Old School. Biblically Independent.
By Dustin Rowles | TV | July 21, 2025
Patience, the best new show of the summer, ended its first season on PBS this week. Not only has it already been renewed, but filming on Season 2 is underway—with a major cast change ahead.
This week’s finale didn’t explicitly hint at the change, though it makes some sense in hindsight. The case involves a man who collapses and dies on a city bus after vaping. Tuberculosis is the initial concern, but it’s soon revealed that he was infected with anthrax via his vape pen. The man is first identified as Wes Hutton, who appears to have ties to an eco-terrorist group called the Climate Defence Force (CDF). However, a counterterrorism agent named Zara Blackwood (Flora Montgomery) pulls DI Bea Metcalfe off the case, citing jurisdiction and refusing to share further details.
Spoilers: Metcalfe and Patience continue investigating anyway, leading to Metcalfe’s suspension —thanks to Blackwood. It’s soon revealed that Metcalfe was also exposed to anthrax and nearly dies. Patience, however, uncovers the truth: Wes Hutton was actually Tyler Rose, a former undercover detective who had assumed a dead man’s identity. Rose fell in love with a member of the CDF, renounced his police ties, and was ultimately killed by Blackwood, who had once been romantically involved with him. She used anthrax confiscated from the CDF to orchestrate his murder.
No British crime drama is complete without a police conspiracy.
Metcalfe survives, but while she’s in a coma, Patience and DSI Jake Hunter solve the case — perhaps a preview of what’s to come. Though Metcalfe pulls through, Laura Fraser (Breaking Bad), who plays her, will not return for Season 2. The Channel 4 series has cast veteran British actress Jessica Hynes (Spaced, Paddington, Shaun of the Dead) as Patience’s new partner, Detective Frankie Monroe, according to TVInsider. Meanwhile, Patience’s romance with Elliot — hinted at in recent episodes — will continue to blossom.
Here’s Channel 4’s description of Season 2:
Patience will continue her work in the police criminal records department of City of York Police after establishing herself as an invaluable member of the team, bringing her unique insight into a series of perplexing cases. However, when a new boss, Detective Frankie Monroe brings a very different management style, it proves tricky for them both to navigate. Love is also in the air in this series as Patience begins a relationship with a work colleague Elliot and the police department gets a makeover with the arrival of a new PR consultant all whilst tackling intriguing crimes in extraordinary settings such as York Minster.
Presumably, the mystery surrounding Patience’s mother will also continue. In the finale, Patience opens a puzzle box left by her mother and discovers a clue — hidden on the back of a strip of masking tape — that may help explain why she left when Patience was young.
Though Channel 4 has renewed the series for an expanded eight-episode second season, PBS has not yet confirmed U.S. plans. Still, it’s expected to return next summer.
In the meantime, if you need your Patience fix, you can watch Astrid, the French series upon which it was based. It’s also available on PBS Masterpiece, and for obvious reasons, it’s a perfect time to support PBS. There are four seasons currently available.
