Newly promoted to the position of Detective Inspector, Tosh has a new-found self-confidence. Due to her exceptional local knowledge and experience, Tosh has been able to stay in Shetland and officially take up the position of DI – the role all of her colleagues already felt she occupied. Respected by everyone at the station and well-known throughout the local community, Tosh finds herself in a difficult position this year as her personal and professional lives collide when her friend Annie Bett goes missing and Annie’s estranged husband, Ian, becomes the prime suspect.

Congratulations on Tosh’s promotion to DI…where do we find her when Shetland returns?

Tosh is where she has always been – Lerwick Police Station. Only now, side-by-side with DI Ruth Calder, she’s in charge too.

I think she’s been on a journey with her confidence ever since we first met her with her braces and her bobble hat. For sure her confidence has increased pretty rapidly over the last couple of years as she has stepped into the breach following Perez’s departure and discovered she was more capable than she perhaps first thought. She still has little moments of doubt, though, and I think that’s important because the audience have watched her grow from rookie status to ‘heid bummer’ [the big boss] and it’s both realistic and relatable that she would wobble from time to time.

I think everyone has imposter syndrome, some people are just better at hiding it than others.

What is the storyline for this new series of Shetland?

This series is close to home for Tosh as a friend of hers goes missing. Initially this isn’t a police matter, it’s just something that is happening in Tosh’s private life. Her friend has requested they meet, she had something important she wanted to talk to Tosh about – on a professional level – but when Tosh arrives at the agreed place and time, her friend is not there.

She is immediately concerned though initially unsure of how serious this is. But as time passes and Annie [played by Sarah MacGillivray] still isn’t accounted for, when she’s checked with Donnie [played by Angus Miller] and all of their friends and there’s still no news, things begin to escalate. Calder encourages Tosh to trust her instincts and they begin to investigate.

Tosh finds herself in a difficult position this year – torn between the professional and personal. How does she cope with it all?

Tosh has an unshakeable integrity. She’s always going to do the right thing by the investigation which may not always sit well with her friends. Everyone is feeling compromised, stressed and mistrustful and these friendships are going to be tested.

In an investigation like this, every stone must be unturned and a lot of secrets are going to come out. But for Tosh, this collateral damage is unavoidable. She feels the discomfort of it but her primary goal always is to unearth the truth and get justice, however that may look.

Does it make things tricky for her at home with her partner Donnie?

Donnie is very close to this one on a personal level. His best friend becomes a key person in the investigation and while he supports Tosh, he is pulled between his loyalty for his friend and his proximity to how the police investigation develops.

They live in a small community where conflicts-of-interest are inevitable but people are human and fallible and flawed and relationships have weaknesses. This is a bumpy road for them.

Now that Calder has settled in Shetland, has her relationship with Tosh changed?

I think it’s a huge vote of confidence for Tosh and all the team that Calder has chosen to take a permanent position with them. They went through a lot during series 8 and ultimately I think they came out of that experience with a mutual respect. I think their relationship has established itself but remains restless. They have moments of genuine connection and moments of disagreement but they are both single-minded in their pursuit of the truth.

Over the course of the new series we see their connection deepen again and we see that, while these women may work in very different ways, they complement each other more often than not.

This series welcomes guest cast including Ian Hart, Vincent Regan and Robert Jack…what was it like having them on set?

Robbie [Robert Jack] and I have known each other for years and I adore him. He is such a beloved figure in the Scottish acting scene and for good reason. He lights up any room and is insanely talented. I was thrilled to get to work with him again.

Both Ian [Hart] and Vincent [Regan] are legends in their own right and brought so much experience and warmth and passion to the show and to their performances. I loved working with them both, and getting to know them both. They have such generosity of spirit and were real team players. The whole cast was fantastic once again. We’re so lucky.

And memorable moments from filming this series?

For the first time this year I stayed outside of Lerwick. My family and I were in a little chalet house in Whiteness which just happens to be the next property along from Ruth Calder’s house. I loved looking out the kitchen window and seeing her house there, imagining what she might be doing. Probably having a wine!

It was lovely to be somewhere a bit quieter and more remote. We were surrounded by sheep which were a source of endless fascination and amusement for my kids – and also for me. Sheep are hilarious, right?

Is Shetland like a second home to you after 12 years on the show? And what is it about the Shetland Isles that make them so unique?

Shetland has got under my skin, no doubt. I think there was something quite profound about thinking the show was over and having to say an emotional goodbye to this place that I’ve grown to love and that holds so many memories for me…and then discovering that I was going to get a second chance. There’s something quite euphoric about that. I’m embracing every moment.

The Isles are unique in so many ways but perhaps most importantly, they are so remote. So much further away from mainland Scotland than I think people might realise. You really do have a sense of being in the middle of the vast ocean, at the mercy of the elements, somehow apart in space and time. It’s magical.

When you’re not filming, what things do you like to do in Shetland? And do you miss it when it all comes to an end?

Our time in Shetland is actually really sociable. There are about 100 cast and crew so we tend to organise nights out together, trips to the beach or the cliffs. A lot of the crew have got really into wild swimming out there and head off to different beaches after work. We don’t have a huge amount of down-time but do try to pack as much in as possible. I also spend a lot of time with my family and we have our favourite spots.

I do miss it, of course. Particularly all the people I work with all day every day for several months. But it’s also nice to get back to a more gentle pace and focus on other things too.

A Silverprint Pictures production (part of ITV Studios) for the BBC, Shetland is loved by millions of fans, with last year’s series averaging seven million viewers across its run. Filmed earlier this year on the Shetland Isles and across Scotland, the new series will see Ashley Jensen and Alison O’Donnell return reprise their roles as Detectives Ruth Calder and Alison ‘Tosh’ McIntosh.

Originally based on award-winning novels by crime writer Ann Cleeves (https://amzn.to/3Yio4l2), the new six-part series sees DI Calder (Jensen) – now a resident of the Isles – thrown in at the deep end after a friend of Tosh’s (O’Donnell) goes missing. The chilling tale of disappearances and death sparks a labyrinthine investigation for Tosh and Calder that challenges the line between the personal and professional.

The new series also sees the return of series regulars Steven Robertson (Sandy), Lewis Howden (Billy) and Anne Kidd (Cora), while acclaimed actors Ian Hart (Mr Bates VS The Post Office, Harry Potter, The Responder) and Vincent Regan (Traces, Luther: The Fallen Sun, Aquaman) lead the guest cast and can be seen in today’s first-look pictures.

Shetland series nine is written by lead writers Paul Logue and Denise Paul. Series nine is produced by Louise V Say (Dracula, Les Miserables) and directed by Andrew Cumming (Out of Darkness) and Ruth Paxton (A Banquet). Executive producers are Gaynor Holmes for the BBC, Kate Bartlett, Denise Paul and Paul Logue for Silverprint Pictures.

Shetland is part of a growing list of BBC dramas from Scotland, including Nightsleeper, Granite Harbour and the forthcoming Lockerbie and Lions. Shetland is internationally distributed by ITV Studios.