| Director: | Gareth Bryn |
| Composer: | Stephanie Taylor |
| Num Seasons: | 1 |
| Num Episodes: | 3 |
| Producer: | Clare Kerr |
| Editor: | Gareth Bryn |
| Camera: | Single-camera |
| Runtime: | 120 minutes X 3 |
| Company: | World Productions |
| Channel: | ITV |
Karen Pirie is a British crime drama television series based on the Inspector Karen Pirie series of novels by Val McDermid. The first series began on ITV on 25 September 2022 and concluded on 9 October 2022. A second series has been commissioned.
In the first series, a young detective-sergeant, Karen Pirie, is put in charge of what appears to be a twenty-five year-old cold case. An influential podcast series focuses on the case, the unsolved murder of a barmaid, and Pirie is tasked with rexamining it.
Series 1 is based on the first novel in a series by Val McDermid, called The Distant Echo.[1] [2] Emer Kenny wrote the adaptation for television.
In May 2021, it was announced that Lauren Lyle would star as the title character.[3] The producers are the same as for the series Line of Duty and Bodyguard, and the creative team is unusually young.[4] Series 1 was directed by Gareth Bryn.
Series 2 is based on the second novel in McDermid's series, A Darker Domain, and is co-written by Kenny and Gillian Roger Park. It consists of three two-hour episodes.
The first series began on ITV on 25 September 2022 and concluded on 9 October 2022. On 21 February 2023, it was announced the series had been commissioned for a second season. The second series is due to start filming in early 2024, and is slated to be aired towards the end of 2024.[5]
Series One averaged 4.82 million viewers.
On Rotten Tomatoes, the series has an approval rating of 91% based on 11 reviews, with an average rating of 8.6/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Clever and twisty, Karen Pirie refreshingly revamps the traditional grizzled detective procedural by putting a young woman on the case."[6]
Writing in The Guardian, Lucy Mangan praised the show for its humour, confidence, and charm, as well as its suspenseful plot that keeps the viewer guessing until the very end. Mangan gave the show 4 out of 5 stars.[7] Sean O'Grady also gave the show 4 out of 5 stars in The Independent, writing that the "tartan noir drama lifts itself above the usual run of these cold case thrillers because the story is told in a refreshingly cohesive way." O'Grady especially praises the work of Lyle saying that she "is excellent as the undervalued, underestimated officer who succeeds where the men have failed."[8] Abha Shah is less enthusiastic, giving the show 3 out of 5 stars in the London Evening Standard. Shah writes: "It’s a decent enough plot but the execution is as bungled as the police work Pirie finds herself uncovering. There’s an element of finesse that’s missing, a shame considering the production team’s CV."[9]
For writing the first episode, Emer Kenny was nominated for the Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Episode in a TV Series.
At the BAFTA Scotland Awards in November 2023, Lyle was awarded Best Actress Television for Karen Pirie and the Audience Award for Favourite Scot on Screen.[10]