Lauren Lyle, the 32-year-old Scottish actor, has found a cathartic outlet in her role as Karen Pirie, the blunt young detective in ITV's crime drama. 'I really enjoy that she gets to basically just tell a bunch of men that are much bigger and older than her to piss off,' Lyle says. She notes that as a young woman, she often deals with female rage and frustration, emotions she feels are rarely allowed to breathe on screen.
In the second season, Karen's fury is given full rein, with her superior describing her as 'blinkered and extraordinarily rude'. Lyle explains that it was important to show that frustration authentically, including moments where Karen screams into the void or blasts heavy metal music. The role, based on Val McDermid's 'tartan noir' novels, has earned Lyle two Bafta Scotland awards, including Best Actress and the Audience Award for Favourite Scot on Screen.
Lyle grew up in Glasgow's Southside before moving to New Zealand as a teenager. She previously appeared in Outlander and Vigil, but Karen Pirie is her first lead role. She worked closely with writer Emer Kenny, who also plays Karen's housemate, to ensure the show avoided 'cosy crime' clichés. 'Some people think ITV detective, and go to watch it and they're like, 'Woah. It's so not what I expected it to be,' she says.
The series also tackles real-world frustrations, such as being underestimated for looking young. In one scene, a suspect sniggers that Karen 'looks like a toddler', a moment Lyle says will resonate with anyone still getting ID'd in their early thirties. 'There are things like, as a woman, you get hugged a lot more in a professional environment than you get a handshake – things like that, this strange patronising that can go on,' she adds.
