Emilia Fox, David Caves and the Lyell Centre team discuss series 27 as the BBC Studios produced crime drama returns for five more two-part mysteries on BBC One and Player.

Where do we find Velvy at the beginning of the new series?

He is coming to a realisation that the very best thing for him to do – both for himself and his children and reconciling what he was then with who he is now – is just to make as good a life for himself as he can. He is going to focus on being good at his job and progressing to the point where he might be able to point at what he’s made for himself and say, “Look, it was a success. I did the right thing.” Then he can use that as an inspiration for his children. He has to stop dwelling on the past and try to do something positive with what he’s got to ensure his own future. So that’s where we find Velvy at the start of the series, absolutely sinking his teeth into the work. He is following Jack around as much as possible to learn everything he can. Sometimes he’s even haring after Jack when Jack is haring after criminals. But yes, Velvy is just eager to get going so he can make a life for himself.

Do you think it’s been hard for him to leave the past behind?

Yes, absolutely. I think it is for anyone who completely uproots themselves, and potentially more so people who are in very observant religious communities because they’re very close-knit communities where the roots run very deep. And actually, Velvy didn’t have any other seedlings elsewhere. So to get up and move on and to do it in the same city that his family and his kids are in is not easy. It’s not a clean break. He still has this fear that he might run into someone he knows from his past because geographically he’s not gone that far. But mentally and spiritually, he’s trying to go very far. So yes, I think he is haunted by his past. Whether or not he’s made the right decision will always probably bug him.

How would you describe Velvy’s relationship with Jack?

There’s really good relationship there. I think he sees Jack as a kind of father, a guiding figure in this new world for him. Jack shows Velvy how to be and how to behave and how to be a success as well because he sees that Jack is a very successful person both in his personal life and in his professional life. He realises that Jack has got a strong, loving relationship and that he’s also very successful at work. So Velvy views Jack as a father or a big brother or a mentor, all rolled into one. But he also regards Jack as a friend. I think he speaks to Jack with a lot more honesty than he does to anybody else on the team. Velvy is a bit more capable of being vulnerable with him.

What has people’s response been in general to your role in Silent Witness?

It was nice watching the last series with friends and family. And it was also nice seeing people’s reaction, particularly on the street. I was really surprised that so many people stopped me to say, “I have been watching Silent Witness. It’s great. I’m a fan and I really like what you’re doing. What’s going to happen in the next episode?”

What is the most unlikely place that you have been recognised?

I was recently on a food tour in Japan. And it so happened that two of the other people on the food tour were big Silent Witness fans. They wanted to know what was going to happen in the show. One of them had gone back to the beginning of Silence Witness and had been watching every single series. That was great. But we didn’t talk about the show for that long because we were in Japan eating food!

Emilia Fox, David Caves and the Lyell Centre team discuss series 27 as the BBC Studios produced crime drama returns for five more two-part mysteries on BBC One and iPlayer.