The BBC has revealed key details about Strike - The Ink Black Heart, the latest installment of the hit crime drama based on J. K. Rowling's (writing as Robert Galbraith) sixth Strike novel of the same name.
Strike - The Ink Black Heart once again stars Tom Burke (Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, The Souvenir) and Holliday Grainger (The Capture, Animals) reuniting as private detectives Cormoran Strike and Robin Ellacott in this BBC, HBO, and Warner Bros. Discovery co-production.
This four-part series follows their investigation of the murder of Edie Ledwell, the co-creator of a popular cartoon, The Ink Black Heart.
The full series synopsis reads: "When frantic, dishevelled Edie Ledwell appears in the office begging to speak to her, private detective Robin Ellacott doesn't know quite what to make of the situation. The co-creator of a popular cartoon, The Ink Black Heart, Edie is being persecuted by a mysterious online figure who goes by the pseudonym of Anomie. Edie is desperate to uncover Anomie's true identity.
Robin decides that the agency can't help with this - and thinks nothing more of it until a few days later when she reads the shocking news that Edie has been tasered and then murdered in Highgate Cemetery, the location of The Ink Black Heart.
Robin and her business partner Cormoran Strike become drawn into the quest to uncover Anomie's true identity. But with a complex web of online aliases, business interests and family conflicts to navigate, Strike and Robin find themselves embroiled in a case that stretches them to their limit."
In addition to Burke and Grainger, Strike - The Ink Black Heart also stars David Westhead (Enola Holmes 2), Christian McKay (Rivals, Dangerous Liaisons), Emma Fielding (Sanditon, Van der Valk), Tupele Dorgu (The Full Monty, Ridley) and James Nelson-Joyce (Time, Industry), among others.
Ruth Sheen (Unforgotten, It's a Sin) is also back as Strike's office manager, along with fellow returning stars Jack Greenless (The Trial of Cristine Keeler, Payback) as Sam Barclay, Natasha O'Keeffe (Peaky Blinders, The Wheel of Time season 2) as Charlotte, and Caitlin Innes Edwards (Hanna, Black Mirror: Smithereens) as Isla.
Along with the above announcement, the BBC also confirmed that Strike has become one of the UK's most-watched dramas. The previous installment, Strike - Troubled Bood, averaged 8.4 million viewers during its run in 2022 (going off 28-day figures).
A release date for Strike - The Ink Black Heart has not been confirmed at the time of writing. However, all five installments of Strike are available to stream on BBC iPlayer. US fans can find past episodes on Max.
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