Wild at Heart to return in 2012

ITV has commissioned a seventh series of perennial Sunday evening favourite Wild at Heart.

The seventh series will reunite Stephen Tompkinson, Dawn Steele, Hayley Mills and Deon Stewardson and introduce a troublesome new character, Sean, who will be a rival to Stephen's character Danny.

The last series of Wild at Heart, the sixth, is ITV1's highest-rating drama of 2011, drawing an average audience of eight million viewers and a 26 per cent share of all TV viewers.

Stephen said: "I am delighted that Wild at Heart will be returning to ITV1 in 2012. We can look forward to seeing our favourite characters in new and exciting situations and to seeing significant new characters join the mix.”

The new series will open just a few weeks after Danny, Alice, Caroline and Du Plessis have lost Leopard’s Den. The mining company’s work has stalled following the corruption scandal Danny and Dup unearthed last series, and the family aren’t sure if they’ve lost their home for ever. With the women back home in the UK, Danny and Dup set out to find a new place for everyone to live.

Danny Trevanion’s teenage daughter Olivia played by Olivia Scott-Taylor and her boyfriend Thabo (Atandwa Kani) will also return to the series.