The BBC has acquired Lynley, an upcoming contemporary update of the compelling mystery crime series based on the best-selling novels by Elizabeth George, for BBC One and BBC iPlayer.

Leo Suter (Vikings: Valhalla) and Sofia Barclay (Ted Lasso) star as the unconventional detective duo DI Tommy Lynley and DS Barbara Havers in the series, currently in production in Ireland. They are joined by Daniel Mays (Magpie Murders), Niamh Walsh (The English Game), Michael Workeye (My Lady Jane) and Joshua Sher (Vera).

Made by production company Playground (Wolf Hall, All Creatures Great and Small), the four-part series was commissioned by BritBox US in association with the BBC.

Tommy Lynley is a brilliant police detective but an outsider in the force – simply by virtue of his aristocratic upbringing. He is paired with Barbara Havers, a sergeant with a maverick attitude and a working-class background. With seemingly nothing in common and against all odds, the mismatched duo of Lynley and Havers become a formidable team, bonded by their desire to see justice done.

Daniel Mays plays DCI Brian Nies, the astute, suspicious Senior Detective at Three Counties Major Incident Team, whose aversion to Lynley is partly born of his own insecurities about class and partly because he knows he’s no longer the smartest person in the room.

Niamh Walsh stars as Helen Clyde, an estate agent and Lynley’s former Oxford classmate whose romance with Lynley is sparked when their paths fatefully cross on a case; Michael Workeye as tech specialist Tony Bekele; and Joshua Sher as forensic scientist, Simon St. James.

Author Elizabeth George says: “I'm thrilled to see Thomas Lynley and Barbara Havers come to television again, especially through the participation of the BBC and Britbox and the production expertise of Playground. Watching my characters brought to life on television is a real celebration.”

Writer and Executive Producer Steve Thompson says: “It's a privilege and a thrill to have the opportunity to adapt these wonderful books for television. Elizabeth George's iconic characters are greatly loved and her gripping stories are smart and ingenious.”

Sue Deeks, Head of BBC Programme Acquisition, says: “There is so much to enjoy in this new and exciting adaptation, both for fans of Elizabeth George’s gripping novels and of the BBC’s iconic The Inspector Lynley Mysteries, and for viewers yet to encounter the magnetic attraction of Lynley.”

Lynley (4x90’) is created and written by Steve Thompson (Vienna Blood, Sherlock), Ed Bazalgette (Marie Antoinette S2, The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die) serves as lead director with Suzanne McAuley (Magpie Murders, Love/Hate) as series producer. The executive producers are Steve Thompson, David Stern and Colin Callender for Playground, Robert Schildhouse, Stephen Nye, Jon Farrar and Jess O’ Riordan for BritBox, Kate Woods for BBC Studios and Sue Deeks for the BBC. The drama will be distributed internationally by BBC Studios.