Jill Halfpenny to star in sinister new Channel 5 drama that’s set to be ‘edge of the seat’ TV
Jill Halfpenny will star alongside Sally Lindsay in the new Channel 5 drama that’s already been getting a lot of attention
16:34, 27 Apr 2026Updated 16:43, 27 Apr 2026
Jill Halfpenny in Channel 5’s Number One Fan(Image: Channel 5)
She’s no stranger to a Channel 5 drama, having starred in numerous ones over the last few years, which have ended up also being big binge watch hits on Netflix. And now Jill Halfpenny will star alongside another Channel 5 favourite, Sally Lindsay, in a new drama that is already being billed as ‘unmissable’ TV.
Ever since she starred in The Drowning in 2021, ex Byker Grove and EastEnders star Jill, has led the cast of a whole host of gripping series for Channel 5, with others including The Holiday and The Cuckoo, where she sent a serious shiver down viewers’ spines as the villain of the piece. In 2024, Jill was back on home turf in Newcastle to shoot The Feud, alongside co-stars like Gavin & Stacey legend Larry Lamb, with scenes being filmed in the likes of Benton, Heaton and Jarrow.
The Feud aired on Channel 5 last year, before also crossing to Netflix where it was then binged by many others. And now, right after Channel 5 hosted the North East premiere last week of another drama filmed in the North East – The Fortune – Jill will soon be back on screen in Number One Fan, a series that has always been generating a lot of hype on social media.
Jill Halfpenny and Larry Lamb film The Feud in Heaton(Image: Newcastle Chronicle)
Number One Fan focuses on Jill’s character, Lucy Logan, a successful daytime TV presenter whose life turns dangerous when an obsessive viewer named Donna, played by ex Coronation Street star and Madame Blanc lead actress Sally, infiltrates her life, revealing dark secrets from her past. It emerges that Donna has a secret related to Lucy’s past, which could unravel everything the broadcaster has worked so hard to build.
Several teasers have now been shared on Channel 5’s socials, with loads of comments from people excited to watch what they’ve described as a ‘powerhouse pairing’ in action. Reacting to one clip, one Instagram user wrote: ‘Ooooo this looks GREAT!’ and comedy legend Dawn French is clearly going to be tuning in, as, echoing those sentiments, she replied: ‘Oooo this looks good!’ Another fan summed up the feelings of many others by commenting: ‘Two of my favourite leading ladies.’
If that sounds like the kind of drama you could get stuck into, you don’t have long to wait to watch it, as Number One Fan will launch on Channel 5 on Bank Holiday Monday, May 4 at 9pm. It will air across for consecutive nights, coming to an end on Thursday, May 7.
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