Programme Information

Hunter Ep 1/2

Sunday 18 January

9.00-10.00pm BBC ONE

Press pack

Janet McTeer and Hugh
Bonneville star as Detective
Sergeant Amy Foster and
Detective Superintendent Barclay
in a new two-part thriller

Hugh Bonneville and Janet McTeer return as Detective Superintendent Barclay and Detective Sergeant Amy Foster, as they reprise their Five Days roles in this new, two-part thriller, written by Mick Ford.

When extremists kidnap two seven-year-old boys from very different backgrounds, and promise to release them only if their radical demands are met, the case falls into the hands of the intuitive and pragmatic Detective Superintendent Iain Barclay.

Faced with a relatively inexperienced and increasingly unreliable team, Barclay calls his friend and faithful deputy, Detective Sergeant Amy Foster, out of "early retirement", and away from the bottle, to support him in solving what turns out to be a highly sensitive crime.

With her assertive and pragmatic attitude, Foster isn't afraid to ruffle a few feathers to get the job done. She begins to whip the team into shape to start piecing together the details of the abductions.

Emails which have also been sent to the national media, arrive at Barclay's office, with images attached of the two boys seemingly unconscious. The word "sacred" has been written on their bodies. The photos have been sent from untraceable mobile phones hundreds of miles apart, suggesting there is a network of people involved.

The following morning a package containing the boys' clothing is delivered to BBC Birmingham, and the fanatics' demand is finally revealed: broadcast film of their cause on national news bulletins, or the boys will be killed.

With children's lives at risk, the boys' families demanding answers and with no leads, the detectives are faced with a complicated moral dilemma for which there is no easy or comfortable solution.

Hugh Bonneville stars as Det Supt Barclay, Janet McTeer as DS Foster, Eleanor Matsuura as DI Zoe Larson, Geoffrey Streatfeild as DS Nick Dyer, Nathan Constance as DC Connor, Jonathan Slinger as DC Miles and Anna Koval as DC Mailer.

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The kidnappers continue to demand that a film promoting their cause is shown on national news bulletins, as the crime thriller, written by Mick Ford, concludes. While Barclay unsuccessfully argues with his commanding officer, ACC Griffin, that the film should be shown, his team is racing against time to work out the identity of the kidnappers.

Barclay's clear thinking helps the team pinpoint John Elder, who has spina bifida and is also a carer, as one of the perpetrators. Before they can locate him, however, he snatches another child – a young girl who also has spina bifida, whom he regularly drives to and from activities.

As the lives of three children hang in the balance, and the deadlines loom, the pressure is mounting on Barclay's team to piece information together to avert a tragic outcome.

Hugh Bonneville stars as Det Supt Barclay, Harriet Walter as ACC Griffin, and Adrian Rawlins as John Elder, Janet McTeer as DS Foster, Eleanor Matsuura as DI Zoe Larson, Geoffrey Streatfeild as DS Nick Dyer, Nathan Constance as DC Connor, Jonathan Slinger as DC Miles, Anna Koval as DC Mailer, Clare Holman as Dr Margaret Newell and Frances Albery as Hannah Crowley.

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