David Morrissey leads cast of Sky1's Thorne

Coming to Sky1 in October 2010, David Morrissey (State Of Play) takes the title role in Thorne, a new six-part drama series based on best-selling novels by author Mark Billingham.

> Read our interview with David Morrissey.

> Read our interview with Sandra Oh.


Who's in it?

Alongside Morrissey as DI Tom Thorne, Sandra Oh (Grey’s Anatomy) stars as DS Sarah Chen, Natascha McElhone (Californication) as Dr Anne Coburn, Eddie Marsan (Sherlock Holmes) as DCI Kevin Tughan, Aidan Gillen (The Wire) as Phil Hendricks, O. T. Fagbenle (Doctor Who) as DC Dave Holland and Lorraine Ashbourne (Lark Rise To Candleford) as DCI Ruth Brigstocke.

What should we expect?

Directed Stephen Hopkins (24, Californication) says: “I’d never done a British film based in Britain... I wanted to shoot an epic vision of London, a thriving architectural city with fabulous parks, new buildings and great landscapes. The idea of shooting a dark adult film here which could be really grim and you wouldn’t have to love everybody like you do in the American TV system [was appealing]. Thorne is unusual - it takes a genre we’re all familiar with but it turns in on its head.”

What's Sleepyhead, the first three-part story, about?

Sleepyhead is a nail-biting thriller following DI Tom Thorne’s investigation into a mysterious serial killer. His first three victims ended up dead, but his fourth, Alison, was not so fortunate. She survived a stroke, deliberately induced by skilful manipulation of pressure points on the head and neck, but has been left with Locked-In Syndrome.

She can see, hear and feel and is aware of everything going on around her, but she is completely unable to move or communicate. In leaving Alison alive, the police believe the killer's made his first mistake, but in fact it’s the three women already dead who are the mistake. Thorne must find a man whose agenda is terrifyingly unique, and Alison, the one person who holds the key to the killer’s identity, is unable to tell anybody.

What's Scaredy Cat, the second three-part story, about?

Scaredy Cat follows the Metropolitan Police as they investigate a string of murders in London. The killer selected his victim at St Pancras station, followed her home on the tube, and brutally killed her while her child hid nearby. At the same time, a second woman is discovered in Camley Street Park, just behind St Pancras station. It is a grisly coincidence that eerily echoes the murder of two other women, stabbed to death months before on the same day.

Although taking place at similar times and locations, the manner of the killings is strikingly different and the investigators believe that they aren’t hunting one serial killer, but two; one is ruthless and in control, while his partner in crime is submissive, compliant and terrified.