Shetland 10 starts on 5 November 2025

[IwantToRetire]

Forget about the fireworks, stay in as new series of Shetland starts next week!

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m002lt9z

I think those of us who have stuck with Shetland through thick and thin, just about filled up the last thread which is here https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/telly_addicts/4931718-shetland-season-8?page=40

Given how bad many 9pm slots have been recently this series may even be a pleasant surprise.

Tosh behaving like a teenager instead of a senior polis, Jeez, she gets worse every week. And as for Ruth... She and Alan are surely the most unconvincing siblings; I realise all brothers and sisters don't get on, but there doesn't seem to be anything between them. Not even honesty. Good job Sandy took that sprightly young PC with him to collect Lewis.

Oh of course! That's why they were showing us that at the end. I missed the knot, and thought the banging gate was a (slightly surprising given the usual tone of Shetland) clumsy visual nod to what was going on inside the house.....

Ha! I thought exactly the same! Glad it's not just me! 😁

I thought the gate banging was going to show them being watched at the house. But then they showed the knot...
That, and the phone call from Sandy after speaking to the fish and chip shop guy telling him about who his boss was...
So Ed, or one of his cronies, did away with his mum. Maybe the drugs were his? Maybe this was his way to get hold of that money, many years down the line

I think you are right

I think there may be more than one person involved

I can't wait for it to be over, Ruth irritates me so.much. At least we were spared the sight of her and Ed making out. If he turns out to be the murderer, shouldn't she be suspended
for her severe lack of judgment?

It definitely looks like Ed is the drugs kingpin, but I've been suspicious of Isabella from the start and am now wondering if maybe she blamed the Tullochs for her brother's death, knew about the drugs / money, and wanted a share of it for her family with the baby on the way? There was a lot of talk this week about hard things had been for them recently. I hadn't noticed the type of knot though, that's a good spot!

I am beginning to find the acting mediocre. Just cannot see those two women as police officers somehow. Maybe they find the plot as confusing as I do! Still loving the scenery.

The acting isn't great, but the writing is so poor. Tosh has just melted, and just doesn't seem a credible character at all these days, And as for Ruth "I shagged the suspect" Calder...

The son of the murder victim she is investigating. She should be sacked for unprofessional conduct.

Tosh was so dramatic with Billy. I was cringing when Ruth was all tipsy and giggly. Ed's a bit Nigel Havers in appearance. Only other thing was I thought Isobel's haircut really suits her. I was half watching the whole thing.

I dont see how Billy can not be suspended if not sacked.

I am wondering if the actor has said he wants to leave the series so they have created this whole series to give him a big send off (in terms of time on screen and being central rather than tea makers).

But still think the main fault with the series is the writing is so poor.

If the knot is meant to be a clue, its pretty crass as anyone one growing up in Shetland with a fishing family would know that.

So why would him using that knot implicate him?

If there is evidence from the past, before his brother and the other man were lost at sea, they he was helping them with their drug smuggling that would be a bit more credible.

Also, how come no one was aware they were smuggling drugs in such a close community.

Or that they had smuggled in the one haul lost at sea and later retrieved fetched enouhg money over years that all the unused money kept coming in?

Or someone took over the business, and as the "poet" had distanced himself from the family it cant be him.

I think it is pointless going on about Tosh, this is the writers.

Although I can see given her involvement with her work colleagues that is must be really hard.

And who would you go to?

But as others have said, through all series of Shetland the police, whichever character had bent the rule for friends etc..

Accept Billy. Or so we thought.

He must be being written out.

I thought too @IwantToRetire, that perhaps “Billy” had decided to go (retire in real life) from Shetland

I thought all of them were so unprofessional last night they should all be sacked!!

A detective shagging the son of a murder victim ffs 🤦‍♀️ Tosh going around shouting at everyone 🙄 and Billy lying and covering up important evidence.

The actress playing Tosh is not great even with the poor writing excuse she is very one dimensional.

That said I’ll keep watching, my guess is that either the son or the dysfunctional family took over the drugs business and that it will all tie in with the bloke from the chip shop. I think the old lady was murdered because she was going to go to the police about working out who the drug dealer is (possibly her son.)

