patience

Jessica Hynes has joined the cast as Detective Frankie Monroe for series two following the exit of Laura Fraser

Channel 4‘s popular crime drama Patience is back for season two but has had a major cast shake-up.

The series, which is filmed in York, follows Patience Evans, played by Ella Maisy Purvis, a young autistic woman who works in the criminal records department of Yorkshire Police.

The first series, which aired in 2024, became one of the broadcaster’s “most successful” dramas of that year, with many viewers loving the dynamic between criminologist Patience and DI Bea Metcalf, played by Laura Fraser, who became her unexpcted mentor.

However, while series two picked up where the first season left off, with Patience continuing her work after establishing herself as an invaluable member of the team, viewers are quick to learn there’s been a major shake-up and that Bea is no longer part of the team.

Why is DI Bea Metcalf missing?

At the start of the series it transpired that Bea had moved away for another job without warning and DI Frankie Monroe, played by Jessica Hynes, would be replacing her.

Frankie has a very different management style to Bea, which proves tricky for Patience to navigate. Speaking about where her character is at the start of series two, Ella said: “We end the [first] series with Patience discovering a string of numbers that her mother left her on a prized himitsu baku box, a puzzle she’s been trying to solve throughout the series. Patience has been ruminating and obsessing over these numbers for several weeks as she continues her work with York Police.

“DI Metcalf, to her knowledge, is on leave, which allows Patience to strengthen her relationship with Jake, in particular, but also Will and Baxter. But with the news Bea isn’t coming back, Patience clings to the mystery of her mother, her world in quiet turmoil and her confidence knocked.”

On Patience’s dynamic with Frankie, she shared: “Patience is fuelled by routine and structure. In series one she pushes herself out of her comfort zone with Bea and is luckily nurtured by her fascination with Patience’s way of viewing the world.

“Frankie bursts in and ironically has no Patience for her. She is harsh and somewhat brutal towards Patience who is in comparison gentle, but interestingly as much as it affronts her, Patience doesn’t take no for an answer and pushes back with her findings on the first case. This defiance earns her respect from Frankie, who slowly realises Patience isn’t one to be brushed aside.”

Upon realising Bea would not be returning to the force, many took to social media. With one fan writing: “Devastated to hear Laura Fraser won’t return as DI Bea Metcalf in #Patience S2. Her chemistry with Patience was electric—perfectly tense, heartfelt, and utterly compelling. Why fix what wasn’t broken?”

While another added: “It is disappointing that the relationship between Bee and Patience won’t be deepened,” as a third commented: “I will miss Laura as her character was perfect with Patience. And such an excellent actor.”

However, Ella has told how Bea’s absence on the show is “crucial” to her journey as her character continues to reflect on the bond they shared. She told Radio Times: “It’s not [just] the first episode, then it’s done. A big part of Patience’s journey in the season is getting over that – and also, realising and reminding herself of what that experience had taught her.”

She added: “Her relationship with Bea is very much crucial in her finding strength and the chutzpah to carry on doing what she knows she does best [despite Frankie’s opposition].”

Laura Fraser hasn’t commented on her exit from Patience but in March last year it was announced she had been cast in BBC’s new eight-part drama, Mint, while filming for the second series of Patience began in May.

And while Laura won’t be returning, there will still be plenty of familiar faces in series two. Including Nathan Welsh (Trying, Am I Being Unreasonable?) as DS Jake Hunter, Mark Benton (Smoggie Queens, Shakespeare and Hathaway) as Calvin Baxter, Adrian Rawlins ( Chernobyl, Living) as Douglas Gilmore, Ali Ariaie (The Great, Doctor Who ) as DC Will Akbari, Connor Curren (Dodger, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time) as Billy Thompson, Liza Sadovy (A Real Pain, The Rumour) as Dr. Loretta Parsons and Tom Lewis (Gentleman Jack, Redeeming Love) as Elliot Scott.

Patience continues on Channel 4 at 9pm on Wednesday, January 14.

SEATTLE — Puka Nacua promised he would learn from his mistakes, but his pledge was unconvincing.

His speech was rushed. What he said barely made any sense.

And there was this: On Thursday night, two days after criticizing referees on a livestream, Nacua posted a sarcastic message about the officials following the Rams’ 38-37 overtime defeat by the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field.

