Ashes to Ashes is the sequel to the popular 2006 series Life on Mars, currently being broadcast on BBC One. It is set in 1981, and stars Philip Glenister of Life on Mars as DCI Gene Hunt and Keeley Hawes as DI Alex Drake, who was shot in 2008, and found herself back in time.
Critical reception to the first episode of the series was mixed, with positive reviews from The Daily Telegraph and the New Statesman and negative reviews from The Times and The Observer. The Guardian reported that with 6.1 million viewers and a 25% audience share, the ratings for the second episode were down by almost one million on the first, though it still beat Trial & Retribution, which fell to a series low on ITV.