1. Norway is not that near!
In series 1, Perez, while seated on a wall near his home in the Lerwick Lodberries, utters the line: “On a clear day, you can see Norway.” He's joking, of course. Even with the strongest telescope, you can’t see over 160 miles. And that lovely story that the nearest railway station to Shetland is in Bergen, Norway, is also untrue. Both Thurso and Wick on the Scottish mainland are closer – even to Shetland's northernmost point.
2. Sandy is a real-life Shetlander
Steven Robertson, who plays Sandy Wilson, was born and brought up in Shetland, and speaks with a Shetland accent, which is markedly different to Scots' dialect. Shetlandic is best described as a mix of Old Scots and Norn, an extinct North Germanic language spoken in Shetland until the 18th century.
Steven left school at 16 and worked milking cows before becoming an actor. He was also a violin maker and 'roadie and nannie' for the band Rock Salt and Nails. His TV and film credits include Luther, Brighton Rock and T2 Trainspotting.
3. It’s not all bad weather
Shetland may be the most northerly part of the UK but its weather can be surprisingly dry and mild, especially in the long summer months, which can have up to 19 hours of daylight. Because of this, bad weather had to be manufactured for some scenes during shooting and sprinklers were used to create fake rain.
4. Only the first three series are based on the books
The TV series is based on the Shetland murder mystery series by Ann Cleeves (also the creator of ITV’s Vera) but only the first two series were based on the storylines in her books. Series one was just two episodes based on the novel Red Bones, while series two featured three two-part stories based on Cleeves' novels Raven Black, Dead Water and Blue Lightning. From series three onwards, the scripts moved away from the book plots and were written exclusively for television.
5. It involves the whole community
Filming for the series is done in both Glasgow, for the interior shots, and Shetland, for most of the exterior shots. As this is the first major drama series ever filmed in the islands, it really is a community project. Props, extras and locations are often sourced on Facebook, with the locals pitching in to help with transport and production.
6. It's a boost for tourism
The series has done wonders for Shetland’s tourism industry, particularly as the show is screened in countries around the world. As described above, filming for each series takes place in the islands, with spectacular landscapes often adding to the dramatic ambience. Every fan of the show should make a trip to Lerwick to see The Lodberry house, made famous as the home of DI Perez. To help visitors discover that property and several other of the most iconic locations, we created four Shetland-inspired self-guided tours and films showing some of the standout sights.
7. Tosh isn't in the books
One of the series best-loved characters Tosh doesn’t appear in the books. Her character was created exclusively for the TV series as a sidekick for Jimmy Perez by scriptwriter David Kane. Speaking to the BBC, he said: “The biggest consideration when adapting a novel for TV is to get the essence of the story the writer wanted to get across even if you have to change certain parts of the plot. I created a new character - Tosh - to work with Perez, in the hope the warmth of their relationship would counter balance the darkness of the story.”