Grantchester Season 7 - What We Know So Far

"Grantchester" is the ongoing mystery series that's about to begin its seventh season on ITV in the U.K. and Masterpiece PBS in the United States. Based on the short story collections by James Runcie, "Grantchester" follows the vicar of a small-town English church who strikes up an unlikely working relationship with the local overworked detective inspector. Since Season 4, Tom Brittney has played the role of Reverend Will Davenport, taking over for James Norton as the Reverend Sidney Chambers. Runcie partly based the stories on his own father, Robert, who was Archbishop of Canterbury (via The Radio Times).

ITV was apparently so confident about "Grantchester" that it renewed the show for a seventh season before "Grantchester" Season 6 had even begun to air — more on this below. The good news is, that means the wait for "Grantchester" Season 7 shouldn't be too long. Here's everything we know about the upcoming seventh season of "Grantchester."

"Grantchester" Season 7 doesn't yet have a confirmed release date, but we can make an educated guess based on its production schedule and its earlier season premieres. The sixth season of Grantchester premiered on Sept. 3, 2021 in the U.K. and one month later in the U.S. on PBS (via Cinemaholic), but production on the upcoming seventh season had already begun back in July 2021 (via British Period Dramas).

According to TechRadar 247, the production is expected to wrap by the end of this year, and premiere some time in the first half of 2022. Whenever it does premiere in the U.K. on ITV, look for it to be available in the U.S. one month later, like last season was. That's a much quicker turnaround time than the average wait between seasons. "Grantchester" seasons usually debut at least a year after the previous season finale, but this time ITV and PBS are moving more quickly. That's welcome news for fans, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic delayed Grantchester's season 6 production (via British Period Dramas).

According to PBS, most of the core cast members will be back for Season 7. That includes the two leads — Tom Brittney as Reverend Will Davenport and Robson Green as Detective Inspector Geordie Keating.

Additionally, Tessa Peake-Jones will be back as Mrs. Chapman, as will Al Weaver as Leonard Finch, Kacey Ainsworth as Cathy Keating, Oliver Dimsdale as Daniel Marlowe, Nick Brimble as Jack Chapman, Melissa Johns as Miss Scott and Bradley Hall as Larry Peters.

PBS has also revealed several guest stars who will be appearing in the upcoming season, although their roles haven't been specified. They include: Charlotte Ritchie (of "Call the Midwife"), Ellora Torchia ("The Split"), Emma Cunniffe ("Roadkill"), Janie Dee ("Crashing"), Philip Whitchurch ("The English Patient"), Rowena King ("The Wilds"), Anna Wilson-Jones ("Victoria"), and Michael D. Xavier ("Gentleman Jack"). PBS has stated that there will be other guest stars as well, but didn't specify who they might be (yet).

Masterpiece PBS and ITV have released a synopsis of the upcoming seventh season. It doesn't include the specific crimes that Davenport and Keating will be investigating, but we do know that Season 7 will make some big changes — namely, that the show will move from the 1950s setting from previous seasons and into the 1960s. According to that blurb, Season 7 will pick up "in the long hot summer of 1959 with wedding season in full swing in the Cambridgeshire village of Grantchester. As the Reverend Will Davenport unites happy couples in holy matrimony, Detective Inspector Geordie Keating is busy as ever investigating a range of local murder cases" (via Town and Country).

The turnover from the fifties to the "swinging sixties" will likely play a big role in the series, and the synopsis also hints that everyone involved will be dwelling on what the next decade holds in store for them. In the midst of all this pondering, of course, we can certainly expect plenty of mysteries in need of solving.