Wire star in Kiwi writer Neil Cross' new BBC crime series

The news is out - one of the stars of acclaimed Baltimore-set TV drama THE WIRE (which is often mentioned as one of the best TV shows in history), Idris Elba (who played drug dealer Stringer Bell), is to play the lead role of John Luther in Kiwi-based crime writer Neil Cross' new TV series, LUTHER. Along with his acclaimed dark suspense novels, including Booker long-listed ALWAYS THE SUN, and his most recent BURIAL, Cross has previously been the lead writer on award-winning TV show SPOOKS.

When I interviewed Cross earlier this year for a feature in the May issue of Good Reading, he spoke of how he managed to write a hit UK television show while living in New Zealand - writing from his base in Wellington, but often flying over to London to participate in production discussions, and planning for the overall series arc with the supporting writers, etc. You can read more about Neil Cross at: http://kiwicrime.blogspot.com/2009/09/have-you-read-neil-cross.html

The six-part drama LUTHER is described in The Guardian as "a new BBC1 crime drama about a detective who is 'simmering with anger and rage'." You can read a little more at: http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2009/sep/03/the-wire-idris-elba-bbc