Excitement is building for series three of acclaimed drama The Fall, and the BBC has released two first-look pictures of stars Gillian Anderson and Jamie Dornan.

One photo shows cool, calm, cop DSI Stella Gibson, superbly played by The X-Files’ Gillian, on the phone. The second depicts bearded serial killer Paul Spector, the role that made Jamie a star, in a tunnel.

Gillian Anderson in The Fall (Helen Sloan/BBC)Gillian Anderson in The Fall (Helen Sloan/BBC)

Viewers were glued to their screens as series two of the BBC Two thriller ended with a heart-stopping cliffhanger – Paul was shot. His adversary Stella cradled him in her arms and it all suggested his life was hanging in the balance after a bloody ambush.

Jamie Dornan is back in The Fall (Helen Sloan/BBC)Jamie Dornan is back in The Fall (Helen Sloan/BBC)

The series, which is filmed and set in Belfast, will have some notable new names joining the cast.

Swedish actor Krister Henriksson, famed for playing Kurt Wallander in the Swedish version of Wallander, will feature alongside other newcomers Aidan McArdle (Mr Selfridge), Ruth Bradley (Humans), Aisling Bea (Trollied) and Richard Coyle (Coupling).

The Fall’s creator Allan Cubitt has described the relationship between Stella and Paul as a “macabre, obsessive dance of death”.

Gillian Anderson and Jamie Dornan in BBC Two's The Fall Gillian Anderson and Jamie Dornan in BBC Two’s The Fall (BBC)

During an interview with the Press Association, Gillian said: “I feel like she’s (Stella) quite unique and I still find her mysterious. I still am intrigued by her and want to see what her journey is. So that interests me.”

Gillian also hinted that more would be revealed about her character’s background.

“There are bits and pieces, little things that are said that reveal a little bit about where she’s come from and what her life experience is … what brought her to be where she is today,” she revealed.

A few months ago, Gillian returned to TV screens as Dana Scully in The X-Files alongside David Duchovny after a 13-year absence, and also appeared in BBC One’s War And Peace.