The eagerly awaited first episode of Broadchurch aired last night on ITV, watched by 6.8 million viewers.

The press all seem to agree - Broadchurch is a winner.

Tim Dowling in The Guardian.

From the masterfully choreographed single-take sequence...one can tell Broadchurch is something that will stand out, even in the glut of good dramas that has lately made going out in the evenings seem a rash choice.
Few police proceedurals have been as unsparing in their depiction of parental grief - raw, all-consuming and frankly terrifying.

Four Stars from The Telegraph's Adrian Michaels

It is a wonderful moment when a much anticipated new post watershed thriller turns out to deliver as well as Broadchurch did last night.

What stood out most was the intense, microscopic exposure of hurt. Broadchurch showed us the mauled insides of family grief, the sinewy speechless despair of the townsfolk. The drama was able plausibly to do this because writer Chris Chibnall was touching them all with the foreboding stain of plot.

Online, UnrealityTV.Co.UK  wrote:

David Tennant and Olivia Colman shine in this brilliantly filmed ITV thriller.

From the opening sounds of the waves and shots of Danny up on the cliffs to the final close-up of Hardy's face at the press conference, everything about Broadchurch is done brilliantly.

TheDaily Mail's Christopher Stevens writes :

Gruff growling and grown- up - Tennant takes charge.

Broadchurch isn't merely good. It's exceptional. And everyone involved knows it. This eight part murder drama set in a small seaside town is taut as a wire, deft as a knife.

What TV drama dares to set itself beside noir cinema classics such as Touch of Evil or Rope, both celebrated for their tracking shots? This one does. Full marks for sheer chutzpah. Episode two can't come soon enough.

And four stars also from Metro.

Where Broadchurch really scored was in creating a believable community in which you could invest some emotion. 

Even the fractious relationship between the enigmatic new D.I in town {David Tennant looking like he hadn't slept for a week) and Colman's Ellie, on the surface a crime fiction cliche, felt instantly familiar yet fresh.

Alison Graham in the Radio Times

Chibnall has made something quite special here: a delicate portrait of extreme, unbearable sadness, layered with guilt, suspicion, and recrimination. Do not miss, because this is about as good as TV drama gets.

The Independant's Tom Sutcliffe writes

David Tennant's character seems to have been designed to look good on his fan website - the stubble and the loosened tie as much badges of style as clues to personal disarray. But Colman, effortlessly convincing in her distress, is something much rarer on television.

And from the Bridport News, which features as the fictional Broadchurch.

From the first moments of the programme with swooping camera angles from the top of the east cliff, viewers were gripped by the drama.

The audience - like the cast and crew as they were filming - were left agog to know more at the end of last night's episode, with seven more weeks to come.

Broadchurch continues next Monday night at 9pm on ITV. UK viewers can catch up with  episode 1 on ITV Player here. 

Broadchurch is a Kudos Film and Television production, written by Chris Chribnall and produced by Richard Stokes.

Find out more at our Broadchurch page, and our previous News Blogs.