MARYLAND viewers viewers tonight went wild when a Hollywood superstar appeared in the new ITV drama
The three-part series - which also stars Suranne Jones - kicked off this evening and follows two sisters who are brought back together following a family tragedy.
But it was one actress who really got people talking, when a legendary Grease star appeared on screen.
Oscar nominated Stockard Channing, 79, is part of all-star cast.
She is of course best known for playing the sassy Rizzo in the iconic 1976 movie Grease,
Bernice Blackstock suffers new blow in Emmerdale as she struggles with illness
The actress is also famous for shows like The West Wing, and The Good Wife.
On Maryland Stockard plays Cathy, who is the sisters' mum’s larger-than-life friend on the island.
Viewers went wild when she appeared on screen with one tweeting: "Ok, so #Rizzo is in #Maryland on #ITV. Me and my mum had a bet, her adamant it wasn't, but once again, my eagle eye wins!"
While another said: "Not every day you see Rizzo pop up in an itv drama is it? #Maryland."
This fan was thrilled to see the Grease star: "Rizzo aging well and still hiding the Hickey from Kinnicky #Maryland."
Maryland is a three-part relationship drama about two sisters who have grown apart over the years, but through tragic events learn to love and respect one another all over again.
Becca and Rosaline have forged ahead with their lives, growing distant through time and circumstance, until the discovery of their mother’s body on the Isle of Man reunites them.
Arriving in a place they have never visited and with no idea why their mother was there, the sisters begin to unravel the long-held secrets of a woman they thought they knew, while keeping their own secrets from each other.
Although the story is a work of fiction, the storyline is based on creator Suranne Jones' experience with losing both her parents, and the grief that she felt.
Her mum Jenny passed away in 2016 after a battle with dementia and her dad Chris died in 2021 from a coronavirus-related illness.
Stalking terror rocks Coronation Street as barmaid targeted
The series was created by actress Suranne and screenwriter Anne-Marie O’Connor,
Speaking to The Sun, Suranne revealed the tragic events that inspired the story said: "It's no secret that I've lost both of my parents, so obviously I know grief and that was a huge part of our conversations and what that does to someone.
"It's either going to come or people have experienced it, and this show doesn't deal with it quickly, it deals with it over three episodes, the stages of grief.
"There's humour in it and it's not an easy, straightforward ride. You don't get a blueprint of how you're going to feel.
"Knowing sickness, knowing illness, knowing grief, knowing death was a huge part of it and I think we're both really proud of how that turned out."
- Maryland continues tomorrow at 9pm on ITV, concluding on Wednesday.
