The Bay's Marsha Thomason teases heartbreak in new season of ITV show - with huge change

ok.co.uk:

DS Jenn Townsend is bracing for a rollercoaster ride in the upcoming season of The Bay, with her personal life on shaky ground and her domineering mum crashing at her place.

The drama returns for a fifth season on ITV, premiering on March 5, prompting Marsha Thomason, who plays the family liaison officer, to reveal that her alter ego is reeling from a tragic loss - her father's death off-screen due to Alzheimer's. "She's taken a couple of weeks off because her father has died from Alzheimer's," shares Marsha. "So she's grieving." Marsha, 49, took over as the show's lead detective after Morven Christie left her role as DS Lisa Armstrong in season three.

Now fully settled in Morecambe, DS Townsend is confronts new challenges that will push her to the limit both at home and on the job.This season, Jenn and her beau Chris (played by Barry Sloane) are hitting yet another rough patch, barely having weathered last season's storm involving his ex-wife Jacqui.

With her professional duties demanding more and more, Jenn is stretched to breaking point. "Things aren't so great between her and Chris," Marsha admits. "Jenn is dealing with a lot.