Grantchester may not bow out until 2027, but with series 10 now airing on ITV, a growing number of fans are wondering whether the much-loved drama has already overstayed its welcome.
The cosy crime favourite has been with us since 2014 and is marking its 11th year on screen. But last year ITV confirmed that Grantchester will officially come to an end in 2027, bringing the curtain down on Robson Green’s long-running detective drama for good.
And while plenty of viewers are sticking with it to the end, others feel the signs have been there for a while. Some previously loyal fans have already switched off – and series 10 appears to have reignited the debate. Here’s what viewers are saying about the latest run.
Fans describe Grantchester series 10 as ‘terrible’
Series 10 of ITV’s period drama kicked off in January, after first airing on PBS Masterpiece in the US. The familiar formula remains: DI Geordie Keating investigates crime in his picturesque village, while the local clergyman inevitably tags along for reasons that are never entirely clear – other than the fact that viewers enjoy the double act, and Grantchester vicars are always extremely easy on the eye.
Over the years, the real-life Cambridgeshire village has been home to three different on-screen vicars, all devastatingly handsome. Find me a parish with a vicar like that and I’ll be there in a heartbeat.
Of course, Grantchester has never pretended to be hard-hitting realism. It’s escapist television designed to entertain. But some viewers feel the balance has tipped too far, with the show drifting away from crime drama into something much cosier – and sillier.
Why has Grantchester series 10 turned into Carry On Vicar?
For a section of the audience, series 10 has crossed a line, with several fans branding it “farce”.
“I much preferred Grantchester when it was serious. It seems a bit silly now,” one viewer complained on X.
Another agreed: “Grantchester has become daft in this latest series. Run out of interesting plots.”
A third asked bluntly: “Why has #Grantchester turned into Carry On Vicar?”
“This is getting more like a Whitehall farce by the second,” said another disgruntled fan, while one viewer admitted: “I’m done with Grantchester. It should have finished after the last series.”
Some also criticised what they saw as the show “pushing an agenda”.
One former fan wrote: “Grantchester is a tick-all-the-boxes show now… It used to be slightly grittier, but it’s just faff now. Why would the local priest be present during interviews with suspects and going into crime scenes? Office romances, mild hints of racism that do not contribute to the plot.”
Another added: “Oh dear ITV. Grantchester was such a great series. Latest series/episodes are terrible. You are now too busy pushing all your messages down our throats you’ve lost what the series meant to the fans.”
A third said: “Sorry but the writing is awful for this series. The actors have been let down and tonight’s seemed more concerned with every DEI [Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion] issue possible rather than the actual story.”
‘Loving the humour’
That said, not everyone is sharpening the knives. Series 10 continues to mix lighter moments with heavier storylines, including Leonard’s struggle with alcoholism and the gender identity crisis faced by Geordie’s son.
And for many viewers, that blend is exactly why they’re still tuning in.
“There is a little part of me [that], every time the credits roll, that gets a bit emosh,” one fan admitted. “Because I know it’s going to end, but it’s great to have it back on our screens! This is proper, sit with the family, wholehearted, comfort TV.”
Another said simply: “Loving the humour in Grantchester tonight.”
A third joked: “Half expecting Basil Fawlty to show up! Grantchester – God I love this show.”
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