The Chelsea Detective Season 3: Release details and more about the upcoming season of the British crime drama series

The Chelsea Detective is a thriller that ranks in a long list of phenomenal British crime dramas, like Luther and Sherlock. The show is available on the British-American streaming platform called Acorn TV.

Currently, there are two seasons of the show and season 3 kicked off with the first episode on December 16, with the rest of the episodes being released in the near future. There have been a total of eight episodes from the initial two seasons of the show (four each in seasons 1 and 2) and their runtimes are nearly one and a half hours long.

The protagonist of the show is Adrian Scarborough's Detective Inspector (DI) Max Arnold, who is solving different crimes occurring in Chelsea. Most of the cast members from season 1, except for Sonita Henry's Detective Sergeant (DS) Priya Shamsie, have returned for season 2. Priya is replaced by DS Layla Walsh, played by Irish actress Vanessa Emme in season 2, and she is returning for season 3 too.

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The Chelsea Detective Season 3 release date and more questions answered

Season 3 of The Chelsea Detective aired on December 16. The first episode was a Christmas special, and the rest of the episodes will be released somewhere in 2025.

However, if you think, that this holiday episode is all smiles and celebration, you are mistaken. In this special titled “Everyone Loves Chloe,” Max Arnold and his partner Layla Walsh are tasked with the responsibility of solving the death of Chloe Carmichael, a former pop star. Here is another clip from this season:

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What is The Chelsea Detective about?

The Chelsea Detective premiered in February 2022, introducing the world to Adrian Scarborough's sharp investigator Max Arnold. He is separated from his wife and lives in a boathouse.

Each of the episodes of the two seasons revolve around the DI and his team solving different crimes and catching the perpetrators. Fans can't get enough of DI Arnold's brilliant deductive skills he uses to solve the crimes assigned to him.

Here is a synopsis of the first season that's also applicable to the series in general:

"DI Max Arnold's lifestyle on a battered houseboat in Chelsea's Cheyne Walk contrasts sharply with the affluent elite whose crimes he helps solve alongside partner D.C. Priya Shamsie. This British mystery stars Adrian Scarborough and Sonita Henry, and was created and co-written by Peter Fincham, the man who originally greenlit Downton Abbey for ITV."

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What happens in The Chelsea Detective Season 2?

The second season returned in August 2023 and it brought back DI Max Arnold to shine the light on the dark, uglier side of one of London's richest boroughs. He is joined by DS Layla Walsh in this endeavour. Here is a synopsis for this season:

"The Chelsea Detective, the hit British crime drama starring Adrian Scarborough (Killing Eve, The King’s Speech, 1917) as the sharp, intuitive Detective Inspector Max Arnold, is making its highly-anticipated return to Acorn TV on Monday, August 28, with new episodes dropping weekly. The second season, consisting of four feature-length episodes, sees DI Arnold teaming up with new colleague Detective Sergeant Layla Walsh, played by Vanessa Emme (Bloodlands, A Discovery of Witches), who joins Chelsea CID from Exeter."

The four episodes of season 2 were:

1. The Blue Room: "When an art gallery manager is stabbed during the robbery of an exhibition, it appears he was in the wrong place at the wrong time. But as the team delve into the elite world of Chelsea’s art scene, Max soon wonders if the victim was an accomplice."
2. Golden Years: "A woman at a luxury retirement home dies mysteriously, and with no signs of forced entry, suspicion falls on the staff and residents. But tensions within her family point to another cause, harking back to their time in Apartheid-era South Africa."
3. The Reliable Witness: "The most likely culprit in the murder of a psychotherapist is an ex-patient with a history of erratic behavior. As the team dig into the therapist’s personal life, they uncover disturbing revelations that cast a new light on his killing."
4. A Crime of Passion: "Jack Felton, the charming owner of a fruit and vegetable delivery company, is found stabbed at home in what looks like a frenzied attack. The detectives must unravel romantic jealousies, family conflicts, and business rivalries to nab the killer."

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While we wait for the other episodes of The Chelsea Detective, you can catch the first episode of season 3 and the other two seasons on Acorn TV.