The Bay series 5 revealed who killed Hannah and Cal, and left lots of loose ends for a possible series 6 - but will DI Tony Manning and DS Karen Hobson be back on the team?

The recent series saw Marsha Thomason reprise her role as Morecambe MIU's Family Liaison Officer, DS Jenn Townsend. Jenn, grieving for her recently deceased dad, threw everything in to finding out who murdered a university student and her boyfriend.

Here's a recap of what happened in The Bay series 5, and a look ahead to a possible series 6.

***Warning: spoilers from The Bay series 5 ahead***

What happened in The Bay series 5?

The plot of The Bay series 5 centred on the murder of 23-year-old university student, Hannah Dawson, who was tragically found dead in the water on the edge of the docks.

Just hours later, her boyfriend Callum O'Neill was found left for dead after being beaten and thrown from cliffs. He later died in hospital.

It was the job of Jen "jog the [bleep] on" Townsend (Marsha Thomason) to comfort the grieving family, while also trying to find out what happened to Hannah...

All this while juggling her own grief for her dead father, mounting family pressures, and the arrival of her problematic mum.

The Bay ending explained: Who killed Hannah?

Hannah's lecturer David Wallasey (Lex Shrapnel) murdered Hannah. He strangled her to death during a fit of rage when she discovered he was corrupt.

Hannah was investigating pollution in Morecambe Bay, and the people covering it up. She came into contact with TBP - a solvent and plasticiser used in many industrial applications - while collecting samples in the Bay. Which explains why both she and her boyfriend Cal had it in their bloodstreams. Although this did not directly contribute to their deaths.

Who was David Wallasey?

David Wallasey was Hannah's lecturer. As well as teaching, he worked as a water testing "consultant" for which he received payment every month.

Hannah found out that David was being bribed by a local business owner to tamper with the results of pollution in the Bay. In short, he was taking backhanders to cover up pollution in the water.

David worked as an independent expert for the environmental agency. But Hannah decided to carry out her own tests, which showed pollution in the water - much higher than David Wallasey's audited copy suggested.

When Hannah confronted David with it, he lost his temper and strangled her to death. He was trying to protect his reputation, and his cushy money set-up.

David then called Mark, the owner of the textiles company bribing him, who tracked down Cal and beat him to death. Of course, Cal was also aware of Hannah's findings.

At the end of The Bay series 5, police arrested David Wallasey for the murder of Hannah Dawson, and conspiracy to murder Cal.

Although Mark, the manager of the textiles company, was still on the loose, his company was shut down and a major clean-up operation began.

Is Daniel Ryan's character DI Tony Manning leaving?

All the team seemed at breaking point in series 5 of The Bay, but none more so than DI Tony Manning. Under pressure to get results from his ACC, and facing ever more restrictive staff cuts, Tony broke the chain of command in a bid to get access to a local power plant.

Called to a meeting to explain himself, and possibly get sacked, Tony was involved in a car accident on the way which he was lucky to wake up from.

Doctors told him he had a heart rhythm disturbance, which possibly led to the accident. His heart problems need managing with medication. Oh, and he's to avoid any stress. Pretty tricky in his line of work.

Signed off from work by the doctors, and under pressure not to return by his girlfriend, Tony admitted "things need to change". However, he DID tell Jenn he wasn't leaving... He told her: "Can you see me taking up gardening or golf?"

Will DI Tony Manning return for The Bay series 6? One thing is for sure, the police drama wouldn't be the same without him.

The Bay series 5 ending explained: Will DS Karen Hobson be back?

DI Tony Manning isn't the only character whose future looks rocky. DS Karen Hobson, played by Erin Shanagher, was suspended at the end of The Bay series 5.

The detective sergeant intervened when a planned vigil for Hannah turned violent. While a small number of attendees tried to ruin the event by turning it into an anti-police protest, some officers got a little heavy handed.

When a police officer manhandled a protester, Karen stepped in - and was injured in the process. Infuriatingly, the police officer then accused her of gross misconduct.

When she refused to apologise, Karen was suspensed from duty. At the end of The Bay series 5, she told Jenn: "I don't know if my heart is in it anymore."

At this moment, we don't know if the character will be back in a possible series 6 of The Bay. But we'll be very sad if she doesn't.

Is there a series 6 of The Bay?

ITV has not yet confirmed if there'll be a series 6 of The Bay, but it's looking very likely. A spokesperson told us "there'll be further news in the coming weeks once series 5 has aired". That sounds like a "yes" to us!

Like multiple detective dramas, including Unforgotten, Death in Paradise, and Silent Witness, The Bay has the potential to run for years.

That's as long as the writing stays sharp, and viewers keep on tuning in. Broadcasters rarely commission a new series until they know how the last one has done. So watch this space.

It's likely The Bay series 6 will air on BritBox first like series 5. ITV secured a big-money partnership deal with BritBox in the US and Canada to launch the fifth series of The Bay overseas first.

So The Bay series 5 was marketed as a BritBox original as a result of it having its first-run on the streaming site Stateside.

There's plenty to cover in series 6, too. For example, the future of DI Tony Manning and DS Karen Hobson within the team... There's also the increasing hostility towards the police, and staff cuts which puts added pressure on the police.

The Bay series 1 to 5 is currently available to watch on ITVX.