TV Shows - win some (Foyle's War), lose some (Wire in the Blood)

A press release from ITV has good news and bad news. Wire in the Blood is out but Foyle's War is in, plus details of more Poirot (including Murder on the Orient Express) and Marple. From The Stage:

ITV has commissioned a new series of Doc Martin and three more episodes of Foyle’s War.

The broadcaster’s decision to recommission the dramas follows the news that another long-running favourite, Wire in the Blood, has been axed, and that doubt hangs over the future of popular series Heartbeat.

In its announcement today, ITV said Foyle’s War, created by Anthony Horowitz and starring Michael Kitchen, will return with three new episodes, while Martin Clunes will reprise his role as Doc Martin in a new eight-part series to be filmed in Cornwall.

Elsewhere, ITV director of drama Laura Mackie has also commissioned eight new Agatha Christie films, including Murder on the Orient Express. This will star David Suchet as Hercule Poirot, and will run alongside three other Poirot dramas.

At the same time, Julia McKenzie - who later this year will make her first appearance as Jane Marple - will begin production on four new Marple films.

Wire in the Blood (tv series) news

From Val McDermid's recent newsletter:

News from Wire in the Blood: Series 5 will begin its run in the UK in July. I don't have details of precise dates, and I don't yet know about foreign transmissions. But I've seen it, and it is very, very good. Don't miss it.
The production team will be flying out to Texas at the end of July to film a special set in the US. Watch this space for more details. (I'm not going, btw. Texas in August? You have to be kidding. No offence to my Texas pals, but it's way too hot for somebody raised in Fife.)

The next book in the Wire in the Blood series is 'Beneath the Bleeding', out on 6th August. You can read the synopsis and an extract on Val's webpage.