Outlander star worlds away from Starz drama in gripping first-look at returning thriller

Daily Record

11-06-2025

Lauren Lyle will be back on ITV later this year for another gripping cold case
Outlander actress Lauren Lyle is set to reprise her role as Detective Karen Pirie in the highly anticipated second season of ITV's crime drama, as unveiled in a first-look preview.
The series, which debuted in 2022, is based on Val McDermid's novels and follows the young detective as she delves into chilling cold cases. The initial three-part season, based on The Distant Echo, consisted of three two-hour episodes that explored a barmaid's murder from 25 years ago.
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Now promoted to Detective Inspector, Pirie will return later this year to lead another gripping investigation, this time based on McDermid's 2008 novel, A Darker Domain.
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A captivating synopsis for the upcoming series states: "After her bittersweet success in series one, Karen has been promoted to Detective Inspector and seemingly given the authority she has long been fighting for.
"Just as she's getting into the swing of her powerful new role, she is assigned an infamous unsolved case that will put her under intense scrutiny; from her boss, from the media, and ultimately, from sinister forces that would rather the past stayed in the past", reports the Scottish Daily Express.
"The 1984 case of Catriona and Adam Grant has confounded investigators and intrigued the public like no other. Catriona, the charming young heiress to a vast oil fortune, and her two year old son Adam, were brutally kidnapped at gunpoint outside a fish and chip shop in Fife.
"The ransom notes that followed stirred up an uncontrollable press storm, but when the culprits fell silent, the police faltered, and Catriona and Adam were never seen again.
"Now, a man's body has been discovered, with indisputable links to the original kidnap. With the first piece of evidence in decades, Karen must assemble an unbeatable team alongside her sincere and lovable sidekick DC Jason 'Mint' Murray (Chris Jenks) and the brilliant – but romantically complicated – DS Phil Parhatka (Zach Wyatt).
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"With the international renown of the kidnap and the constant pressure from Catriona's father, Sir Broderick Grant (James Cosmo), the team take on the biggest challenge of their careers to date. As Karen delves deeper into what happened in the autumn of 1984, political grudges and painful secrets reveal themselves, and it soon becomes clear... the past is far from dead."
The first-look images promise another must-watch thriller with the Outlander star front and centre.
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Karen Pirie season two is expected to be another major hit for ITV following its lengthy three-year hiatus. A staggering 6.6 million viewers tuned into the premiere in 2022.
Returning from the first series are Jenks and Wyatt plus Steve John Shepherd, Rakhee Thakrar and Emer Kenny. Kenny also returns as writer and executive producer.
Jack Stewart, a fellow Outlander star, is set to join the cast for the second series, alongside a stellar line-up including Julia Brown, Mark Rowley, Bridgerton's James Fleet and Mr Selfridge's Tom Mannion.
Karen Pirie season 2 premieres this July on ITV1 and ITVX and on Britbox in the USA and Canada this October.