Anna Friel and Laura Carmichael have been revealed as the two stars of a new ITV crime drama, entitled ‘Marcella’, the first English language original series to be written by acclaimed Swedish screenwriter Hans Rosenfeldt.

The eight-part noir thriller will begin shooting in and around London later this month, and is due to hit screens at an undisclosed date in 2016. The female stars will be joined by a supporting cast that includes former soap actors Ian Puleston-Davies (‘Coronation Street’) and Ray Panthaki (‘EastEnders’), plus ‘Fortitude’s Nicholas Pinnock.

Anna FrielAnna Friel will play the lead in 'Marcella', an ITV original crime drama

‘Marcella’ will focus on a British Metropolitan police detective returning to work with the murder squad after upheaval in her personal life. Friel, 39, plays the lead role of Det. Sgt. Marcella Summers, and she said she was excited to be working with ‘The Bridge’ creator Rosenfeldt.

“I’m thrilled to be working on Hans Rosenfeldt’s first English drama,” she said. “Marcella is a complex woman and a wonderful layered character. Hans’s marvellous scripts have drawn a fantastic cast and crew together. I can’t wait to begin.”

British-born Friel has recently starred in ‘Odyssey’, which recently suffered a cancellation by NBC after just one season in the States. “Scandinavian storytelling is hugely inspiring but we Brits usually have to settle for doing a remake, so to be working with Hans on an original piece for ITV is a true privilege.”

Laura Carmichael'Downton Abbey's Laura Carmichael will also play a prominent part alongside Friel

She'll be joined by Laura Carmichael, who'll be making her first career steps post-'Downton Abbey', in which she's played Lady Edith for six seasons.

ITV originally gave the green light to the project during the summer, and sees Friel’s character throwing herself into her work to stop herself falling apart after her husband suddenly walks out on her, leaving her separated from her children. The premise will see her re-open a 10-year-old cold case that she had to abandon because of maternity leave.

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