Filming is now underway on a three-part ITV thriller starring Sheridan Smith, Matthew McNulty, Douglas Henshall, Geraldine James and Phil Davis.
Black Work is written by Matt Charman (Our Zoo, Suite Francaise) and is made by Mammoth Screen – producers of Morse prequel Endeavour – for ITV.
Smith plays police woman Jo Gillespie whose world is thrown into turmoil when husband Ryan (Kenny Doughty), an undercover policeman, is shot dead in mysterious circumstances.
She sets out to discover who murdered him and has to confront difficult truths about her family life and her marriage.
Police officer Jo is mother to 7-year-old Melly (played by Honor Kneafsey) and stepson Hal, a role taken by Oliver Woollford.
Understandably Jo is emotionally distraught and heavily conflicted as she unravels the last few years of her husband’s life.
Leaning on his colleague and fellow police officer DC Jack Clark (Matthew McNulty) for support.
Matt Charman said: “Sheridan Smith is a dream to write for because as an actress there’s really nothing she can’t do.
“And Black Work is a story that pushes her to the limit – it makes her character, Jo Gillespie doubt herself, her family, her friends, everything she’s always taken for granted in her search for her husband’s killer.”
The cast also includes: Sharon Duce (Coronation Street), Andrew Knott (Spooks: Code 9), Ace Bhatti (Eastenders), Carla Henry (Homefront), Kenny Doughty (Vera), Lisa Dillon (Cranford), Vinette Robinson (Sherlock), and Ben-Ryan Davies (Waterloo Road).