First look at Endeavour series 8 as filming begins in Oxford

Shaun Evans reprises the titular role and also directs the first of the three films that will make up season eight, which we get a glimpse of in the images below.

Roger Allam is also set to return as DCI Fred Thursday, despite the characters' disagreement at the end of the last series. Though ITV didn't reveal how their bust-up would play out in the upcoming season, it did release some plot details.

"Opening the series in 1971, a death threat to Oxford Wanderers' star striker Jack Swift places Endeavour (Shaun Evans) and his team at the heart of the glitz and glamour of 1970s football, exposing the true cost of success and celebrity, and with it, a deep-rooted division that is soon reflected much closer to home," the synopsis reveals.

Series creator, writer and executive producer Russell Lewis said: “After our longest suspension, all at #TeamEndeavour are delighted to have been returned to duty. If anything, the delay has made us all determined to make series eight everything it can be. Happily, it looks as if our timeline has endured the hiatus and that we will still be delivering our vision of 1971, albeit through an Endeavour glass darkly, exactly half a century on.

"Social distancing and strict insurance regulation with its bubbles and cohorts mean that backroom boys like me and the other execs haven’t been able to get out to set as usual, but all the same we’re very fortunate to be back in business at all and count our blessings daily. It’s truly lovely to be back telling new stories with Oxford’s Finest. I hope the audience finds they’ve been worth the wait.”

Though there's no official release date yet, Lewis previously told RadioTimes.com that “ideally it would be lovely if it went out this year”.

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