Call the Midwife star details role in new Netflix mystery with ‘Scotland in its blood’

Brand new detective thriller Department Q has dropped on Netflix today, and one star has described the show as having Scotland ‘in its blood’.

The Edinburgh-based mystery, which stars Downton Abbey’s Matthew Goode in the lead role of DCI Carl Morck, boasts an all-star cast with plenty of famous Scottish actors.

Among the many familiar names are Trainspotting’s Kelly Macdonald, Shetland’s Mark Bonnar and newcomer Leah Byrne, who has previously starred in popular BBC series Call the Midwife. 

Leah, who plays Rose, spoke exclusively to Reach about the upcoming series alongside co-star Alexej Manvelov, who portrays Akram. 

Discussing working alongside the impressive cast of the show, which feels proudly Scottish, she confirmed: “It was so cool, such a joy for me. I’m from Glasgow so I just had to nip down the road and we were filming this amazing show. 

“But it’s so authentically Scottish as well. It doesn’t feel like it’s trying to be something it’s not. It doesn’t have to try hard and it’s just in its blood.”

Alexej also praised the cast, adding: “It was just amazing. I’m from Sweden and there’s a bit of a different style in Sweden where we’re a bit more process-oriented. 

“But just to come in and work on this high of a level of craft of acting. It was amazing and the ensemble is just… 

“I mean I’ve been a fan of Kate Dickie’s for ages, since Red Road,” he admitted, referring to his co-star who plays DCS Moira. “So just to have a scene with her, I was like ‘Oh my god’.”

Department Q is a nail-biting crime series about the troubled DCI Carl Morck, who heads up a new cold case unit based in Edinburgh.

The official Netflix synopsis reads: “DCI Carl Morck is a brilliant cop but a terrible colleague. His razor-sharp sarcasm has made him no friends in Edinburgh Police. 

“After a shooting that leaves a young PC dead, and his partner paralysed, he finds himself exiled to the basement and the sole member of Dept. Q; a newly formed cold case unit. 

“The department is a PR stunt, there to distract the public from the failures of an under-resourced, failing police force that is glad to see the back of him. 

“But more by accident than design, Carl starts to build a gang of waifs and strays who have everything to prove. 

“So, when the stone-cold trail of a prominent civil servant who disappeared several years ago starts to heat up, Carl is back doing what he does best - rattling cages and refusing to take no for an answer.”

All episodes of Department Q are available to stream from today, Thursday May 29, exclusively on Netflix.