ITV Buys Kate Mulgrew’s Irish Murders

ITV has acquired the RTÉ crime thriller The Galway Bay Murders, with Kate Mulgrew as a New York detective solving a bog killing in Connemara.

By Alicia Loveday October 24, 2026 4 min read

Photo: ITV Studios

ITV has picked up a new Irish crime thriller with an American detective at its centre. The Galway Bay Murders, a six-part series starring Kate Mulgrew and Colm Meaney, will air on ITV1 and stream on ITVX, the broadcaster announced on 13 October. No transmission date has been set.

The series was commissioned by RTÉ in Ireland. It was made in association with ITV Studios, which also handles international distribution, and ITV Studios describes the UK agreement as a pre-sale.

The story

Mulgrew plays Nora Savage, a former New York detective who moves to the west coast of Ireland, near Connemara, hoping for a quieter life. That plan lasts until a young woman’s body is found in a bog. Working with the local Garda team, Savage’s investigation leads to Free Farm, a community of young people working on sustainable farming and science research, and to the secrets kept there.

Meaney co-stars. The ensemble also includes John Connors, India Mullen, Cillian O’Sullivan and Jack Rowan. ITV has not yet published character names for the supporting cast.

Who made it

The series was created and written by Eithne Verling, a former archaeologist and museum curator, and it is her television writing debut. According to the release, Verling wrote all six episodes for Mulgrew. Joe Lawlor and Christine Molloy direct.

It is produced by Two Cities Television, the company behind Blue Lights and part of STV Studios, with Keeper Pictures and AS I AM Productions.

What ITV is saying

Darren Nartey, ITV’s Head of Content Acquisitions, called the series “precisely the kind of bold, high-calibre drama our audiences love.” Louisa Forsyth, VP UK and Ireland Sales at ITV Studios, described the agreement as a pre-sale for UK audiences. Stephen Wright, Joint CEO and Creative Director of Two Cities Television, said the company was proud to champion Verling’s vision and Mulgrew’s passion for the region.

Why it matters

For ITV, the acquisition adds an Irish-made thriller to its drama slate without a full commission of its own. For viewers, it means a six-episode, self-contained mystery with a recognisable lead, arriving on free-to-air television and ITVX rather than a subscription service. The missing piece is the date, which ITV has yet to announce.

From The Yank to Galway Bay

RTÉ first announced the series in April under a different title, The Yank, describing it as a six-part crime thriller with Mulgrew as Lieutenant Nora Savage. At that point filming had begun in Conamara, County Galway. RTÉ’s announcement lists Two Cities Television alongside Keeper Pictures and AS I AM Productions as producers, with support from Screen Ireland, Coimisiún na Meán and uFund. David Crean and Dermot Horan are executive producers for RTÉ, and Kate McColgan for Screen Ireland. RTÉ names ITV Studios as the global distributor outside the Republic of Ireland.

RTÉ’s Head of Drama, David Crean, said the broadcaster was “so excited to be in production with The Yank,” and pointed to more than 142 hours of homegrown drama on RTÉ the previous year. RTÉ has not yet published a broadcast date for Ireland, and its announcement does not name a channel or say whether the series will run on RTÉ One or the RTÉ Player first.

Kate Mulgrew’s best-known work, and where to stream it

ITV’s release introduces Mulgrew through two series, and both remain easy to find.

Orange Is the New Black. All seven seasons of the women’s prison drama stream on Netflix in the UK, where Netflix lists Mulgrew in the cast.
Star Trek: Voyager. The other credit ITV highlights is the Star Trek series whose crew, in Paramount+’s description, is “drawn 70,000 lightyears to the far side of the Delta Quadrant.” Our guide to every Star Trek series in order sets out where it streams by market.

Two Cities and Blue Lights

The production company behind the series is best known in the UK for Blue Lights, the Belfast police drama that ITV’s release also cites. Created by Declan Lawn and Adam Patterson, who previously wrote The Salisbury Poisonings, it follows rookie response officers in contemporary Belfast. STV Studios lists it as the winner of Best Drama Series at the 2025 BAFTA TV Awards and the 2026 IFTA Film and Drama Awards. The BBC ordered two further series, the third and fourth, for BBC One and iPlayer, and Two Cities is now the consolidated production label of STV Studios.

For more crime and drama arriving on UK services this autumn, see what is new on streaming in the UK this October.

Where to watch

The Galway Bay Murders: ITV1 and ITVX (UK), six episodes, transmission date to be confirmed by ITV.
Orange Is the New Black (Kate Mulgrew), seven seasons: Netflix · UK · Streaming now
Blue Lights (Two Cities Television): BBC One and BBC iPlayer · UK