Shetland Season 11 Trailer Arrives Ahead of Tosh’s Final Season
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Last Updated on November 6, 2026 by Stefanie Hutson
The BBC has released the first trailer for Shetland Series 11, which brings a new cold-case murder investigation to the isles and a major change for the long-running drama as DI Alison “Tosh” McIntosh prepares to leave the team after more than a decade.
What Is Shetland?
Shetland is a Scottish crime drama set across the Shetland Islands, where murder investigations unfold against the small communities and remote landscapes of the archipelago. The series began in 2013 and was originally inspired by Ann Cleeves’s Shetland novels.
Douglas Henshall led the first seven series as DI Jimmy Perez before leaving the drama, with Ashley Jensen joining in Series 8 as DI Ruth Calder. Alison O’Donnell has been part of the series from the beginning as Alison “Tosh” McIntosh, who has risen through the ranks from DC to DI and become one of the show’s longest-serving (and best-loved) characters.
What Is Shetland Series 11 About?
The new investigation begins when a car is dredged from the water and skeletal remains are discovered in the trunk. The vehicle belongs to Dr. Raymond Linden, a respected local GP who disappeared from Shetland nine years earlier, leaving Calder, Tosh and the team with two big mysteries: who is the dead man, and what happened to Linden?
The investigation leads them into conflicting accounts of the missing doctor. His mother Martha is convinced something terrible happened that forced him to leave, while his brother Eric is less certain. Linden’s ex-wife Emily paints a much darker picture of their marriage, describing a troubled man who made life unpleasant for both her and their son Jonah.
As the team begins untangling the conflicting stories, the case leads them into relationships and secrets that have been buried for years. Jensen says the characters involved gradually prove to be more connected than they first appear, while Calder becomes more emotionally involved in the investigation than usual.
Watch the Shetland Series 11 Trailer
Series 11 Will Be Tosh’s Last
Alison O’Donnell has played Tosh since Shetland began in 2013, making her one of the show’s longest-serving cast members. She says there wasn’t one particular reason behind her decision to leave after 14 years working on the series. Rather, she felt she had been fortunate enough to explore an enormous range of stories with Tosh and had reached the point where it was time to make a difficult change. As she put it, “something in me said ‘leap’, and so I did.”
O’Donnell isn’t giving away how Tosh leaves, but she says her final storyline required some of the most challenging work she has done on the show, including specially constructed sets, stunt work and demanding emotional scenes. She also stressed that the farewell includes quieter moments with the people who have been most important to Tosh, and described the finished storyline as a memorable exit.
Jensen makes it clear that Tosh’s departure will affect the wider team as well. “Tosh is such a stalwart of that incident room, and she leaves an enormous hole,” she said. For Calder, it comes just as she and Tosh have reached an easy, comfortable point in their partnership, and threatens to reinforce Calder’s instinct that becoming close to people ultimately means risking their loss.
The goodbye was emotional behind the scenes too. On O’Donnell’s final day, crew members arrived dressed as Tosh in Fair Isle sweaters with their hair tied in buns. O’Donnell said she was overwhelmed after filming her final scene, while her last day shooting on the Shetland Isles gave her the chance to say more personal goodbyes to longtime co-stars Lewis Howden, Angus Miller and Steven Robertson.
With any luck, we'll be seeing her in all sorts of interesting new roles in the future.
Who’s In Series 11?
Ashley Jensen returns as DI Ruth Calder alongside Alison O’Donnell as Tosh, with Steven Robertson back as DC Sandy Wilson and Lewis Howden returning as Billy McCabe. Billy begins the season dealing with the professional and personal consequences of what happened in Series 10, while Sandy finds himself reconsidering aspects of his own life as the new investigation unfolds.
As far as guest casting is concerned, the central Linden family brings several familiar faces to the series. Stella Gonet plays Martha Linden, Raymond’s formidable mother, with John Wark as his brother Eric. Christine Bottomley appears as Raymond’s ex-wife Emily, while Jude Bain plays their son Jonah.
Gregor Fisher plays Donald Pierce, a lonely local man who becomes caught up in the investigation and develops an unexpected connection with Sandy. Kevin Harvey appears as Raymond’s former friend and medical practice partner Graeme Gould, whose history with Emily complicates the picture further. Gavin Mitchell also joins the guest cast in a dramatic role.
Who’s Making Shetland Series 11?
The new season is produced by Angus Sharpe and directed by Ruth Carney and Jonny Blair. Kate Bartlett, Paul Logue and Denise Paul serve as executive producers for Silverprint Pictures, with Gaynor Holmes executive producing for the BBC. Silverprint Pictures, part of ITV Studios, produces the series.
When Will Shetland Series 11 Premiere?
Shetland Series 11 begins in the UK on Thursday, November 12, 2026 on BBC One and BBC iPlayer. For American viewers, BritBox currently carries the first 10 seasons and has confirmed that Shetland will return in 2027, although an exact US premiere date for Series 11 hasn’t been announced yet. Typically, high-profile new shows roll out a bit sooner for Premier members (no need to upgrade if you don't want to, the episodes will be available eventually either way).
