Let’s be honest—Sunday nights and murder mysteries go hand in hand for British TV lovers.
It’s a cozy tradition that’s been going strong since the Inspector Morse days.
But when you stretch a crime drama over two hours, it really needs to earn that time.
If the characters feel flat, the dialogue slows, or the plot loses steam, you’ll notice it around the one-hour mark.
Then come the ads, and that’s when viewers quietly disappear to make tea—and never come back.
That’s exactly what happened with McDonald & Dodds.
The show, starring Jason Watkins and Tala Gouveia, seemed like it should have worked.
It had charm and a gentle pace. But it just didn’t have enough depth or intrigue to justify the longer runtime.
Audiences started tuning out, and earlier this year, it was quietly taken off air.
Enter Karen Pirie With a Gritty Return
But not every Sunday night crime show flops. Karen Pirie is back, and it’s showing how this genre can still shine—if done right.
Based on the brilliant novels by Val McDermid, this latest three-part series digs deep into a cold case and doesn’t shy away from complexity or emotional weight.
This time around, the story is adapted from A Darker Domain and kicks off in a fish and chip shop in Fife during the miners’ strike of 1984.
A young mother is sharing dinner with her best friend, doting over her toddler.
The scene feels intimate, but there’s an edge—an uneasy tension humming beneath the surface.
And then, suddenly, everything changes. A masked gunman bursts in and kidnaps the mother and her baby.
A Cold Case From the Past Comes Roaring Back
The case goes cold for decades. Fast forward to the present day, and DI Karen Pirie—played with sharp intelligence by Lauren Lyle—is on the trail.
She wasn’t even alive when the crime happened, but the missing woman was the daughter of one of Scotland’s most powerful oil tycoons, Sir Brodie Grant.
The echoes of the John Paul Getty kidnapping are clear, and Pirie even mentions it in passing to her not-so-switched-on partner, DC Jason ‘Mint’ Murray.
His response? “John Paul? As in the Pope?” Mint is the show’s comic relief, and he gets all the best lines.
When Pirie asks if he’s media trained, he proudly says, “No, but I’ve watched a lot of Arnold Schwarzenegger speeches on YouTube.”
Flashbacks Done Right
What sets Karen Pirie apart is how cleverly it handles multiple timelines.
Flashbacks are woven into the present-day investigation, often lasting just a few seconds.
This smart editing means we don’t get bogged down in long-winded explanations.
Instead, we’re shown the emotional weight of the past and how it still haunts those involved.
Jamie Michie plays the 1984 version of Brodie Grant—a controlling, forceful businessman who acts like the police are his personal security team.
In the modern timeline, he’s played by the legendary James Cosmo, now broken by grief and age but still obsessed with control.
He even hires a private investigator to dig into Pirie’s personal life.
Secrets Beneath the Surface
That investigator might uncover more than Pirie would like.
She’s in a secret relationship with fellow officer DS Phil Parhatka (Zach Wyatt), a detail she’s conveniently left off her reports.
As the story unfolds, it’s clear this case isn’t just about solving a 40-year-old crime.
It’s about power, legacy, and the cost of truth.
And that metaphorical coal mine? It’s not just a backdrop. The deeper Pirie digs, the darker it gets.
Karen Pirie Raises the Bar
With a rich plot, sharp writing, and emotionally charged performances, Karen Pirie is proving that crime drama still has life in it—when handled with care.
It’s gripping, thoughtful, and refuses to spoon-feed viewers.
So if you’re looking for a Sunday night thriller that won’t have you reaching for the kettle halfway through, this one’s worth your time.
The genre’s still alive and kicking—and thanks to Karen Pirie, it might just be hitting a new stride.