Quizzical Pictures reunites with ‘White Lies’ writer for “cosy” crime drama ‘Murder By The Sea’

Murder By The Sea (Source: Quizzical Pictures)

South African indie Quizzical Pictures is developing Murder By The Sea, a new “cosy crime” drama that it is launching at Content London next week.

The eight-part series is being written by Darrel Bristow-Bovey, based on an original idea by him and Joanna Simon. Bristow-Bovey is a regular collaborator with Quizzical, having most recently written White Lies for the Johannesburg-based firm.

Set in Blaasgat, a fictional coastal town named after its giant blowhole, Murder By The Sea follows retired actor Lawrence Mantooth, famed for once playing TV detective Pericles van Breda decades earlier.

When a local man is found dead inside a papier-mâché whale on the opening night of a new whale museum that he’s funding, the town turns to Mantooth for answers, as few locals see the line between actor and character and often call on him to help with their little mysteries. Now, with this terrible crime on their doorstep, he’s viewed as the obvious person to find out who was responsible – and why. However, the real detective in Blaasgat is the woman behind the man – Mantooth’s keenly observant wife, Dawn.

Nimrod Geva, producer and head of development at Quizzical Pictures, commented: “This new series leans into our expertise in bringing compelling crime stories to the screen but moves away from the more recent dark, tense productions such as Reyka and White Lies to create something light, bright, funny and fresh.”