The sleuths... GAME OF MURDER

Crime writer Ian Rankin sets a challenging mystery for a group of amateur sleuths on a Scottish island in a unique new series

- CAREN CLARK, ALISON SLADE

Murder Island

Tuesday, C4 HD, 9.30pm

Bestselling author Ian Rankin has put his most famous detective, DI John Rebus, to the test in over 20 novels since 1987. But now he’s pitting his wits against a group of real-life amateur sleuths in C4’s innovative game show Murder Island.

The six-part series centres around a twist-filled murder mystery penned by Rankin, which involves the discovery of the body of a young woman who has recently arrived on a fictional Scottish island. How did she die and who killed her?

A group of eight members of the public with a love of whodunnits team up in pairs to try to crack the case and win £50,000. Along the way, their progress is monitored by three real-life retired detectives and the least successful crime-solvers will be eliminated from the show.

‘Nothing like this has ever been done before where it’s a blend of a game show, a docudrama and this tight, twisty fictional whodunnit,’ says Rankin, 61. ‘It’s like dropping real people into Broadchurch!’