BBC Rebus launch date announced as new crime drama starring Richard Rankin hits screens

The BBC has announced the release date for the much anticipated launch of Rebus starring Richard Rankin.

The six-part crime series, which was filmed in Edinburgh and Glasgow last year, will see Scottish actor and Outlander favourite Rankin play the lead role of Detective Sergeant John Rebus.

The show – called Rebus – is written by Gregory Burke and is adapted from the best-selling novels by Sir Ian Rankin.

Set in Edinburgh, it will reimagine the character as a younger DS who is drawn into a violent criminal conflict after he finds out his younger brother Michael, a former soldier, is involved with criminality.

Rebus will find himself torn between wanting to protect his brother and wishing to enforce the law.

Scottish author Sir Ian, 63, said: “I’m thrilled that Rebus is coming to the BBC.

“A great cast and a compelling story – I really can’t wait for viewers to see it.”

The programme will launch on Friday, May 17, BBC chiefs have confirmed.

New pictures released show Rankin (Outlander, The Replacement) in the titular role, Brian Ferguson (The Ipcress File, Spanish Princess) as John’s brother, Michael, and Lucie Shorthouse (Line of Duty, Ten Percent)
as Rebus’s investigation partner, Detective Constable Siobhan Clarke.

Previously announced cast also include Amy Manson ( The Nevers, The Diplomat ), Neshla Caplan (The Rig, Scot Squad), Noof Ousellam (Vigil, Guilt), Stuart Bowman (The Serpent, Bodyguard), Caroline Lee Johnson (Trying, Ridley), Sean Buchanan (Censor, Mary Queen of Scots), Thoren Ferguson (The Midwich Cuckoos) and Michelle Duncan (Baptise, Elizabeth is Missing).

Shaken after a violent encounter with gangster Ger Cafferty, Edinburgh detective John Rebus finds himself at a psychological crossroads. At odds with a job increasingly driven by corporate technocrats, involved in a toxic affair he knows he needs to end, and all but supplanted in his daughter’s life by his ex-wife’s wealthy new husband, Rebus begins to wonder if he still has a role to play – either as a family man or a police officer.

In a time of divisive politics and national discord, Rebus’s ex-soldier brother Michael, who’s broke, desperately crosses the line in order to provide for his family, and Rebus starts to question if the law still has meaning, or if everyone is reverting to an older set of rules. And if so, why shouldn’t he do so too?

Reflecting on the new series, Richard said: “I am thrilled that Rebus will premiere on the BBC. It’s been an honour taking on the role of Ian Rankin’s renowned John Rebus.

“A character enjoyed by so many in such a fresh and original adaptation.”

Rankin follows in the footsteps of John Hannah and Ken Stott, who played John Rebus in ITV’s adaptation, which aired in the noughties before it was axed following its final series in 2007.

The first Rebus book, Knots & Crosses, was published in 1987 and the Sir Ian’s detective novels have been translated into 22 languages and become bestsellers on several continents.

Writer Burke said: “It has been a huge privilege to work on a new show with Ian Rankin’s iconic character at its centre and I couldn’t be more delighted that it is to be broadcast on the BBC.”

All episodes will be available on BBC iPlayer from 6am, with episode one airing on BBC Scotland on Friday 17 May and on BBC One on Saturday 18 May.

Get the latest celebrity gossip and telly news sent straight to your inbox. Sign up to our daily Showbiz newsletter here.