Shetland fans, we’ve got some good news. ITV has heard our cries for another superb detective drama and it’s delivering one in the form of The Galway Bay Murders. The broadcaster’s latest acquisition will whisk us away to the Irish coast where a shocking murder pulls Nora Savage (Kate Mulgrew) straight back into the trauma she hoped to leave behind. Think of it like Shetland but darker.
While Nora had hoped to start a quieter life by returning to her family home in Galway, her plans are interrupted when the body of a young woman is discovered in a bog. Yes, we did say it was dark. And so, Nora's investigation begins and leads her to a ruthless environmental magnate, which puts both herself and those around her, in danger.
With the series coming to ITV imminently, here's everything you need to know about The Galway Bay Murders before you tune in, including the plot, cast and how to watch it.
What is The Galway Bay Murders about?
The six-part series comes from the producers of hit BBC police drama Blue Lights and takes us to Ireland’s rugged west coast, where a shocking murder draws a former New York detective into a dangerous investigation. The location is Connemara and our detective is Nora Savage (Kate Mulgrew), who arrives in Ireland hoping to escape a traumatic past and find a quieter life. Needless to say, that’s not what she gets.
Her plans are quickly shattered when the body of a young woman is discovered in a bog, which pulls Nora into a complex murder investigation alongside the local Garda team. As the investigation deepens, the detectives uncover a trail leading to Free Farm, an ambitious organisation where young people live and work together on sustainable farming and scientific research. Idyllic, you’d think – but it’s far from it.
Lurking beneath its seemingly perfect exterior is something far more sinister at play – and Nora is about to uncover a complex web tangled secrets, competing loyalties and hidden motives. ITV’s official synopsis continues: “Combining a compelling murder mystery with richly drawn characters, dark humour and spectacular scenery, the six-part drama explores how far people will go to protect their secrets and the lengths one woman will go to uncover the truth.
Darren Nartey, Head of Content Acquisitions at ITV, says of the series: “The Galway Bay Murders is precisely the kind of bold, high-calibre drama our audiences love. Eithne Verling has crafted a completely magnetic crime thriller, with an outstanding cast led by Kate Mulgrew and Colm Meaney, a compelling central mystery and the stunning backdrop of Ireland’s west coast.”
Who’s in the cast of The Galway Bay Murders?
The cast of The Galway Bay Murders includes:
- Kate Mulgrew (Star Trek: Voyager)
- Colm Meaney (The Commitments)
- John Connors (Irish Blood)
- India Mullen (Under Salt Marsh)
- Cillian O’Sullivan (Daredevil: Born Again)
- Jack Rowan (A Town Called Malice)
How can I watch The Galway Bay Murders?
ITV hasn’t yet shared a release date for The Galway Bay Murders, but we’re expecting it to arrive on ITV1 and ITVX soon. As soon as we have a confirmed date, we’ll update you here.
What other detective dramas can I watch now?
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For a classic series, we’d suggest Scott & Bailey. Our lead characters are DC Rachel Bailey (Suranne Jones) and DC Janet Scott (Lesley Sharp) who are Manchester detectives in the Major Incident Team and, well, they have rather a lot of murders to deal with. You can watch Scott & Bailey on ITVX. For Shetland fans, we’d recommend The Island. The drama revolves around Family Liaison Officer Kat Crichton (Sorcha Groundsell) who has a harrowing murder investigation on her hands - and it is, in our humble opinion, truly outstanding. You can watch The Island on Apple TV.