Finding a really good caterer is brilliant. With superb food, excellent service and effortless efficiency, they can transform a family party or social gathering from enjoyable to wonderful. The best ones are skilled, polite, discreet and good value. Oh, and they also solve murders…

Welcome to Mrs Sidhu Investigates, Drama’s new series about a caterer who’s drawn to shocking crimes like a spice lover to a madras. Mrs Sidhu (Meera Syal, The Split) is a widow who’s built a successful business, bringing top-notch food to her well-heeled customers across Berkshire.

But as the daughter and granddaughter of police officers, and a lover of detective novels, Mrs Sidhu has an inquisitive side that gets her embroiled in all sorts of deliciously macabre mysteries.

“She has a lot of qualities that a lot of the women I grew up with had, that I would call my Aunty Brigade and she’s a typical Aunty,” says Syal. “She’s really nosy, she knows everyone’s secrets and she gets to the heart of the matter, but she does it with love – and by feeding people. Aunties make the best detectives, because they have this incredible instinctive curiosity about people.”

From a double murder at a health spa to the kidnapping of an up-and-coming boxer, there’s plenty of Home Counties crime for Mrs Sidhu to get her teeth into. But naturally, she crosses paths with the police in the form of DCI Peter Burton (Craig Parkinson, Line Of Duty), who is initially hostile to the interference of a busybody civilian. Will her smart detective work and relentlessly upbeat nature earn his grudging respect? It seems pretty likely… 

“They couldn’t be more different,” says Parkinson of Burton and Mrs Sidhu. “He’s carrying around his personal issues, his bitterness and his anger. But she chips away at Burton. And she sees some positivity there and she’s a bit like a dog with a bone. She has a mission to help somebody who is screaming for help, but would never ever ask for help.”

The back-and-forth between the two is just one of the delightful aspects of this quirky show – the kind of light-hearted detective series that British TV does so well.

Mrs Sidhu Investigates was created by Suk Pannu, who was a writer on classic sketch series Goodness Gracious Me – the show that made Syal a star – and has written all episodes of the series. It’s a mouthwatering concoction with just the right ingredients for a beautifully flavoursome detective drama, and you can tuck in from 8pm on Wednesday 4 October on Drama HD (CH 116).

And before the series starts, here’s an introduction to the characters. Just click on the icons below to find out more…

When does Mrs Sidhu Investigates start on Drama?

The four-part series starts on Drama HD (CH 116) at 8pm on Wednesday 4 October and will also be available in On Demand.

Please note: the interview with Meera Syal was carried out before the start of the recent Screen Actors Guild strike. Syal is not performing any promotional duties during the strike.