HAMPSHIRE actress Sarah Parish has landed a new television lead role.

The 48-year-old will play officer DCI Elizabeth Bancroft in the new ITV Encore thriller Bancroft.

It’s the latest in a line of starring roles for the actress, who lives near Alton, is also fundraising for a multimillion pound campaign for a new children’s accident emergency department at Southampton hospital.

The Murray Parish Trust have launched the Echo backed #2MillionSteps campaign to raise £2 million in the next two years towards creating the unit at the Tremona Road hospital.

The charity, run by Sarah and husband, fellow actor, James Murray has raised more than £300,000 for the paediatric intensive care unit at the hospital.

Having featured in shows including Broadchurch, Atlantis and Doctor Who, the actress will now take on the lead in the ITV series.

Sarah, pictured, will play her new role opposite US fantasy show Game Of Thrones actress Faye Marsay, who plays DS Katherine Stevens in the four-part series. The show is being filmed in Bolton and around the north west.