The Bay’s return date has finally been confirmed by ITV and the wait for series five is almost over.

Based in Morecambe, the drama will see Marsha Thomason return as Family Liaison Officer DS Jenn Townsend on March 2, two years after the fourth season aired in 2023.

The highly-anticipated fifth series will also star Daniel Ryan, Erin Shanagher and Andrew Dowbiggin.

Olwen May from Happy Valley and Tara Lynne O’Neill from The Full Monty are set to join the cast.

Co-created and written by Daragh Carville, the new series of The Bay will see the Morecambe team tackle a new case when a university student is found deceased by the docks.

A synopsis for the new instalment reads: ‘When 23-year-old university student Hannah is found ᴅᴇᴀᴅ on the edge of the docks, Morecambe’s MIU team has another case to solve. 

The Bay’s return date has finally been confirmed by ITV meaning that the wait for series five is almost over, two years since the fourth season aired in 2023

Based in Morecambe, the drama will see Marsha Thomason, pictured,  return as Family Liaison Officer, DS Jenn Townsend on March 2

Co-created and written by Daragh Carville, the new series of The Bay will see the Morecambe team tackle a new case when a university student is found deceased by the docks

‘Jenn, who is returning to work following the death of her father, pushes aside her own grief to support Hannah’s bitterly divided family.

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‘With the stakes of the investigation high, Jenn and the team dig deeper into the case, uncover hidden friendships and secret liaisons as the anger rises in the student community. 

‘As intensity increases, and the team peel back the complicated layers of Hannah’s life and the secrets within it, Jenn must reconcile her personal and professional struggles as she grapples to solve the case, come to terms with her own loss and build bridges with her family.’   

Other cast members include Georgia Scholes, David Carpenter, Emme Hayes and Suzanne Packer. 

The first three episodes will be directed by Shaun Evans who starred in Vigil and Endeavour. While the last three will be under Waris Islam.

It comes as ITV have just commissioned the sixth series of another crime drama, Grace, which is set to begin filming the next season this summer.

Olwen May (second right) from Happy Valley and Tara Lynne O’Neill from The Full Monty is set to join the cast

The first three episodes will be directed by Shaun Evans who starred in Vigil and Endeavour. While the last three will be under Waris Islam

Grace follows Detective Superintendent Roy Grace as he tackles criminal cases in Brighton and is based on the best-selling novels by Peter James. 

John Simm is set to return as Roy, Richie Campbell as DS Glenn Branson, Zoë Tapper as Cleo Morey, Laura Elphinstone as DS Bella Moy and Brad Morrison as DC Nick Nicholl.

The sixth series will feature four standalone two-hour films set in the seaside city of Brighton, following on from the fifth season, will air in the Spring.

Show bosses have praised both the crew and cast working on the new instalment, with executive producer Phil Hunter describing them as a ‘joy’ to work with.

The Bay series five will air on ITV1 from March 2 at 9pm and be available to stream on ITVX.