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Hope Street
Genre	Crime serial drama
Created by	Paul Marquess Susanne Farrell
Starring	Amara Karan Stephen Hagan Karen Hassan Marcus Onilude Tara Lynne O'Neill Ciarán McMenamin Kerri Quinn Niall Wright Bríd Brennan Des McAleer Aaron McCusker Niamh McGrady Finnian Garbutt
Music by	Justine Barker Anthony Eve
Country of origin	Northern Ireland
Original language	English
No. of series	4
No. of episodes	37 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers	Paul Marquess Donna Wiffen
Production locations	Donaghadee, Northern Ireland
Cinematography	Nick Manley
Editor	Peter Williams
Running time	43-56 Minutes
Production company	Long Story TV
Original release
Network	BBC One Northern Ireland BBC One BBC iPlayer
Release	24 November 2021 (2021-11-24) – present

Hope Street is a Northern Irish crime serial drama television series filmed in Donaghadee, Northern Ireland. The series, broadcast on BBC One Northern Ireland, was created by Paul Marquess and Susanne Farrell. The series is also broadcast on BBC One, once the episodes have been shown in the Northern Ireland region, and as of the third series, full series have been released on BBC iPlayer ahead of broadcast.

Production

Creation

Hope Street was created by Paul Marquess and Susanne Farrell. Marquess stated that his aim whilst creating the series was to make a long-running local drama. Due to being born in Belfast, he wanted to avoid the stereotypes that come with Northern Irish media portrayals, instead focusing on the "humour and warmth" of the area. The series was commissioned in March 2021, by BBC Daytime and BritBox North America, in a joint collaboration, with Marquess' and Farell's production company, Long Story TV co-producing the series with BritBox North America.

Filming and locations

Hope Street is filmed in Donaghadee, Northern Ireland, which acts as the fictional Port Devine. Locations within Donaghadee were used as part of filming, these included Pier 36, a local restaurant, which acted as The Commodore Pub in the series, and a building on Shore Street in Donaghadee which was used as the fictional Port Devine Police Station.

Broadcast

Hope Street is initially broadcast on BBC One Northern Ireland, before being shown on BBC One on daytimes for the remainder of the United Kingdom. As of the fourth series, the broadcast is a week apart from Northern Ireland and the remainder of the UK. Since the third series, full series have been released ahead of broadcast on BBC iPlayer. Available in the US on Britbox streaming platform.

Premise

The first series sees the sudden arrival of DC Leila Hussain (Amara Karan) in the fictional Northern Irish town of Port Devine. The local residents question the reason behind her arrival; only Inspector Finn O'Hare knows why Leila has been transferred, but he is keeping it to himself.

On Leila's arrival to the town, Karan hinted: "The secret, the reason why she's been brought to Northern Ireland, is actually a matter of life-and-death". Each episode follows a self-contained crime story following the investigation of the local police department, as well as the exploits of the town's local residents.

In the second series, a former colleague of Finn's, DC Al Quinn, is sent to town as part of an undercover operation. Following the operation's conclusion, Al stays in town to fill the void left following Leila's departure. When his daughter is caught up in the theft of an ATM, Al crosses the line to protect the one he loves most, putting his career on the line in the process.

In the third series, a new detective constable, Jo Lipton (Karen Hassan), arrives in Port Devine, alongside new police constable Ryan Power (Finnian Garbutt).

Cast

Development

Series co-creator and co-executive producer Paul Marquess stated that his aim whilst creating the series was to make a long-running local drama. Due to being born in Belfast, he wanted to avoid the stereotypes that come with Northern Irish media portrayals, instead focusing on the "humour and warmth" of the area. Marquess and colleague Susan Farrell decided that the series should not focus on serial killers or the Troubles, but instead on the resilience of the community in Northern Ireland. Another of Marquess' aims was to increase the amount of television productions in Northern Ireland, specifically since he had moved from the country to pursue a career in production in his youth. He and Farrell created a cast and crew almost entirely formed of local talent from in and around Donaghadee, where the series is filmed. The 10-episode first series was funded by Northern Ireland Screen and it was confirmed that it would premiere on BBC One Northern Ireland in November 2021, as well as having a January 2022 broadcast on BBC One in the other regions of the United Kingdom.

The show stars an ensemble cast almost entirely collected from the local area, including Ciarán McMenamin, Kerri Quinn, Niall Wright, Des McAleer, Bríd Brennan, Aaron McCusker and Niamh McGrady.

Cast member McMenamin was helped with his research about the police by two schoolfriends who are part of the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI). After reading the scripts for the series, he was excited to be part of Hope Street due to its modern-day portrayal of his community. He said that his experiences on set are the happiest moments of his professional life, due to the locations they film on and the cast and crew. McMenamin explained: "The craic is a different level. When you live away, to come home and be surrounded by people just as sarcastic as you, makes getting out of bed in the morning a joy". Quinn opined that it is refreshing for Hope Street not to mention the Troubles and appreciated that the scripts place a focal point on relationships and the small community of Port Devine. Wright echoed her comments, feeling that the serial drama is "a completely different take" to other dramas on television at the time of transmission. He added that the series would have plenty of twists and cliffhangers and hoped that the series would be renewed for several further series. English cast member Karan said that whilst filming for the series, the locals of Donaghadee were very proud of their town, but "went out of their way to make feel welcome". She added that she loved playing Leila even though she "sticks out in her new environment like a sore thumb".

In April 2022, the show was renewed for a second series, which premiered in November 2022, with Stephen Hagan taking on the role of new lead character, DC Al Quinn.

In April 2023, the show was renewed for a third series, which premiered in October 2023, with Karen Hassan taking on the role of new lead character, DC Jo Lipton.

