DI Ray has returned to ITV for its second season, and viewers were left amusingly confused when they noticed a connection between the first episode and the new season of BBC's series Showtrial.
The ITV crime drama stars Parminder Nagra as the titular detective who is thrust back into the homicide division when a nurse and the head of a notorious crime family are shot, suggesting gang violence is on the rise. But viewers were a tad distracted when they realised that the son of the crime boss who was attacked is played by Michael Socha, who is also portraying the villain in Showtrial.
Fans were baffled by the coincidental casting as the two shows air at the same time, and apparently share a similar audience, so a few shared their confusion on X.
One person wrote: "How have schedulers managed to get #MichaelSocha to go up against himself with #Showtrial on #BBCOne and #DIRay on #ITV1 then again he is definitely one of my favourite actors for sure so the more we see the better".
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Another viewer said: "Same actor at same time on 2 different dramas is weird", while one person similarly wrote: "Frank Chapman's son in #DIRay is also the dodgy #Policeman & main suspect in #ShowTrial?"
There was one viewer who shared scathing criticism of the decision, by writing: "So #Showtrial on @BBCOne and #DIRay on @ITV are on at the same time, with the same actor in the villains role, well done TV schedulers, how absolutely pathetic!"
Not everyone was confused by the prospect of Socha appearing in two shows at the same time, as one person was delighted by the prospect and said: "@Michaelsocha my fave actor and a double dose tonight #DIRay #Showtrial [heart eyes]"
Socha portrays Dave Chapman in the ITV series, the son of the gang boss who is killed in a drive-by shooting and wants answers. His character will appear in all six episodes of the series which airs concurrently with the actor's BBC series Showtrial on BBC. In Showtrial Socha plays a police officer accused of being involved in the death of a climate activist who died in a hit and run.
While viewers are confused by the idea of Socha appearing in both primetime shows, DI Ray is being released three episodes at a time, Sunday to Tuesday, so this means that the two shows will only clash for those weeks.
DI Ray season 2 airs on ITV1 at 9pm from Sunday to Tuesday until 29 October, and is available on ITVX now. Showtrial airs Sundays at 9pm on BBC One, and all episodes are available on BBC iPlayer.