Silent Witness viewers all saying same thing about new cast members after latest episode

Silent Witness fans have given their verdict on new additions to the cast, Maggie Steed and Francesca Mills, who joined season 28 as the Lyell’s new head, Harriet Maven, and crime analyst Kit Brooks, respectively. 

In the latest episode, which fans are calling “one of the best” of all time, Dr Nikki Alexander (Emilia Fox) is on board a flight from Mumbai to London when a mysterious illness starts to spread among the passengers. Meanwhile, her team back at the Lyell try to connect the contagion to the death of a man in India. 

Taking to social media, viewers praised the addition of Harriet and Kit, with one person writing: “Loving two new characters in #SilentWitness, Harriet Maven, the wonderful Maggie Steed & Kit Brooks, the excellent Francesca Mills.”

Another fan hailed Kit as “the best thing” to happen in the show in years, penning: “Might I just say that @FrannMills is the best thing to have happened to Silent Witness in years. In fact, she’s the best thing to have happened to my TV in years. Full stop. Hope she doesn’t just disappear like other recent additions.”

A third viewer remarked: “When characters leave I always feel like I will miss them and not feel the same love for the newbies. But I think it’s the magic of the wonderful casting in #SilentWitness that just makes me fall in love with them all. Loving Kit and  Harriet. They’re like family!“

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Maggie, who is known for her roles in EastEnders and Ten Percent, revealed it was Harriet’s intelligence that drew her to the role. “She’s a very bright woman,” said the actress. “She doesn’t suffer fools gladly and has a highly developed sense of humour. She values loyalty and skill and honesty, and she’s got a light touch. She can mess up, so she’s not holier than thou. She’s also done lots of other things in her life. She’s had the corners knocked off her over the years. There are big rich knots there to untangle, which is marvellous.”

Meanwhile, Francesca revealed that she and her mum are longtime fans of the show, so winning the role was a big moment for her. “It was a personal thing that I really wanted for myself, but also for my mum,” she told the BBC. “I remember as a kid I would sit next to her on the sofa, and we’d watch Silent Witness together. I’d know that once the credits rolled, it was time for me to go to bed, but I’d just try and stay insanely still, so she’d forget that I was on the sofa. But as soon as the credits were over, she would say, ‘Right, time to go to bed!”

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She added: “I have so many beautiful memories of watching Silent Witness with my mum, so it was such a personal one for me. When I got the part, I was just delighted.”

Silent Witness is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.