Len is Karen's boss at the Daily Herald, and is desperate to get an exclusive on the murder before any of the other national papers. He is unconvinced by Karen's interest in the case at first, but soon agrees to play along. When Karen manages to uncover information that is yet to be reported, he uses her to get an exclusive from the Latimer family, and is the first to have an exclusive interview and a photo shoot with Beth after Danny's murder.

Townsfolk

• The Reverend Paul Coates (Arthur Darvill) – Paul is the resident vicar in Broadchurch. He is the first person in whom Beth confides following Danny's death. He also tutored the local computer club, which both Danny and Ellie's son Tom attended. After being spotted by Ellie and Beth in the early hours of the morning, Alec suspects that he has a secret of his own regarding Danny's murder, but Paul claims to suffer from insomnia and deals with it by taking long walks at night.

• Susan Wright (Pauline Quirke) – Susan is a local busybody and misanthrope, a former assistant for the Sea Brigade, cleaner and a physical marketing assistant for the local tourist industry. She prefers to observe Broadchurch's day to day business from afar, but takes particular interest in Danny's death, which happened not far from her home. In Episode 8 it is revealed that Susan has moved away.

• Steve Connolly (Will Mellor) – Steve is a telephone engineer, who initially stumbles upon the investigation when he is called to add extra telephone lines in the police station. He tries to give the Police information about the murder, which he claims he received from a spirit guide: that Danny was murdered by somebody that he knew, and he was put in a boat. Alec threatens to arrest him if he does not stop trying to give this information to Beth Latimer; Alec reminds Steve that the police must deal in facts that are defensible in court.

• Jack Gerald Marshall (David Bradley) – Jack is the owner of a local newsagent's shop where Danny used to have a paper round. When it is discovered that Jack has a previous conviction for having sex with a minor, he is called in for questioning. He is also seen burning photos of his time with the Sea Brigade, including photos of Danny taken when he was a member. After suffering interference of the press, Jack commits suicide.

• Nigel "Nige" Carter (Joe Sims) – Nigel is Mark Latimer's employee at his plumbing firm and is also his best friend. He is very close to the Latimer family, and often helps out with everyday activities such as cooking and cleaning. He is seen to have a number of dangerous weapons in the back of his van, including a crossbow and an axe.

• Becca Fisher (Simone McAullay) – Becca is the owner of the local hotel, where Alec is staying during his time in Broadchurch. She is also having an affair with Mark Latimer, which is later discovered by his wife, Beth. Once, Becca asked Chloe to get some drugs for a couple staying at the hotel. Chloe asked her boyfriend, Dean, to purchase the drugs for her boss.

• Dean Thomas (Jacob Anderson) – Dean is a sixth form student studying for his A-levels and is also Chloe Latimer's boyfriend. He is two years older than Chloe.

• Lucy Stevens (Tanya Franks) – Lucy is reporter Olly's mother, and Ellie's sister. She was formerly an assistant to an important banker, but was made redundant from her position, leaving her bankrupt and heavily in debt, leading to bailiffs repossessing her assets, much to the dismay of her son. She hasn't spoken to Ellie for a number of years.

Episodes

Series 1 (2013)

Series 2

The final episode of series 1 finished with a caption reading "Broadchurch Will Return", indicating that series 2 of the programme was in development. ITV has confirmed that Broadchurch has been commissioned for a new series to begin production in 2014.^[7][14]

Ratings

The series launched to 6.15 million viewers with a 25.2% share, with an extra 716k (4.4%) switching on to watch on +1. It won its time-slot beating Mayday and Embarrassing Bodies.^[15] The second episode continued to perform well pulling in 5.78 million viewers with a 23.2%, with an extra 606k (3.7%) watched on +1. It once again won its competitive time slot beating Embarrassing Bodies and BBC One's Shetland.^[16] The third episode climbed to its biggest audience so far pulling in 7.30 million viewers with a 30.9% share, adding an extra 241,000 (1.1%) on +1. Once again it won its time slot.^[17] The fourth episode continued to a massive audience, pulling in 6.88 million viewers with 28.1% share, and further 308k (1.79%) watched on +1.^[18] The fifth episode climbed in the ratings from the previous week to help give ITV a win over BBC One, overnight data revealed.^[19] The fifth episode attracted 6.29 million viewers (24.5%) at 9pm. A further 310,000 tuned in on ITV+1.^[19] The sixth episode climbed once again in the ratings, overnight data revealed.^[20] The penultimate episode won an audience of 6.93 million (27.7%) on ITV at 9pm, with 342,000 (1.9%) tuning in on ITV+1.^[21]

American adaptation

It was announced in August 2013 at the Television Critics Association Summer Press Tour that American television network Fox will be developing an American version of Broadchurch. Chris Chibnall will write the premiere episode and executive produce the series.^[8] Production will begin in January 2014 for a spot in FOX's 2014–15 season.^[25] On 2 October 2013, David Tennant was confirmed to star in the American adaptation of Broadchurch.^[26] Additional casting includes Anna Gunn as Detective Miller, Jacki Weaver as Susan Wright,^[27] Nick Nolte as Jack Reinhold (the equivalent of Jack Marshall), and Michael Pena as Mark Latimer.^[28] The American adaptation has been retitled as Gracepoint.

Awards and nominations

References

External links

• Broadchurch at the Internet Movie Database
• BAFTA Guru – Broadchurch: TV Q&A