# Darby and Joan (TV series)

Darby and Joan is an Australian cozy murder mystery, crime comedy drama television series starring Bryan Brown and Greta Scacchi about a retired Australian detective and an English nurse who work together to solve the mystery of her husband's recent death. The title alludes to the proverbial mutually devoted couple Darby and Joan. The series was announced in 2021 and began streaming on UKTV and Acorn TV from 8 August 2022. The eight part series was created by Glenys Rowe and Phillip Gwynne and filmed in Queensland across the Gold Coast, Scenic Rim, Redland City, North Stradbroke Island, Mount Isa and Cairns. On 7 June 2024 the series was renewed for a second series. The second series of the show began airing from 30 December 2024.

## Synopsis

Widowed English nurse Joan Kirkhope is on a quest to find answers about her husband's mysterious death, while ex-detective Jack Darby has taken to the open road to escape his past. But when they collide in the Australian outback and become drawn into a series of mysteries, this unlikely investigative duo soon realize the most intriguing puzzle they face is each other.

## Cast
### Main

* Greta Scacchi as Joan Kirkhope
* Bryan Brown as Jack Darby
* Jolene Anderson as Detective Inspector Liz Darby, Jack Darby's daughter

### Guests (Series 1)

* Heather Mitchell as Rosemary, Jack Darby’s ex-fiancée (3 episodes)
* Anna McGahan as Rebecca Kirkhope, Joan's daughter (S1 & 2)
* John Waters as Ian Kirkhope (in flashbacks), Joan's deceased husband
* Adrienne Pickering as Lucy Kirkhope (1 episode)
* Angie Milliken as Felicity Ann Kemp (1 episode)
* Caroline Gillmer as Denise (2 episodes)
* Casey Donovan as voice of Australian Sat Nav
* Christopher James Baker as Curtis (2 episodes)
* Kaarin Fairfax as Heidi (1 episode)
* Kerry Armstrong as Summer (2 episodes)
* Ling-Hsueh Tang as Cinta (1 episode)
* Peter O'Brien as Chris (1 episode)
* Rachel Ward as English Sat Nav (1 episode)
* Rarriwuy Hick as Tegan (1 episode)
* Robert Coleby as Ascher (1 episode)
* Steve Bisley as Declan Kemp (1 episode)
* Todd Lasance as Riley Harrington (1 episode)
* Todd MacDonald as Nick (1 episode)

### Guests (Series 2)

* Sigrid Thornton as Miranda McNeil (6 episodes)
* Brett Climo as Mick Riley (5 episodes)
* John Jarratt as Bill Carlton
* Debra Lawrance as Anna Bairnsdale (1 episode)
* Miriama Smith as Sophie Bairnsdale (5 episodes)
* Pia Miranda as Silvia
* Gary Sweet as Ellory Malcolm (episode 1)
* Martin Sacks as Doug Malcolm (episode 1)
* Steve Bastoni as Chris Steele (5 episodes)
* Lisa Hensley (actress) as Maxine Nelson

## Episodes
### Series 1

| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date |
| 1 | "Episode 1" | David Caesar | Keith Thompson & Paul Bennett | 8 August 2022 (2022-08-08) |
| A shock collision forces Jack and Joan to travel together as her search for answers begins at a beachside paradise. But all is not as it seems when they realise that what appears to be a tragic accident is in fact, murder! |||||
| 2 | "Episode 2" | David Caesar | Andrew Anastasios | 8 August 2022 (2022-08-08) |
| Jack takes a detour to help an mate recover some stolen guns, whilst Joan begins to suspect that there’s more to Jack then he’s letting on. |||||
| 3 | "Episode 3" | Ben C. Lucas | Giula Sandler | 15 August 2022 (2022-08-15) |
| Overwhelmed by new details about her late husband, Joan finds herself alone and in danger during a spate of thefts at a caravan park. |||||
| 4 | "Episode 4" | Ben C. Lucas | David Hannam | 15 August 2022 (2022-08-15) |
| It’s Joan’s first Australian Christmas, and Jack and Joan quickly find themselves uncovering the truth of a scuba dive gone wrong. |||||
| 5 | "Episode 5" | Mairi Cameron | Paul Bennett | 22 August 2022 (2022-08-22) |
| Sparks fly in a small town pub where Jack and Joan find themselves working on New Year’s Eve. When a blaze breaks out, Jack and Joan are determined to discover who really to blame. |||||
| 6 | "Episode 6" | Mairi Cameron | Adam Zwar | 22 August 2022 (2022-08-22) |
| Jack and Joan come face to face with Jack’s past when he’s asked to investigate a sports doping scandal. Meanwhile an increasing concerned Rebecca takes drastic action for answers. |||||
| 7 | "Episode 7" | Jovita O'Shaughnessy | Beck Cole | 29 August 2022 (2022-08-29) |
| Jack and Joan search for a missing boy is complicated by the arrival of Joan’s daughter and visions of a lost little girl. |||||
| 8 | "Episode 8" | Jovita O'Shaughnessy | Ainslie Clouston | 29 August 2022 (2022-08-29) |
| The return of familiar faces leave Jack in hospital and enables Joan to put together the truth about her late husband. As one mystery is solved, an ominous threat from Jack’s policing days begins another. |||||

### Series 2

| No. | Title | Directed By | Written by | Release date |
| 9 | "Episode 1" | Jovita O'Shaughnessy | David Hannam | 30 December 2024 |
| 10 | "Episode 2" | Jovita O'Shaughnessy | Andrew Anastasios | 30 December 2024 |
| 11 | "Episode 3" | Grant Brown | David Hannam | 6 January 2025 |
| 12 | "Episode 4" | Grant Brown | Giula Sandler | 13 January 2025 |
| 13 | "Episode 5" | Rachel Ward | Stephen Vagg | 20 January 2025 |
| 14 | "Episode 6" | Rachel Ward | Sarah Smith | 27 January 2025 |