Last Updated on August 21, 2026
Prior to the mega success of the Thursday Murder Club series, Richard Osman was known to most of us as the ‘guy from Pointless, ‘ the equally successful afternoon gameshow that he co-hosts with Alexander Armstrong.
With his facts, figures, and general knowledge of all things quizzes, he had already made a name for himself in the entertainment industry, having worked as an executive producer on shows like Deal or No Deal and 8 Out of 10 Cats.
Then he dipped his toe into the fictional literary world, and the rest, as they say, is history.
Released in September 2020, his first book quickly became a bestseller. The Thursday Murder Club tells the story of a group of retirees in a peaceful retirement village who meet weekly to investigate unsolved crimes.
However, they soon stumble upon a real-life crime, and relying on the fact that they go through the world barely visible and severely underestimated, they eventually find themselves involved in a live case they must solve.
He followed it up with The Man Who Died Twice in 2021, The Bullet That Missed in 2022, and The Last Devil To Die in 2023.
With all that success (the series has sold over 17 million copies worldwide), one would think that the next logical step would be to write a fifth book about our favorite retirees.
Not so for Richard Osman, who then decided to start a whole new series with We Solve Murders!
Of course he hadn’t forgotten about his retirees, who promptly returned in 2025 with The Impossible Fortune, which quickly became a New York Times bestseller.
Next Book in 2026
So here we are, another year on, and it looks like Osman has established a bit of a pattern, alternating between the two series, writing one book per year, and always publishing in September.
On the back of the hugely successful We Solve Murders, we are returning to the world of Steve Wheeler and his daughter-in-law, Aimee, for another adventure in We Chase Shadows.
We won’t get to read it until September 10th when it is due to be published in hardback in the UK, and on September 15th in the US, with availability also in audiobook format.
We Chase Shadows Plot
A body is found at sunrise outside a luxury villa in the Italian hills, along with a threatening note signed by a mysterious figure.
Amy Wheeler, Steve Wheeler and Rosie D’Antonio are soon hired to investigate, although their wealthy new client appears to have reasons of his own for keeping the police away.
Their search leads them through a growing list of suspects, including a wanted Swedish criminal, an ex-wife and a business rival.
The case soon stretches from Italy to Barcelona and Palm Springs, with danger moving increasingly close to home.
So can Amy, Steve and Rosie unravel the mystery and find the culprit?
Current Novel – The Impossible Fortune
On his podcast, which he co-hosts with Marina Hyde, Osman was more than happy to chat more about The Impossible Fortune.
The plot revolves around a wedding that takes center stage, keeping the club members unusually busy.
Joyce is preoccupied with table plans and first dances, Elizabeth is grieving, Ron is dealing with family issues, and Ibrahim continues his work as a therapist for his favorite criminal.
However, chaos ensues when Elizabeth encounters a wedding guest in trouble, leading to a kidnapping and murder that disrupt the festivities.
The gang is drawn into a high-stakes puzzle involving an uncrackable code sought by a dangerous villain who will stop at nothing to obtain it.
As always, the Thursday Murder Club must race against time to solve the mystery and bring justice, all while navigating themes of luck, chance, and life’s unpredictable twists.
The book was another roaring success, selling about 250,000 copies in its first three days in the UK, with NielsenIQ BookData then recording 478,270 UK copies during 2025, making it the UK’s bestselling book of the year.
The paperback came out in May 2026 and had sold roughly another 210,000 UK copies by the end of July 2026 – and that doesn’t even include all international sales, ebooks or audiobooks.
So, all told, it looks like The Thursday Murder Club is still going strong and with any luck we should have book six in 2027!
Thursday Murder Club Movie
Seriously, we couldn’t write about the book without mentioning that the movie is now available on Netflix.
Cast announcements were made by Osman on his podcast, The Rest is Entertainment, with fans absolutely thrilled with the casting of Helen Mirren as Elizabeth.
And, let’s be honest, there is literally nobody else on earth who could be more perfect for the role!
But what else did we expect? After all, Steven Spielberg’s production company, Amblin Entertainment, secured the rights and Chris Columbus (Home Alone, Harry Potter) directed it.
It arrived on Netflix on 28th August 2025 and pulled in 24.7 million views in its first four days, putting it at No. 2 on Netflix’s global English-language film chart.
Netflix’s own figures show that it eventually reached about 68.8 million views during the second half of 2025, making it one of the stand-out movies of that year.
However, as of August 20th 2026, a second Thursday Murder Club film has yet to be officially confirmed by Netflix, although director Chris Columbus and the main cast have all spoken enthusiastically about returning.
If the series continues in book order, the next film would likely be based on The Man Who Died Twice.
