Lynda La Plante and Bonnier Books UK to celebrate 30th anniversary of Prime Suspect with spectacular year of activity in 2021
After a sensational year in 2020, with four Sunday Times bestsellers and the launch of a brand-new, contemporary series, Lynda La Plante and Bonnier Books UK have even bigger plans for 2021.
2021 marks the 30th anniversary of the first airing of Prime Suspect, created by Lynda La Plante and starring Helen Mirren as the tenacious DCI Jane Tennison. The BAFTA award-winning show went on to become an iconic hit – famous for its use of forensic science and DNA testing at a time when the technique was in its infancy, as well as for its ground-breaking portrayals of a lead female character overcoming sexism and adversity in the workplace to succeed.
The anniversary will be celebrated with a number of promotions including a repackage for the TENNISON series with retailer promotions across the backlist and a new author website launching in March. Alongside, there will be major publicity campaigns to support Judas Horse (April) and Unholy Murder (August), and La Plante will make a number of major events appearances throughout the year to celebrate the anniversary.
The anniversary is also being celebrated with a second series of Lynda La Plante’s true-crime podcast series, Listening to the Dead. Co-hosted by CSI Cass Sutherland, the show features interviews with specialists in the field of criminal science.
“I am thrilled with all the activity taking place this year, re-packaging, online festivals, my podcast and the new Tennison, Unholy Murder, and Jack Warr novel, Judas Horse. I am also so grateful to the publishers, retailers and especially the readers, who have encouraged and supported me over the years. I’m looking forward to being able to meet and thank them all in person, hopefully in the not too distant future.” Lynda La Plante, Author
La Plante will also be continuing her Detective Jack Warr series with a new book, Judas Horse, publishing on 1st April 2021. The first in the series, Buried, was published at the very start of the Covid-19 pandemic in April 2020, but despite this became a bestselling sensation, reaching #2 in the Sunday Times bestseller charts in both hardback and paperback, and going on to sell over 100,000 units in the UK and 130,000 units worldwide, making it La Plante’s biggest seller since Bloodline in 2011.
Kate Parkin, MD of adult trade publishing at Bonnier Books UK, said: “After an astonishing year in 2020, 2021 promises to be even more exciting for the undisputed Queen of Crime Drama! Lynda is an absolute phenomenon and we are very proud to be publishing her work and increasing her readership across so many different platforms.”
