The thriller is set in London and Manchester with filming due to begin in early 2025.

Shaun Evans will play a troubled MI5 operative in Betrayal, a new ITV thriller from Mammoth Screen and writer David Eldridge.

Set in London and Manchester, Betrayal stars Evans as John Hughes, a spy trying to avert a dark threat to national security while adapting to the modern MI5, where he has worked for more than 20 years.

Evans’ prodco Navarino is also producing with filming set for early 2025. Evans and Eldridge executive produce alongside Damien Timmer and Tom Leggett for Mammoth Screen; Mammoth’s creative director Rebecca Keane has overseen the development of the series.

Evans said of the commissioning news: “I’m delighted to be returning to ITV with this exceptionally well written and timely project. It’s a great privilege to reunite with David Eldridge and bring to life his insightful take on the world of espionage. And it is of course a joy to be collaborating once again with the first-rate team at Mammoth Screen. I look forward to sharing it with ITV audiences soon.”

Commented Timmer: “As a long-standing fan of David Eldridge’s work, and having collaborated with Shaun Evans on many hours of Endeavour, it’s a pleasure to be working with them on the story of John Hughes, a likable but flawed man struggling to find his place in the modern world and a character I hope ITV audiences will take to their heart.

“David’s scripts examine the fragile psychology of a middle-aged man caught between family and work, but in John’s case his work is protecting the security of our country, and the stakes could not be higher.”