Daniel Ryan on new drama Innocent and the clamour for the return of Second World War series Home Fires

DANIEL RYAN will be an ever-present on our screens for four nights this week in ITV’s big new drama Innocent.

It’s a gripping tale of a man convicted of murdering his wife who, though subsequently freed, is still viewed with suspicion.

But it is another of Ryan’s dramas, Second World War-set Home Fires, that viewers are still desperate to see. The Sunday night favourite was cancelled after two series, finishing on a cliffhanger with a plane crashing into one of the houses in the rural community.

Outraged fans mounted a massive campaign for ITV to bring it back, with 20,000 signing a petition.

“They really tried and there was interest from another channel, but it didn’t quite happen,” revealed Daniel.

“I know the Americans are absolutely furious that it ended, with the PBS channel wanting to know why more weren’t being made.

“I don’t really understand the decision. It was getting seven million viewers and was the most-viewed show since the end of Downton Abbey.

“It was lovely to have a campaign. Sometimes they work, but sadly not this time.

“All the cast are still thick as thieves. We meet up every three or four months for a little get-together because we really got on so well.

“Some shows carry on forever and the cast seem to hate each other, while we were really happy. I don’t know whether we took on a bit of the wartime spirit of the characters.”

Nothing to sing about for Hermione Norris in new drama Innocent

Daniel says he was forever asked what happened and whether his character, who was one of five in the house hit by the Spitfire, survived.

“I still feel as if there’s part of me trapped under the rubble in the doctor’s house,” smiles Daniel.

“Simon Block, who wrote the series, has now done Home Fires novels to appease the fans and explain how things turned out for the characters.”

Lee Ingleby plays David Collins in Innocent, living a nightmare as he’s served seven years in prison for killing wife Tara. He’s lost everything and faces spending the rest of his days behind bars.

He has always protested his innocence but when his release comes, it’s on a technicality.

Daniel is his brother Phil, the only one who always stood by him, with Cold Feet’s Hermione Norris as Tara’s childless sister. She’s not only convinced that David killed her sister but is also now mum to his kids and living a very comfortable lifestyle on the proceeds of his estate. It was a welcome reunion with Hermione for Daniel as they went through drama school together in the 1980s. And there was a reunion, too, with George Gently and The A-Word star Lee.

“We did Jimmy McGovern’s The Street together years ago – in fact he was a toe-rag in that so they obviously put him with me when he’s supposed to be a bad guy,” said Daniel.

“I think Lee and myself tend to play everyman sort of characters that you can relate to. So this is a much darker role for him.”

Daniel has appeared in everything from Casualty to Midsomer Murders, Doc Martin to, most recently, more than 50 episodes of Sky’s Mount Pleasant.

It means he’s constantly recognised by those who’ve seen him on screen but think they know him from somewhere else.

“I get it all the time but it did lead to a hugely embarrassing encounter in Manchester,” said Daniel. “Loads of people had been asking all day if they knew me and finally, when my wife and I got back to the car, this lady stopped me.

“She was adamant she knew me from someone called Tony’s wedding and I was saying, ‘No, I’m off the telly’. Then she said, ‘No, we met at Tony’s wedding – you were the best man’ and she was right, it was nothing to do with my acting.”

Daniel has been busy with theatre work since Innocent, including Glengarry Glen Ross in London’s West End with Hollywood star Christian Slater.

“He was a terrific guy – but with too much energy, which he’ll admit to,” adds Daniel. “Most of my scenes were with him.”

l Innocent, ITV, Monday to Thursday, 9pm.