What To Expect From Unforgotten Series 6, According to Sinéad Keenan

31 mins ago

Returning to ITV1 this Sunday

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This Sunday, Sinéad Keenan returns to Bishop Street CID for Unforgotten series 6 after her character, DCI Jessie James, had a rocky start on the job last season. When a human spine is dredged out of Whitney Marsh, a new cold case reveals itself – along with a host of new unreliable suspects. We sat down with Sinéad to hear all about it.

Interview: Sinéad Keenan On Unforgotten Series 6

Hi Sinéad, thanks for joining us today. You are about to return to your role as Detective Chief Inspector Jessica James in ITV’s Unforgotten – how would you describe the show to someone who’s never watched it?

Unforgotten is a crime drama that focuses on cold cases – cases that have remained open for long periods of time, unsolved. The police team is headed by DCI Jessie James and DI Sunny Khan (Sanjeev Bhaskar). It’s not flashy; it’s a steady detective show that people seem to love, thankfully!

What can we expect from series 6?

In series 6, Jess and Sunny are in a much better place than they were in the last series, when Jess arrived to take over from Cassie. Things didn’t go very well there. But thankfully, at the start of this series, they’re all working much better as a team. They’ve found their groove. Jessie’s personal life is still in flux, but that’s all bubbling along alongside her work life.

We start off when a dismembered body is found in Whitney Marsh, and the series goes from there. We’ve got four brilliant guest stars – four very different characters from all over the country – so you’ll start wondering, ‘how the hell do these guys know each other?’ And across the six episodes, you find out how Chris Lang has managed to knit it all together.

Do you remember your reaction when you first read the script? What was it like to read the ending?

I did not see it coming. I’d make an awful detective! But Chris is so clever, because by episode three, you think you know who it is. And then in episode four, you’re like ‘No, no, it’s this suspect.’ And in episode five, you go to the third suspect, and you oscillate between the four of them. But I didn’t see this ending coming; I don’t think many will.

You play DCI Jessica James – how would you describe her?

She’s very good at her job – though it took a while for everyone to realise that last season, with everything going on in her home life. She’s a no nonsense, get the job done type. But once people get to know her, she’s got a good sense of humor. She is a mother of two boys, just kind of getting on with it, really, as 99.9 percent of us do. One foot in front of the other, you know?

You joined Unforgotten last series, so how did it feel on set this time around being a returning character?

It was lovely. I didn’t have the new girl nerves anymore! It’s such a lovely set to work on – a very well oiled machine. Everyone’s been doing it for years, and you get the same crew wanting to come back just because it’s such a great place to be.

Any standout moments from filming?

It’s always lovely to work with Sanjeev. He’s a very funny, congenial fella, and and he has an anecdote for any situation. Any conversation, any downtime between takes, you’ll always be entertained by him. The rest of the cast were all lovely, funny and warm, too. Just a good group of good people.

Without giving anything away, is there anything coming up in this series that you’re really excited for audiences to see?

To be honest, I’m really excited for people to see Maximilian Fairley, who plays one of the guest characters, Marty. If I’m right, this is his first TV job out of drama school, and he’s just brilliant – really, really good. I’m looking forward to people seeing his stuff. I mean, all of them, really: Victoria Hamilton is brilliant, and MyAnna Buring, Elham Ehsas. But yeah, Maximilian is a real find. Victor Jenkins, who cast the series, did a brilliant job.

Do you think there will be a seventh series of Unforgotten?

I don’t know – that’s up to the grown ups! But certainly, if they did want more, then I’d be delighted to do more. But it depends on bigger brains than I.

SANJEEV BHASKAR as DI Sunny Khan and SINEAD KEENAN as DCI Jess James in Unforgotten series 6. (Jonathan Ford/Mainstreet/ITV)

Any other roles in the pipeline that you’re excited about? (If you’re allowed to tell us!)

I do, actually. I wrapped Unforgotten on a Wednesday in June during the summer, and the following Monday I was in Belfast filming Lisa McGee’s new production, How To Get To Heaven From Belfast. I was there until mid December, and it was really good fun. I think that comes out later this year. It’s about three Irish women who went to school together, but we travelled all over. We actually had two weeks in Malta, as well, which was nice.

What was it like to work with Lisa?

Oh, brilliant. I’ve worked there a few times before, so it was lovely going back. Again, that was another great set. Lots of laughs. Mad, absolutely mad, but brilliant.

You’ve had a great career on British TV so far, but what has been your favourite project to date?

I’ve been very lucky, to be honest, looking back, with the parts that I’ve done and the productions I have been in. I’m not very good with favorites, but in terms of a bit of work that I’m very proud of, it would be Little Boy Blue. And in terms of having a great time, Being Human was good fun. But every job I’ve done, I think, has been a good experience.

Who has been your favourite actor to work with in the past?

The first person to spring to mind is Russell Tovey. I think everyone who works with him falls a little bit in love with Russell Tovey.

Which co-star did you learn the most from?

I don’t know if I could pin that down, to be honest. But you do, just by the very nature of every job being different, learn and pick up different things along the way. I think a lot of the time it’s how to deal with personalities. I think anybody’s job in any field, a healthy 60 percent is dealing with other people’s personalities. So whatever job, you learn how to navigate that. I can’t say there’s anyone that jumps out… That probably suggests I’m not very good at learning!

Is there any kind of role you’ve not done yet that you’d love to try in the future?

To be honest, I don’t tend to think like that. I mean, it’s such a precarious job anyway! You can’t really plan for it, because you just don’t know what’s coming around the corner. The only thing you can do is say yay or nay to what’s put directly in front of you. That’s where your power is: saying yes or no. In terms of what I’d like to be doing in the future, to be honest, I’d just like to be still at it. I’d like to just keep on going with interesting parts – parts I think are worth doing.

I’ve got two young kids, and you’re never filming on your doorstep. I live in Stratford upon Avon, which is lovely, but it means if I’m working, I am out of the home. I’m not getting home at tea time. So it has to be worth that sacrifice in various different ways. So as long as it’s worth it, I just want to be able to keep doing it!

Do you struggle with missing home when you’re away?

I do struggle with it. It’s a real juggle, as you can imagine. My husband’s a TV director, so what we’ve been fortunate enough to do kind of tag team. So if one’s working, then that time is ring fenced for the other to be back at the ranch. So we’ve managed to do that. But then you also have the added fear of like, ‘God, the kids! Are they going to be really damaged?’ But it’s always been their normal. One of us is always around, and hopefully we won’t have too many bills for therapy. I’m hoping we’re managing. I hope. That’s all you can do!

Anything fun in the pipeline – professionally or personally?

Well, in the immediate future, my husband is taking me to L’Enclume for my birthday next week! We were there for the first time eight years ago, and had a fabulous meal. I didn’t realise I was expecting at the time, so I had all the wine, all the unpasteurized cheese and all the food!

And then I’m just looking forward to parenting for a while. I was away a lot last year. And I’ll be waiting for How To Get To Heaven From Belfast to come out, and seeing what’s next!