VIEWERS can expect an action packed second series of ITV drama Grace, according to the lead actor and writer.

Ahead of the release of the new season, John Simm, who plays Detective Superintendent Roy Grace, revealed his character runs over the rooftops of Brighton railway station in the show.

Simm, known for his appearance in Life on Mars, Doctor Who and Strangers, said: “Roy’s running all over the place. Over the rooftops of Brighton train station – and there’s a lot of fighting.

“Every time I read a novel now I think, ‘Oh, no, what’s he going to be doing.”

Comprised of four feature-length films, the new series will return to ITV on Sunday, April 24, at 8pm.

The Argus: The new series of Grace will return to ITV on Sunday, April 24, at 8pm The new series of Grace will return to ITV on Sunday, April 24, at 8pm

Grace is an adaption of Sussex author Peter James’s international bestselling books, which have sold 21 million copies worldwide.

Despite being a self-confessed “squeamish” actor, Simm said he hopes the gruesome project will be just as much of a hit.

“We are working so closely with Peter James to bring the books to life,” he said. “Hopefully fans will continue to be happy with what we’ve done.”

Author Peter James said that while writing his novels, he had someone who “very much looked like John” already in his mind.

He said: “When ITV said, ‘what do you think about John Simm?’ I said, ‘You’re kidding. This is exactly the kind of image I’ve always had.’ He was Roy Grace from the moment I first saw him.

“All my novels are drawn to some extent from elements of real life. I was phoned up by a police surgeon in Brighton who said, ‘would you come and look at a piece of footage that Sussex Police have seized in a raid with your moviemaking hat on? – from my past life as a producer.

“I said ‘it’s a single take; if she’s acting, she should get an Oscar’. That was the start of it, that’s what fascinated me,” he added, citing it as the source of inspiration for his Roy Grace novel Looking Good Dead.

While the first series focused on crime, the second introduces the prospect of romance.

Simm said he recalls the characters getting “a bit flirty over lots of corpses”, describing it as “a good way to start” any romance.

“We have a lot of other things to look forward to in Grace’s journey – with his wife, Sandy, and meeting Cleo and their love match coming together,” he said. “So there’s lots in store besides the wonderful gripping stories of the week from Peter’s Books.”