Silent Witness

Silent Witness is a British crime drama television series produced by the BBC that focuses on a team of forensic pathology experts and their investigations into various crimes. The series was created by Nigel McCrery, a former murder squad detective based in Nottingham. Since its initial release in 1996, 28 series have been broadcast. Amanda Burton starred as primary character Dr. Sam Ryan, a forensic pathologist and was joined by other supporting characters. In Series 6 William Gaminara and Tom Ward joined as main cast members, pathologists Leo Dalton and Harry Cunningham respectively. Sam Ryan left at the end of episode 2 of Series 8. After her departure, the show moved to an ensemble cast format and in episode 5 of Series 8, Emilia Fox joined as Dr. Nikki Alexander, also a forensic pathologist. The trio of Leo, Harry and Nikki remained until the end of series 15 with the departure of Harry (albeit offscreen). In Series 16, David Caves joined as the Lyell's new forensic scientist, Jack Hodgson. Liz Carr also joined in episode 2 of Series 16 for a recurring character Clarissa Mullery, a forensic technician. At the end of Series 16, Leo was killed. In Series 17, Richard Lintern joined as the new head of the Lyell, Thomas Chamberlain. The main cast of Nikki, Jack and Thomas remained for Series 17 and Series 18. Carr's character was promoted to a main cast member from Series 19 and the four remained as the main cast until the end of Series 23, where Thomas was killed and Clarissa left the Lyell. In episode 3 of Series 24, Jason Wong joined as Adam Yuen, a forensic pathologist, but was killed in episode 6. In episode 7, Genesis Lynea joined as Simone Tyler, a forensic ecologist. For Series 25, Burton reprised her role as Sam Ryan and all three cast members from Series 24 also returned. At the end of Series 25, Sam Ryan departed and Simone left the Lyell. In Series 26, Alaister Michael and Aki Omoshaybi joined as medical examiner Velvy Schur and forensic pathologist Gabriel Folukoya respectively. In episode 3 of the series, Rhiannon May joined as Jack's niece Cara Connelly. All three characters left off screen after the conclusion of Series 27. In Series 28, Maggie Steed and Francesca Mills joined as Dr. Harriet Mavern and Kit Brooks - a forensic pathologist and crime scene analyist respectively. Series 29 has been announced and is expected to air in early 2026 with Emilia Fox and David Caves reprising their roles but other cast and broadcast dates have not been released. The programme is broadcast in more than 235 territories, including ABC in Australia, Showcase and the Knowledge Network in Canada, KRO in the Netherlands, TV One and Prime in New Zealand, BBC First in South Africa and BBC America in the United States. Silent Witness continues to achieve good audience ratings in the UK.