Lynley is a British crime drama television series that is an adaptation of the Inspector Lynley novel series by Elizabeth George. Leo Suter plays the title role, Detective Inspector (DI) Tommy Lynley, alongside Sofia Barclay as Detective Sergeant (DS) Barbara Havers. The series premiered on 4 September 2025 on BritBox in the United States and on 5 January 2026 on BBC One in the United Kingdom.
A mismatched crime-solving detective duo working for the fictitious Three Counties police force (covering East Anglia) and based in Norfolk are teamed up: an aristocratic male police inspector and a maverick female sergeant from a working class background. Together, the two become a formidable team, bonded by their integrity and their desire to see justice done, while the series tackles issues around personality, gender, and class.
The Elizabeth George Inspector Lynley novels are adapted by Steve Thompson, who is also an executive producer. The four-part series is directed by Ed Bazalgette. It is produced by BritBox International, Playground and Salt Films.
The cast is led by Leo Suter and Sofia Barclay and also includes Daniel Mays, Niamh Walsh and Michael Workéyè.
Despite being set in the fictional "Three Counties" constabulary in East Anglia, the series began filming in August 2024 around Dublin, along the Wicklow Mountains, and at Mallow Castle in County Cork. Additional establishing shots were filmed in London, the Norfolk Broads, and the Thames Estuary.
The series calls back to the previous adaption of the books, The Inspector Lynley Mysteries series, filmed between 2001 and 2008, putting Inspector Lynley back in a vintage 1970 Jensen Interceptor Mk II, the same model car featured in the original series.
The series was purchased by the BBC in October 2024. Suzanne McAuley is series producer. David Stern and Colin Callender are executive producers for Playground with Robert Schildhouse, Stephen Nye, Jon Farrar and Jess O'Riordan executive producers for BritBox, Kate Woods executive producer for BBC Studios and Sue Deeks as executive producer for the BBC.
Lynley premiered on 4 September 2025 on BritBox in the United States. In the United Kingdom, the series premiered on 5 January 2026 on BBC One, with all episodes made available on BBC iPlayer the same day.
A review in The Guardian described it as "undemanding telly"