ITV is set to air a 'funny and vibrant' dark comedy series titled 'Santa Maria', which is expected to appeal to fans of 'Death Valley'. The show stars Melanie Walters, known for her role as Gwen West in 'Gavin and Stacey', alongside Siân Reese-Williams from 'The Light in the Hall'.
Plot and Characters
The series centers on 'two families from very different sides of the tracks whose lives are slowly entangled by the actions of saintly but strung-out cleaner Maria'. Producers describe the show as 'warm, funny and vibrant' and 'a far cry from our usual Welsh noir'.
Cast and Production
Joining Walters and Reese-Williams are Matthew Gravelle from 'The Pact', Hannah Daniel from 'Hinterland', Richard Harrington from 'Steeltown Murders', and Oliver John from 'Still Waters'. The production is a joint venture between ITV and Welsh-language broadcaster S4C. It will air first in Welsh on S4C, then in English on ITV.
Gwenllian Gravelle, S4C's head of film and drama, said: 'Santa Maria explores the striking contrasts of life in Swansea, where two very different worlds exist side by side. Set against the city and Mumbles' iconic blue skies, this deliciously dark comedy-drama captures Swansea in all its diversity; vibrant, complex and unmistakably real.'
Darren Nartey, ITV's head of content acquisitions, added: 'We are very proud to be bringing this fascinating, quintessentially Welsh story to our audiences across ITV, and look forward to it gracing our screens in 2027.'
Welsh cabinet minister Adam Price commented: 'As a new government, we're committed to strengthening the Welsh creative sectors. We welcome the fact that Creative Wales' investment in this production has helped create jobs for our talented workforce, valuable experience for trainees, and is expected to deliver around £5.7m in economic return for Wales.'
'Santa Maria' will premiere in Welsh on S4C in early 2027, before broadcasting in English on ITV later in 2027.