“Can you say I was wrong,” he wrote on X. “Appreciate you stripes for your contribution. Lol”

The post was quickly deleted. The questions about Nacua’s judgment remained.

Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua criticized referees immediately after the Rams’ overtime loss to the Seattle Seahawks on Thursday night before deleting the post on X.

Nacua, 24, is in line for a monster contract extension in the upcoming offseason, as the Rams view their record-breaking receiver as a cornerstone. But here he was basically repeating a mistake he made only two days earlier, which can’t be what any team wants from its most popular player.

Are the Rams really about to entrust him with the responsibility of projecting their virtues?

Ironically, the most controversial aspect of his recent livestream appearance could be the most defensible. Hours before the Rams played the Seahawks, Nacua offered an explanation for the antisemitic gesture he made on Adin Ross’ and N3on’s show.

“At the time,” Nacua posted on Instagram, “I had no idea this act was antisemitic in nature and perpetuated harmful stereotypes against Jewish people.”

The story was believable. The offensive hand movements were part of a touchdown celebration Ross encouraged Nacua to perform if he scored against the Seahawks.

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Gary Klein breaks down what went wrong for the Rams in their 38-37 loss to the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field on Thursday night.

Ross is Jewish. Earlier in the livestream he wished his viewers a Happy Hanukkah, which prompted Nacua to share that he accepted a friend’s invitation to attend Shabbat last week.

When Nacua was informed of the undertone of the celebration he practiced with Ross, he apologized. He reached the end zone twice on Thursday and didn’t perform the dance either time.

“I know this guy’s heart and for anybody that was offended, terribly sorry about that,”Rams coach Sean McVay said. “I know he feels that same exact way.”

The guess here is that he won’t ever make the gesture again.

Less certain is whether Nacua will be able to continue building his personal brand without becoming a distraction to his team.

The Rams should be concerned.

In a short week, the Rams were forced to bar Ross and N3on from entering their building.

Later that afternoon, their most visible player joined the streamers in their vehicle and traveled to a club, where he claimed that referees purposely made egregious calls because they wanted TV airtime.

This is a brave new world for athletes and the teams that employ them. Younger audiences want their heroes to be open, whether they are athletes or entertainers. For stars such as Nacua, the challenge is to strike a balance between being accessible and protective of their teams.

Nacua failed to do that this week.

“Coach (McVay) has just echoed that he’s always in continuous support of me, disappointed in some of the actions that just distracted my teammates and that’s something that I know I’ll learn from and I don’t want to be a distraction in any week, especially in a short week, so we had talked about that and he’s right there behind me,” Nacua said.

Nacua nonetheless voiced his displeasure with referees again on Thursday, posting to X minutes after the Seahawks won the game by scoring a two-point conversion in overtime.

What inspired the message, Nacua said, was “just a moment of frustration after a tough, intense game like that, just thinking of the opportunities that I could have done better to take it out of their hands.”

Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua, right, celebrates next to teammate Jordan Whittington after making a touchdown catch in the fourth quarter against the Seahawks on Thursday.

(Soobum Im / Getty Images)

Whatever that meant.

McVay declined to comment about Nacua’s post, saying he was first informed of its existence when he was asked about it in his postgame news conference.

“I have to have more information before I answer any of those kinds of questions,” McVay said.

However, McVay said of Nacua’s comments about referees on the livestream, “Yeah, we don’t want to do that.”

Being asked about an unpleasant subject in the wake of a crushing defeat made McVay testy. Asked if the fallout from Nacua’s livestream was a distraction, McVay snapped, “Did you think his play showed that he was distracted?”

Nacua caught 12 passes for 225 yards.

But McVay caught himself and apologized.

“I love this team,” he said. “And, man, when you put out as much as our group does and you care so much about something and you come up short, it’s incredibly disappointing.”

Such presence of mind explains why McVay is the voice of the Rams. As competitive as he is, as intense as he can be, he knows how to keep his impulses from compromising his team’s long-term objectives.

Nacua has to figure out how to do that. By next season, he won’t be an underpaid star on his original rookie contract. He will have a deal that reflects his stature as a player, and with that comes responsibility. Recent days raised questions about whether he is capable.