Lynley returns to BBC One with new cast and real-life links

BBC One airs a four-part reboot titled Lynley on Jan 5 at 8:30pm starring Leo Suter as DI Thomas Lynley and Sofia Barclay as DS Barbara Havers; Barclay is the granddaughter of the late businessman Sir David Barclay.

The BBC has revived the Inspector Lynley stories in a new four-part series called Lynley, which begins airing on BBC One on January 5 at 8:30pm and will be available on iPlayer. The reboot casts Leo Suter as Detective Inspector Thomas Lynley and Sofia Barclay as Detective Sergeant Barbara Havers. The original TV adaptation first aired in 2001 and made the pairing of Lynley and Havers well known to viewers. The article notes a contrast between the working-class background of Havers on screen and Sofia Barclay’s real-life family background. Key details: - The new series consists of four 90-minute episodes and starts on BBC One on January 5 at 8:30pm; it will also be on iPlayer. - Leo Suter plays DI Thomas Lynley; Sofia Barclay plays DS Barbara Havers. - The characters come from opposite social backgrounds in the novels: Lynley is an aristocratic heir while Havers is portrayed as working class. - Sofia Barclay is the granddaughter of the late Sir David Barclay; she attended Westminster School and trained at Circle in the Square Theatre School, and has had roles in productions such as Ted Lasso and Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse. - The earlier TV adaptation, The Inspector Lynley Mysteries, originally starred Nathaniel Parker and Sharon Small and ran from the early 2000s until 2008. Summary: The reboot brings a new cast to a long-running detective pairing and highlights a contrast between the characters’ on-screen backgrounds and one actor’s real-life upbringing. The first episode airs on January 5 on BBC One and the four episodes are available on iPlayer; plans beyond this four-part run are undetermined at this time.