BritBox's new crime drama "Gone" is a masterfully tense mystery series from writer George Kay, whose previous credits include Netflix's "Lupin" and Apple TV's "Hijack." Loosely based on Julie Mackay and Robert Murphy's true crime book "To Hunt A Killer," the series begins as a straightforward missing-person mystery before evolving into a darker study of obsession, emotional repression and male violence, making it notable for its skilful command of suspense and slow-building tension.

Set in Bristol, "Gone" centres on Michael Polly (David Morrissey), the stern headmaster of the prestigious St. Bartholomew private school, whose wife Sarah (Hollie Bailey) vanishes without explanation. His daughter Alana (Emma Appleton), also a teacher at the school, pushes him to report her mother missing, drawing in Detective Sergeants Annie Cassidy (Eve Myles) and Becky Hammond (Jennifer Macbeth). As Annie is drawn into the role of family liaison rather than lead investigator, she begins to uncover the gap between the Pollys' public image and private reality, including tensions with a star pupil and a secret romance involving Alana, all while wrestling with her own unresolved 20-year-old cold case.