Apple TV's 'Slow Horses' Creator Set to Remake Ian McShane's Iconic '80s Detective Series

4 weeks ago 16

Ian McShane with two fake swans in 'Lovejoy'

Published Mar 4, 2026, 9:43 AM EST

In over three years at Collider, senior author Jake has now penned over 2500 articles covering a wide range of TV and film for the resources, lists, utilities, news, and interview teams. Alongside interviewing stars such as Selin Hizli, Rose Ayling-Ellis, Harlan Coben, and Chelsea Peretti, Jake was lucky enough to visit the set of Aardman and Netflix's Wallace and Gromit: A Vengeance Most Fowl in 2024, getting the chance to chat with four-time Academy Award winner Nick Park and Merlin Crossingham. Jake has also worked for other publications, including Agents of Fandom.

Premiering back in 2022, Apple TV's Slow Horses has quickly become one of the finest crime series on streaming. Based on a series of novels by Mick Herron, the series stars the deeply cynical Jackson Lamb (Gary Oldman) as the head of Slough House, the administrative purgatory for disgraced MI5 agents. Across five seasons to date, Slow Horses has become a favorite of millions around the world, as well as a critical darling, earning two Primetime Emmy Awards and an average score of 97% on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes.

The production company behind the hit series is See-Saw Films, and, in light of their triumph in adapting one series of famous novels, they are now taking their chances with another. According to a new report, See-Saw Films have landed the rights to adapt the Lovejoy detective novels, published by prolific author John Grant under the pen name Jonathan Gash. This adaptation won't be the first for the fan-favorite novels, with the BBC delivering an Ian McShane-led adaptation across the 1980s and 1990s.

Running for 70 episodes across six seasons, McShane's Lovejoy was a hit for the BBC and is a fond favorite of a generation of British viewers. Also starring the likes of Chris Jury, Dudley Sutton, Phyllis Logan, and The Thursday Murder Club's Celia Imrie, it is yet to be seen whether McShane or others might return for this new adaptation. With Lovejoy finally returning, this gives a chance for those who once enjoyed the series to bathe in the nostalgia and for a new generation to discover this cozy tale. According to See-Saw, they want to create a "contemporary reimagining of the Lovejoy novels that will strip away the nostalgia of the 1980s adaptation and return to the unrulier spirit of the books," with original author Grant’s agent Lisa Moylett saying:

"Jonathan Gash created an extraordinarily vivid and complex Lovejoy. A morally ambiguous, often unpleasant anti-hero brought to life through taut prose and page-turning stories steeped in the shadowy world of antiques. It was essential that any new adaptation kept the books front and centre. See-Saw’s bold, assured vision, led by Lisa Gilchrist and Helen Gregory, demonstrated exactly how to preserve the books’ wit and grit while reimagining them for today’s audience."

The People's Choice Awards-iversary — The Collider TV Quiz!

On this date in 1975, the first-ever People's Choice Awards ceremony was held. Here are some notable PCA television winners from the last 51 years.

'Slow Horses' Will Return

Gary Oldman as Jackson Lamb in a hat and glasses looking to the side in Slow Horses.

Following another hugely successful fifth season, Slow Horses got the greenlight not just for its sixth installment but also for a seventh. The sixth has now reportedly finished filming, although a release date is yet to be announced. Fans are hoping that the return to Slough House will mirror previous installments and air in the Fall of this year, but only time will tell.

Lovejoy will return. You can catch Slow Horses on Apple TV now.