Silent Witness series 30 'confirmed' as filming begins and fans already 'can't wait'
The BBC series is celebrating its 30th anniversary
Silent Witness series 30 has already started filming, according to a social media post featuring Emilia Fox – and fans think it’s “brilliant” news.
The long-running BBC crime drama is currently airing its 29th series. After a shakeup to the expected schedule (due to a tragic event in Birmingham and the FA Cup), viewers can look forward to a new episode tonight (February 17).
The question is, how long will it keep going for? This week marks its 30th anniversary, and with strong ratings each season, it doesn’t look like Fox’s Nikki Alexander will be off our screens any time soon.
At the very least, we know what’s happening with Silent Witness series 30: it’s in production right now!
When is Silent Witness series 30 out?
While the BBC has yet to announce Silent Witness series 30 officially, it’s expected to air in January 2026.
A bit like Waterloo Road, Silent Witness tends to stick to roughly the same release schedule (especially since series 26 in 2026). For the past four years, new episodes have begun airing somewhere between January and February.
Series 29’s February start date is slightly atypical, but it may have been planned to line up with the anniversary of Silent Witness’ first-ever episode on February 21, 1996.
Either way, January 2026 seems like the safest bet, but keep your eyes peeled for any further updates.
Who will be in the cast?
Emilia Fox is expected to reprise her role as Nikki Alexander in Silent Witness series 30, alongside David Caves as Jack Hodgson.
Other members of the Lyell team will likely return, too, like Maggie Steed’s Harriet and Francesca Mills’ Kit.
Of course, there will be plenty of other people rounding out the show’s ensemble. For example, you can take a look at the guest cast for tonight’s ‘The Enemy Within’).
Where is series 30 filming?
Silent Witness series 30 is currently being filmed in Bodenham in Hertfordshire.
More specifically, scenes have been filmed at Bodenham Arboretum, a 134-acre botanical garden and reserve – so, quite the departure from Birmingham city centre.
This news came via the arboretum’s Facebook post. “For those of you who have visited Bodenham in the last two weeks you may have wondered what was going on. Cryptic signage, trailers, security etc, occupying two of our carparks,” it teased.
“Bodenham had the privilege of being chosen as the BBC drama’s ‘Silent Witness’ base camp whilst filming locally for the 30th series.”
Fox even took some time out of the shoot to take a photo with the staff. “The new series will be screened January next year…watch out for the local landmarks,” the post added.
As you’d expect, news of Silent Witness’ return has been met with a lot of excitement.
“Wow. Love Silent Witness. Can’t wait to see next year’s episodes,” one user wrote. “Well I never… shall look forward to watching that,” another commented.
Read more: Silent Witness series 29: ‘Beautiful city’ where crime drama is now set and filmed, and why it moved