In April 2024, it was confirmed that the BBC had renewed Hope Street for a fourth series and would commence filming that month, with eight episodes being commissioned.

Series overview

Episodes

Series 1 (2021–2022)

Series 2 (2022–2023)

Series 3 (2023–2024)

Series 4 (2024)

Reception

On the Northern Irish BBC iPlayer, Hope Street received 1.6 million streams on the first five episodes of series one. Stephen Patterson, writing for the Metro, gave the series four stars out of a possible five. He wrote that within minutes of the first episode, the community-driven aspect is established "incredibly well". Patterson noted that the core cast are talented, praising McGrady specifically for "stealing every scene she's in". He also praised the standalone stories in each episode, feeling that they raise important issues in ways that he did not expect from the series. He opined that Marquess had succeeded in his aims for the series to accurately portray Northern Ireland. He added that despite serial dramas such as Red Rock, The Bill and Holby City losing popularity, Hope Street "suggests that there is still something of an appetite for this kind of programming", also hoping for more series of the programme.

DVD releases

Series 1 and Series 2 have been released by Dazzler Media.

References

1. Colderick, Stephanie (27 January 2022). "Hope Street: Full cast for the BBC drama and what it's about". Wales Online. (Reach plc). Retrieved 1 February 2022.
2. ^ Coleman, Maureen (17 November 2021). "Hope Street: High hopes for new BBC NI police drama ahead of its launch". Belfast Telegraph. Archived from the original on 21 October 2023. Retrieved 1 February 2022.
3. "BBC Daytime and BritBox North America commission Northern Ireland set crime drama Hope Street". Northern Ireland Screen. Retrieved 4 March 2021.
4. ^ "Visit the Real Port Devine of BBC Series Hope Street...The Stunning Coastal Town of Donaghadee!". Visit Ards and North Down. Retrieved 26 January 2023.
5. Atkin, Elizabeth. "What's the name of the restaurant used as The Commodore in Hope Street?". Metro. (DMG Media). Retrieved 4 February 2022.
6. ^ Patterson, Stephen (31 January 2022). "What is Hope Street and what is it about?". Metro. (DMG Media). Archived from the original on 12 August 2024. Retrieved 1 February 2022.
7. "Hope Street: Karen Hassan promises 'all the drama' in new series". BBC. 27 October 2023. Archived from the original on 20 September 2024. Retrieved 20 September 2024.
8. Patterson, Stephen (28 January 2022). "Hope Street spoilers: Niall Wright warns of huge 'cliffhangers' in 'light-hearted' BBC crime drama". Metro. (DMG Media). Retrieved 1 February 2022.
9. Patterson, Stephen (14 April 2022). "Hope Street series 2: BBC crime drama renewed for second series". Metro. (DMG Media). Retrieved 30 June 2022.
10. "Hope Street renewed for season 3 with cast returning".
11. "Filming has started on Hope Street series four and there is a new Police Inspector taking charge in Port Devine". BBC. 22 April 2024. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
12. "Series 1, Episode 1". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 24 November 2021.
13. "Series 1, Episode 2". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 1 December 2021.
14. "Series 1, Episode 3". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 8 December 2021.
15. "Series 1, Episode 4". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 15 December 2021.
16. "Series 1, Episode 5". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 22 December 2021.
17. "Series 1, Episode 6". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 5 January 2022.
18. "Series 1, Episode 7". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
19. "Series 1, Episode 8". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 19 January 2022.
20. "Series 1, Episode 9". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
21. "Series 1, Episode 10". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
22. "Series 2, Episode 1". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 7 November 2022.
23. "Series 2, Episode 2". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 14 November 2022.
24. "Series 2, Episode 3". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 21 November 2022.
25. "Series 2, Episode 4". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 28 November 2022.
26. "Series 2, Episode 5". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
27. "Series 2, Episode 6". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 14 December 2022.
28. "Series 2, Episode 7". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 9 January 2023.
29. "Series 2, Episode 8". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
30. "Series 2, Episode 9". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
31. "Series 2, Episode 10". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
32. "Series 3, Episode 1". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 30 October 2023.
33. "Series 3, Episode 2". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 6 November 2023.
34. "Series 3, Episode 3". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
35. "Series 3, Episode 4". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
36. "Series 3, Episode 5". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
37. "Series 3, Episode 6". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
38. "Series 3, Episode 7". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
39. "Series 3, Episode 8". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
40. "Series 3, Episode 9". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
41. "Series 3, Episode 10". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
42. "Series 3, Episode 11". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 15 January 2024.
43. "Series 3, Episode 12". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
44. "Series 3, Episode 13". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
45. "Series 3, Episode 14". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 5 February 2024.
46. "Series 3, Episode 15". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
47. "Series 4, Episode 1". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
48. "Series 4, Episode 2". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
49. "Series 4, Episode 3". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 31 October 2024.
50. "Series 4, Episode 4". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 4 November 2024.
51. "Series 4, Episode 5". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 8 November 2024.
52. "Series 4, Episode 6". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
53. "Series 4, Episode 7". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
54. "Series 4, Episode 8". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
55. ^ Patterson, Stephen (31 January 2022). "Hope Street review: Charming BBC detective series puts the 'hope' back in serial drama". Metro. (DMG Media). Retrieved 1 February 2022.
56. "Hope Street: Series 1". HMV.
57. "Hope Street: Series 2". HMV.

External links

• Hope Street at BBC Online
• Hope Street at IMDb
• Hope Street at epguides.com

• 2021 British television series debuts
• 2020s British crime drama television series
• 2020s British police procedural television series
• 2020s British workplace drama television series
• BBC crime drama television shows
• BBC daytime television series
• BritBox original programming
• British English-language television shows
• Television shows filmed in Northern Ireland
• Television shows set in Northern Ireland