Calling all crime drama fans: UKTV has officially confirmed that the upcoming reimagining of Georges Simenon's legendary French detective, Maigret, will hit UK screens this December, with a second season already slated for 2027.
Benjamin Wainwright (Belgravia: The Next Chapter) stars as the iconic Parisian detective Jules Maigret as he tackles complex criminal cases across the French capital.
© UKTV
The series, which previously debuted on PBS Masterpiece in the US, arrives on the free streaming platform U as part of a wider 14-hour content deal with Banijay Rights.
Boasting a perfect Tomatometer score on Rotten Tomatoes – where viewers have praised it as "thrilling" and "a cut above most in the genre" – the drama is produced by Playground, the acclaimed team behind All Creatures Great and Small and Wolf Hall. So it's safe to say Simenon's iconic sleuth is in safe hands!
Keep reading to find out more…
What is Maigret about?
A reimagining of George Simenon's iconic sleuth for a contemporary audience, the series follows Jules Maigret, a talented, unconventional police detective in his mid-30s who is promoted to Chief Inspector in the Brigade Criminelle of the Police Judiciaire, the elite investigative unit of the Paris Police.
The synopsis reads: "Chief Inspector Maigret and his team of maverick but loyal detectives, 'Les Maigrets,' solve a series of complex crimes in Paris. Maigret’s unconventional methods and unique sense of justice put him at odds with his superiors and the judicial system he is supposed to represent. Maigret must outwit some of Paris’s most cunning and violent criminals, while dealing with his own troubled past."
© UKTV
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According to Simon Cox, EVP Content & Acquisitions, Banijay Rights, the series combines "gripping mysteries and rich character storytelling all centred around one of crime fiction’s most iconic and enduring detectives".
Who stars in Maigret?
Benjamin Wainwright (Belgravia: The Next Chapter, Lord of the Rings: War of the Rohirrim) stars in the title role.
He's joined by Stefanie Martini (The Gold, Last Kingdom), who plays Maigret's wife, Madame Louise, and Blake Harrison (World on Fire, I Hate Suzie Too) as Joseph Torrence.
Meanwhile, Reda Elazouar (Sex Education, Pirates), Kerrie Hayes (The Responder, Criminal Record), Shaniqua Okwok (The Flatshare, It’s a Sin) and Rob Kazinsky (Star Trek: Section 31, Eastenders) make up 'Les Maigrets,' the team of loyal detectives who work with Maigret at the Brigade Criminelle.
© Getty Images
Other adaptations of Maigret
It's not the first time Simenon's iconic detective has been brought to life on-screen.
Rupert Davies played the title role in the 1960s Maigret TV series, followed by Michael Gambon in ITV's 1990s series and Rowan Atkinson in four television films for ITV between 2016 and 2017.
Maigret is coming this December to U and U&Drama.