Detective Ember Manning (JENNA COLEMAN) in The Jetty© Firebird Pictures/Ben Blackall/BBC

The Jetty: All we know about Jenna Coleman's 'unique' BBC detective thriller, from cast to gritty plot

The Doctor Who actress stars as detective Ember Manning in the four-part series

TV and film writer
July 12, 2024

The BBC's hotly-anticipated new detective thriller The Jetty is coming to our screens later this month – and you won't want to miss it.

Jenna Coleman stars as "stubborn and free-willed" detective Ember Manning, who investigates the connection between a local sex offender operating in her home town and a missing persons cold case after a fire burns down a property in a scenic Lancashire lake town. 

Intrigued? Keep reading for all you need to know, from the plot details to the star-studded cast. But first, check out the gripping trailer below. 

WATCH: Jenna Coleman stars in The Jetty

What is The Jetty about? 

The four-parter follows detective Ember Manning, whose investigation into an arson case leads her down a path of reflection as she examines her past relationships and identity. According to leading lady Jenna, the series asks "probing questions about identity, sexual boundaries, sexual politics, toxic culture and the awakening of oneself". 

© Firebird Pictures/Ben Blackall/BBC

Jenna Coleman stars as Detective Ember Manning in The Jetty

The official synopsis reads: "When a fire tears through a property in a scenic Lancashire lake town, Detective Ember Manning (Jenna Coleman) must work out how it connects to a podcast journalist investigating a missing person cold case, and an illicit relationship between a man in his twenties and two underage girls.

"But as Ember gets close to the truth, it threatens to destroy her life – forcing her to re-evaluate everything she thought she knew about her past, present and the town she's always called home. As much a coming-of-age story as a detective thriller, The Jetty asks big questions about sexual morality, identity and memory, in the places that Me Too has left behind."

© Firebird Pictures/Ben Blackall/BBC

The series is described as a "coming-of-age story as a detective thriller"

Speaking about the show during an appearance on Zoe Ball's BBC Radio 2 Breakfast Show on Friday, Jenna explained that as Ember looks into the case, she's also "unpicking her own life and past and forced to confront herself". "It's a bit like looking in a mirror and the mist clears," she added.

Expanding on the intriguing plot, the Doctor Who star continued: "There's a podcaster in town investigating a missing girl from 17 years ago. It's all very weaved and how one case affects the other. It all comes back to Ember, her past and her relationship with her husband."

© Firebird Pictures/Ben Blackall/BBC

Archie Renaux plays rookie detective Hitch

Who stars in The Jetty? Meet the cast

Jenna leads the cast as detective Ember, who's also a single mum to her daughter Hannah following the death of her long-term husband a year before. 

Hannah is played by Ruby Stokes, who fans will recognise from her roles in Bridgerton and The Burning Girls.

© Firebird Pictures/Ben Blackall/BBC

Ruby Stokes plays Ember's daughter, Hannah

Ember's mum Sylvia is played by Amelia Bullmore (The Buccaneers, Scott & Bailey), while Laura Marcus (The Great Escaper) and Bo Bragason (Renegade Nell) play teenage girls Caitlin and Amy, who develop "quite an unhealthy love affair", according to writer and creator, Cat Jones. 

While Laura teased "so many twists and turns", Bo said the series "dives into" the characters' personal lives and "how the past affects the present", which she says makes the series "really unique and interesting". 

© Firebird Pictures/Ben Blackall/BBC

Laura Marcus and Bo Bragason play teenage girls Caitlin and Amy

House of the Dragon star Tom Glynn-Carney also stars in the series as Malachy, a grown man having an abusive and illegal relationship with Amy.

Elsewhere, Weruche Opia (I May Destroy You) plays journalist Riz, alongside Archie Renaux (Shadow and Bone) as rookie detective Hitch.

© Firebird Pictures/Ben Blackall/BBC

Tom Glynn-Carney plays Malachy

Rounding out the cast are Matthew McNulty (The Rising, Domina, The Terror), Ralph Ineson (The Witch, Green Knight), David Ajala (Italian Studies), Nina Barker-Francis (The Flash), Miya Ocego (Wreck, I Hate Suzie), Elliot Cowan (Fifteen-Love, The Crown), Shannon Watson, Arthur Hughes (Then Barbara Met Alan, Help) and Dominic Coleman (Paddington, Trollied).

The Jetty release date 

The Jetty arrives on BBC iPlayer and BBC One on Monday 15 July at 9pm. All four episodes will become available on iPlayer that same day. 

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