In some rather surprising news, crime drama ‘Miss Scarlet and The Duke’ is going to be renamed just ‘Miss Scarlet‘ from Season 5 onwards, as it’s revealed Stuart Martin, who played William “The Duke” Wellington, has decided not to return to the series.
Up until now, the series has followed Kate Phillips (‘Peaky Blinders’, ‘The Crown’) as the fearless female detective Eliza Scarlet, and Stuart Martin (‘Army of Thieves’, ‘Jamestown’) as her childhood friend and will-they-won’t-they love interest, Inspector William “The Duke” Wellington. Following Martin’s decision not to continue, the series will be retitled, ‘Miss Scarlet’.
“It has been such an incredible joy to bring Duke to life through Rachael’s beautiful, brilliant writing, and to get to play him for the past four years,” said Martin. “But it felt like the time was right for Scarlet to explore new stories and challenges for now, as the show continues to grow and evolve. I will miss working with my amazing partner in crime Kate and the rest of our brilliant family and team, but I’m excited to continue following Eliza and her escapades as a huge fan and newly enrolled Scarleteer!”
Phillips will not be alone of course when the show returns for season five. The newly titled ‘Miss Scarlet’ will welcome back many cast members from previous seasons, including Evan McCabe as Detective Fitzroy, Cathy Belton as Ivy, Felix Scott as Patrick Nash, Paul Bazely as Clarence, Simon Ludders as Mr. Potts, and Tim Chipping as Detective Phelps.
“I will miss working with my pal Stu every day, and know Eliza will miss her Duke, but I think the best is yet to come for her. I can’t wait for fans to see what we have in store for Season 5,” adds Kate Phillips.
As you can tell by the statements, it does seem to have been entirely Martin’s decision to move on to other projects. Thankfully for fans the show has opted to continue without him. Series creator Rachael New says, “We will miss our Duke but there is so much in store for Eliza – new crimes, new friends, new foes and new romance. We will be keeping her very busy!”
This does also opens up some interesting new avenues for our female detective heroine. With “The Duke” no longer in the picture, there is the possibility of new relationships forming.
“Duke’s departure brings a poignant shift to the series,” adds Miss Scarlet Limited’s Patty Lenahan Ishimoto. “One that allows for further creative evolution and for Eliza to face new challenges, forging ahead in a narrative landscape filled with suspense, crime-solving, and unexpected (platonic and romantic) relationships.”
The drama is created and written by Rachael New (‘Grantchester’, ‘The Mallorca Files’), with Ben Edwards (‘Trollied’, ‘Stella’) as a contributing writer. PBS Masterpiece and Element 8 Entertainment produce the series.
‘Miss Scarlet‘ Season 5 is currently filming so does not yet have a premiere date. The show airs on UKTV’s Alibi in the UK and on PBS Masterpiece in the USA. If you want to keep track of this or any other show, you can add them via our Never Miss system, and you’ll be notified when it gets a UK premiere date.
