Amanda Redman was the second of the original cast to leave New Tricks, citing a “punishing” shooting schedule as the reason for her exit in 2012.
New Tricks was BBC One’s flagship show between 2003 and 2015, as it ran for 12 successful seasons on the channel.
Following the exit of the first original cast member, James Bolam, Amanda Redman would be the second to leave, citing the production schedule as her reason.
What was New Tricks?
New Tricks was created by Nigel McCrery and Roy Mitchell and marked the release of its first season in 2003.
The BBC One flagship series would run until season 12, drastically dropping in viewership by the last season due to the continuous exits of the original cast.
The premise of the crime drama series was of “Three retired police officers are drafted in to solve cold cases, with a touch of comedy and drama.”
Why did Amanda leave New Tricks?
Amanda Redman played the character of Detective Chief Superintendent Sandra Pullman, who pulls out the retired members of the force to help establish the Unsolved Crimes and Open Case Squad (UCOS).
After nine seasons with the crime drama, Amanda Redman would leave the show due to a gruelling shooting schedule that did not allow her time to work on other projects besides New Tricks.
Additionally, the interference of executives on the show reportedly also fuelled her decision.
Amanda Redman on New Tricks exit
In 2012, following her exit, Amanda Redman spoke out about her decision with The Sun, stating that due to the demanding shooting schedule that,
“You can’t fit in other work as there just isn’t enough time.” She also added, “It’s good to challenge yourself because otherwise you stagnate and I want to do so much more.”
Who replaced Amanda Redman on New Tricks?
Following her exit from the series, Amanda Redman’s position as the female lead on New Tricks was replaced with the introduction of Tamzin Outhwaite.
Outhwaite played the character of Detective Chief Superintendent Sasha Miller until the series concluded in 2015.
Amanda Redman on Sandra Pullman’s exit
The writers of the show mirrored Redman’s decision to leave the series with Sandra Pullman’s decision to leave the force.
A fact which Redman appreciated, stating, “What the writers did was take my own reasons for leaving New Tricks and use the same arguments with Sandra, which I thought was clever.”
Final thoughts
New Tricks marked its end with the departure of the last original cast member Dennis Waterman in 2015 after 12 seasons of the series.
The second original cast member to leave after James Bolam was Amanda Redman, who cited the gruelling shooting schedule as her reason for leaving the show.