During the dark days of the covid madness there were few things that brought genuine joy but one of those things was the announcement that Life on Mars and Ashes to Ashes were set for one last series to tie the story together and that show was to be called Lazarus.
At the beginning of April 202o, during a watchalong on Twitter of the pilot episode of Life on Mars, series co-creator Matthew Graham revealed that a new series, Lazarus, was coming and it would see the characters from both Life on Mars and Ashes to Ashes, that being Phil Glennister’s Gene Hunt, John Simm’s Sam Tyler and Keeley Hawes’ Alex Drake, come together, spanning the 70s, 80s and an alternate modern day: “We intend to get as many back (across both decades) as we can. So when you wonder who will be coming back for The Final Chapter – think Avengers Assemble!”, Graham wrote.
Man, those were exciting days.
In 2006’s Life on Mars, modern-day police officer Sam Tyler is knocked over while on the job and wakes up in the 1970s under new boss, DCI Gene Hunt. He has no idea what happened or how to get back and at the end of the series, Sam’s outcome was never really revealed. Then, in Ashes to Ashes, Alex Drake, who works with the London Metropolitan Police, is kidnapped and knocked out, waking up in 1981, working under, you guessed it, DCI Gene Hunt.
Ashes went much deeper into the story of what happened and gets to the heart of what happened to Drake and Tyler.
The shows are superb and I cannot recommend enough that you watch them if you haven’t already.
Yes! We’re getting another Life on Mars/Ashes to Ashes series!!!
But alas, our joy was short-lived as in August 2023, it was announced that Lazarus was no longer happening.
But now, days after Life on Mars’ 20th anniversary, things are moving along the lines of getting to see these characters again to wrap up the whole story. But maybe not how you hoped.
Ashley Pharoah, one of the show’s creators, got the fandom all riled up, saying: “Something is stirring in the Life on Mars world. I’m sworn to secrecy but the Cortina [Hunt’s car in Life on Mars] isn’t ready for the scrapyard just yet.
So, we all thought Lazarus was back on the table… but it seems not. Although the Life on Mars world is looking to carry on.
Graham has confirmed that the return that is being hinted at is a… stage show.
According to a new interview, the show’s co-creator said that he and other co-creators Ashley Pharoah and Tony Jordan are writing a play that will “push the boundaries” and “reimagine” Life on Mars. He also said theatre director and producer Jamie Eastlake will be heavily involved in the show’s creation.
Creators announce that Life on Mars and Ashes to Ashes sequel, Lazarus, is no longer happening
He is also keen to point out that this show will have nothing to do with Lazarus, which seems to still be dead after all, but is a completely new story in that universe: “Just before Christmas, Ashley, Tony and myself … talked about it and we’re starting to discuss what that would be and what it would look like,” he said.
He goes on to explain that this is new territory for two of the creators and a big undertaking: “It’s a huge undertaking for us. Ashley has written for the stage, but I never have, nor has Tony, as far as I know. So this is going to be a big learning curve for us, but also a really exciting opportunity to reimagine the show in a theatrical context.
“We haven’t even put pen to paper on this yet, but what I can tell you is that I’m sure that you’ll get many of the characters that you love from the show. I think that would be fair to say.”
#FTN it was 20 years ago today… we met DCI Gene Hunt for the first time in Life On Mars.
We got sequel series Ashes to Ashes after and then, more recently, the @BBC cancelled the third (and final) series, #Lazarus.
I’m still not over that. pic.twitter.com/9d6WXMBfzl— Following The Nerd (@nerdfollowing) January 9, 2026
Graham also seems very aware that recasting these much-loved characters for a new format will be very difficult: “We have absolutely no idea about how we would cast this. None of those conversations are happening at the moment. It is simply at the stage of us sitting down together and going, ‘What does it look like? What is this play? What will it be? What’s the story, and what’s the reason for doing it?’ and just figuring out the whole thing.”
One of the things that fans loved at the time – and, I imagine, will be even more loved now – was how it stuck to the norms of the 70s and 80s and was not in any way politically correct: “These days, we’re all a little bit mindful of the world that we live in now, and making sure that the show is laughing in the right ways, but also has something to say,
“We know that the times have changed, even in the last 20 years, and also there’s been a lot more drama exploring that world. And the whole political correctness thing, I think, is a debate that we’re all a bit exhausted from, if I’m honest. So I don’t know if it’s going to be — we’re going to be — so interested in that debate. But who knows what we’re going to come up with?”
Yeah, that last bit does concern me somewhat – if they water down Gene Hunt (especially) to fit the modern idea of what we can or can’t say, I feel a big part of the character will be lost.
“I think that’s going to be important, making sure that this story, it can’t be a victory lap. I don’t know what it’ll be yet, but I know it will have to have something on its mind to justify its existence, rather than just, ‘Here’s more Life on Mars that you remember’. So we’ll see.”
Wrapping up, he says: “We’ve got ideas, we’re excited. We will be pushing the boundaries in terms of giving the audience a really exciting and immersive and entertaining experience. The ’70s will be alive and well in whichever theatres we are playing in!”
The only two shows that I can think off of hand that had theatre shows as part of their story is The League of Gentlemen, which actually made the 2018 live show The League of Gentlemen Live Again, the ending of the show’s story, picking up threads that were important for fans; at least they had the good grace to release it on DVD at the time, meaning that fans who didn’t get to see it live, could still get the good of the stories being wrapped up.
Another is Stranger Things, which has The First Shadow theatre show playing in London and New York; the show is important to the over all story and the recent final series alluded to parts of it without going into much detail, leaving fans who aren’t lucky enough to get to the theatre, feeling left out in the cold and not having the full experience.
Hopefully, if this Life on Mars theatre show ever happens, it will make sure that all – ALL – the fans can enjoy it in one way or another.
Thoughts? I know you have them and I wanna hear ’em all!
Gilligan and Seahorn discuss Pluribus season 2 and how long it’ll be coming
Source: Daily Mail and Radio times
Marc
Marc is a self-confessed nerd. Ever since seeing Star Wars for the first time around 1979 he’s been an unapologetic fan of the Wars and still believes, with Clone Wars and now Underworld, we are yet to see the best Star Wars. He’s a dad of two who now doesn’t have the time (or money) to collect the amount of toys, comics, movies and books he once did, much to the relief of his long-suffering wife. In the real world he’s a graphic designer. He started Following the Nerd because he was tired of searching a million sites every day for all the best news that he loves and decided to create one place where you can go to get the whole lot. Secretly he longs to be sitting in the cockpit of his YT-1300 Corellian Transport ship with his co-pilot Chewie, roaming the universe, waiting for his next big adventure, but feels just at home watching cartoons with his kids….
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