Jensen is joining the cast as DI Ruth Calder following Douglas Henshall’s exit from the drama. <\/p>
Incoming Shetland<\/a> star Ashley Jensen has teased that her brand new lead detective DI Ruth Calder will shake things up when she arrives on the Scottish islands for the show\u2019s eighth season.<\/p>\n Jensen was confirmed as the replacement for the outgoing Douglas Henshall<\/a> in November 2022, and speaking exclusively to RadioTimes.com<\/a> at the Radio Times Covers Party she discussed how having a female lead detective might change things in the future.<\/p>\n \u201cWell, it\u2019s gonna bring a whole new dynamic to everyone else, actually,\u201d she explained.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd it\u2019s kind of almost more about the other people \u2013 about how Alison (Alison O\u2019Donnell) and all the other characters are going to relate to Ruth Calder, so that\u2019ll be really interesting.\u201d<\/p> She also revealed that she had already spoken to her predecessor\u00a0Henshall \u2013 who played previous lead detective DI Jimmy Perez in the first seven seasons of the show \u2013 and although he hadn\u2019t given her specific advice about the series, he did have one important tip for her.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m very excited,\u201d she said. \u201cI\u2019ve just met Dougie and I\u2019ve had a conversation with him and he\u2019s told me the best fish and chip shop on Shetland. So, that\u2019s exciting!\u201d<\/p>\n Calder has been described as a native Shetlander who returns to the isles after 20 years working for the Met Police in London, and it\u2019s been revealed that she will be working closely with Alison O\u2019Donnell\u2019s DS Alison \u2018Tosh\u2019 McIntosh.<\/p>\n On originally being cast in the series, Jensen said: \u201cI am absolutely thrilled to be joining Shetland as DI Ruth Calder. It\u2019s such a hugely successful show and I am aware I have very big boots to fill since the departure of DI Perez, who was very much loved by fans of the show.\u201d<\/p>\n Additional reporting by Abby Robinson.<\/em><\/p>