The Teacher Season 3: What You Need To Know Before Tuning In

This week, gripping school drama The Teacher returned to our screens for its third season. When it first launched back in 2022, the show hooked viewers with the explosive story of Jenna (played by Sheridan Smith), a teacher accused of having a drunken sexual encounter with one of her students. For season two Kara Tointon took on the baton as art teacher Dani, whose secret tryst with a colleague leads to the disappearance of a student on a school trip. And now, Victoria Hamilton (The Crown, Doctor Foster) is playing the protagonist for season three.

Don’t worry if you missed the first two seasons – the show is an anthology, meaning each season has its own new story. With fresh drama and a brand-new cast, here is everything we know so far about The Teacher season three, plus the unusual place that it was filmed. 

What Is The Teacher Season 3 About?

This time around, The Teacher is set in a private boarding school, and follows Helen Simpson, ‘a teacher with 30 years’ experience who dismisses the woke ideologies of the younger generation.’ Helen is the new head of drama at Cheetham Hall and is caught on camera reprimanding a non-binary student, Dee, during a detention. Dee, who has been in the throes of a difficult time, is found dead in their dorm room the next morning.

It is Cressida, a popular student and self-proclaimed ally who captures the footage and uses it to manipulate Helen to her personal gain. According to the official synopsis: ‘As Helen delves deeper into Cressida’s past, she uncovers a world of sadness and neglect. But has she learnt enough about Cressida to stop her final act of revenge?’ It seems this season will be just as drama filled as the previous two.

The Cast

Alongside Victoria Hamilton, Alice Grant makes her screen debut as Cressida Bancroft. Steve Edge, recognisable from Starlings, Phoenix Nights and Benidorm, joins the cast as Terry Simpson, Helen’s husband. Rochenda Sandall, of Line of Duty and Amandaland, plays Tessa Stewart, Helen’s friend and colleague. 

The full cast also includes:

• Olly Rhodes as Sam Simpson
• Peter Ash as Sebastian Blake
• Navin Chowdhry as Simon Cookson
• Ellis Jupiter as Dee Rainford-Thomas
• Shak Benjamin as Leo Dalton
• Malek Alkoni as Miles Crawford
• Natalie Gavin as DS O’Brien

(c) Channel 5

Where Was The Teacher Filmed?

The series is set across Sheffield and the Peak District, a setting that director Dominic Leclerc knows very well, originating from Bradford. He said: ‘This series is set within an independent private school, where ideas of privilege and principle come into play. The idea of being on the cusp of a northern city, but in beautiful landscape, gave the series its own flavour.’ 

Despite its British setting, the majority of filming actually took place in Spain. The series was shot in a small city called Vitoria, in the Basque region, while the school interiors were filmed in an old church that has been converted into an art college.

Rochenda Sandall, who plays Tessa Stewart, expressed her delight at the Spanish location. ‘We were out there for two months, on the northern side of Spain, so all of the Basque Country was available to us, it was amazing. They serve Pintxos in the bars and restaurants, which are little snacks on sticks, and they go down really well with actors! I was so lucky on this job, because my partner, Mark [Stanley] is an actor as well and he wasn’t working at the time, so he lived with me and practiced his Spanish.’

When Is The Teacher On TV?

The next episodes of The Teacher air Wednesday 1 April and Thursday 2 April at 9pm. The whole series, including the past two seasons, is available to stream on channel5.com.