I cant quite imagine what the "plot" will turn out to be, but why would whoever it was being putting money into the account of a woman who obviously didn't "approve" of it?!

I think Ed was the one importing the drugs from the start. He persuaded his brother and possibly the other lad to go out in spite of the storm to collect a shipment, and he is therefore partly responsible for their deaths. His father realised what was going on when Billy found the heroin in the wreck of their boat. Father, who was already corrupt, did not destroy the heroin and instead demanded a cut of the proceeds. He must have had an idea what was going on. Maybe he was already involved. Ed said yes. Mother must have found out eventually given that her name is on the account - was it just her name, or joint names? This is possibly why mother and son hadn't spoken for a long time. It would also possibly explain why the hapless Edinburgh couple were told to go to that remote spot and be prepared to hand over the drugs they'd brought with them to a local contact. Ed knew the area and was confident (wrongly) that they would be unobserved.

Was Ed the murderer, though? Not unknown for a son to murder a mother, but given the massive suspicion on him now I'd be amazed if he turns out to be the murderer. I'm expecting a final twist. My money might be on the creepy neighbour, although I can't think what the motive would have been. He found the body - staged?

Just remembered I’m out next Wednesday so may just read what’s happened on here..

If Ed is the murderer then Ruth too will have to leave the police.

Even me blaming the writers for making Tosh and Ruth so superficial surely wouldn't think she could survive that.

But who knows, maybe Ashley Jenson wants to leave too.

She certainly needs to get her agent to say give me some good lines.

I spotted the knot! Quite proud of myself! I don’t mind Tosh, I don’t know why, I like her.

Yes a good script wouldn’t go amiss. However, I prefer Douglas Henshall to Ashley Jenson.

Me too, once he got the rope out of his boot I was all ‚aha Mr Poetman‘!

Calder needs severely demoting for her frolics and how she treated Louden.

I was worried Billy was at the edge of the water as he was feeling desperate - I think Tosh will sort out her emotions and work out something which doesn’t drop him in it…but I am unsure if she should.

The most annoying thing was every single time a phone rang, the actor went to answer it before it rang. The dubbing of the ringing was dreadful.

The most annoying thing was every single time a phone rang, the actor went to answer it before it rang. The dubbing of the ringing was dreadful.

I noticed that as well.

So it needs new screen writers, and new technical support - and more cake fridges!

I don’t tend to pick holes in films or tv unless I’ve seen the same film or episode many times. I just enjoy watching. However, Tosh’s expressions are pissing me off. Billy has disappointed me very much. Ruth is an idiot but I like her. It lacks depth without Duncan and the local businesses and family ties it had in Perez’s day. He used to annoy me with the way he spoke though. It set off my misophonia and wasn’t he a complete dick on Twitter a couple of years back? Put me right off him. I can’t remember what it was but it annoyed me and combined with his mouth noises I fell out of love except with his jumpers.
There’s less scenery in this series. Less about the islands, the ferries, the history, the buildings and businesses and sense of community. I know this one is set in a hamlet but surely they could have included more of Lerwick or included more in general.

I've just had this thought. Maybe Duncan could come back as a "reformed" (in outward appearances) character.

And he and Ruth could pair up and have long introspective conversations about bad choices.

I would jump out of my seat with excitement if Duncan came back! That got me thinking though that this series feels like because Billy moved away from the station they can’t possibly include too many other background characters - poor Donnie is mainly reduced to a name check and phone acting and Calders brother (as pointed out in previous posts) is really under utilised. I like him as an actor and character and he just pops up quickly to move the plot point on but then is gone in a flash …
Shetland is so small you would think they would allow a wider range of reoccurring characters to give it that island feel.
It’s made me think about Death in Paradise as the only other island based murder programme that’s popped in my head 😂 They admittedly also have a revolving door of characters but weirdly enough I feel it’s more rooted in island life - maybe because they’re always at Catherine’s bar - our Shetland lot don’t really hang out together socially do they? And the pub has only featured so much this series because poet owns one (and it may now turn out to be a drugs laundering business anyway?!).