A sinister case that takes Robin and Cormoran Strike into the world of computer gaming, cyber-stalking, harassment, Comic Con and ultimately attempted murder and murder runs through "Strike: The Ink Black Heart", the sixth (of seven to date) stories from Robert Galbraith (the pen name of J.K. Rowling).
Here's how to watch "Strike: The Ink Black Heart" online from anywhere with a VPN — and potentially for free.
"Strike: The Ink Black Heart" premiered on Monday, December 16 on BBC One at 9 p.m. GMT (4 p.m. ET/ 1 p.m. PT) with episode 2 coming on Tuesday, December 17. The concluding two parts will air Monday and Tuesday next week at the same time. The whole season will also be available to stream live and on-demand on BBC iPlayer.
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Why J.K. Rowling (as Robert Galbraith) should find the world of internet cyber stalking and harassment an interesting backdrop for a murder mystery should not be beyond anybody with a working knowledge of her real life in the last few years. Bring on Strike story number six.
In this latest instalment, a tortured creative is abused and pursued and her fears are not taken seriously. Then, she ends up killed in Highgate Cemetery. And then the whole story starts to get really complicated.
That it should, eventually, fall to private eyes Robin Ellacott and Cormoran Strike (or C.B. Strike as he is commonly referred to outside the U.K.) to solve the case is more luck than judgement, but when the going gets tough...
Ready to watch them crack the case? Read on to find out how to watch "Strike: The Ink Black Heart" online, on TV and from anywhere.
How to watch "Strike: The Ink Black Heart" for free in the U.K.
How to watch 'Strike: The Ink Black Heart' from abroad
Thanks to the wonders of a VPN (Virtual Private Network), "Strike: The Ink Black Heart" should be available to Brits no matter where they are. The software allows your devices to appear to be back in your home country regardless of where in the world you find yourself. Our favorite is NordVPN.
Using a VPN is incredibly simple, just follow these steps.
1. Install the VPN of your choice. As we've said, NordVPN is our favorite.
2. Choose the location you wish to connect to in the VPN app. For instance, if you're away from the U.K. and want to view a U.K. service, you'd select U.K. from the list.
3. Sit back and watch the show. Head to BBC iPlayer to watch "Strike: The Ink Black Heart" episodes live and on-demand.
How to watch 'Strike: The Ink Black Heart' around the world
Can I watch "Strike: The Ink Black Heart" online or on TV in the United States?
Not yet, but you will be able to. Although there is no specific release date yet, "C.B. Strike: The Ink Black Heart" will be available to watch in the U.S. on HBO Max next year.
However, if you are a Brit in the States for work or on vacation and can't wait, you can catch the show for free by using a VPN such as NordVPN, choosing U.K. from the list and selecting BBC iPlayer.
Watch "Strike: The Ink Black Heart" online, on TV and on-demand in the U.K.
"Strike: The Ink Black Heart" premieres on Monday, December 16 on BBC One at 9.p.m. GMT when it will also be available to stream as a boxset on BBC iPlayer. If you like your crime dramas in installments, episode 2 follows on Tuesday, December 17 with the concluding two parts on Monday and Tuesday the following week at the same time.
If you're not in the U.K., you can still catch the show by using one of the best VPN services, such as NordVPN, to help you access your home services.
Can I watch "C.B. Strike: The Ink Black Heart" online or on TV in Canada?
As with the U.S., in Canada there is currently no release date for "The Ink Black Heart", the latest "C.B. Strike" story, but Crave will almost certainly be the destination when it drops.
However, if you are a Brit in the Great White North for work or on vacation and just can't wait you can catch the show by using a VPN such as NordVPN to help you unblock your usual streaming services.
Can I watch "C.B. Strike: The Ink Black Heart" online or on YV in Australia?
There is currently no release date for "The Ink Black Heart", the latest "C.B. Strike" story, in Australia but Binge will almost certainly be the destination when it drops.
However, if you are a Brit and Down Under for work or on vacation and just can't wait you can catch the show by using a VPN such as NordVPN.
How to watch "C.B. Strike: The Ink Black Heart" online in New Zealand
"C.B. Strike: The Ink Black Heart" will drop in New Zealand on ThreeNow with episode 1 on Monday, December 16 at 9 p.m. NZDT
If you are a Brit currently in New Zealand for work or vacation and prefer to use your regular domestic streaming platform, you can catch the show by using a VPN such as NordVPN.
'Strike: The Ink Black Heart' cast list
- Natasha O'Keeffe as Charlotte Campbell
- Tom Burke as Cormoran Strike
- Holliday Grainger as Robin Ellacott
- Caitlin Innes Edwards as Ilsa Herbert
- Mirren Mack as Edie Ledwell
- Ruth Sheen as Pat Chauncey
- Jack Greenlees as Sam Barclay
- Liza Sadovy as Mariam
- David Westhead as Grant Ledwell
- Christian McKay
- Emma Fielding
- Tupele Dorgu
- James Nelson-Joyce
- Sam Barclay
'Strike: The Ink Black Heart' Episode guide
Episode 1: Edie Ledwell, the co-creator of cult TV cartoon The Ink Black Heart, is being harassed by an online figure, Anomie. She asks Robin to uncover Anomie’s true identity.
Episode 2: Robin, Strike and Barclay all take risks to further the investigation now that they think Anomie probably killed Edie Ledwell. Strike receives an unexpected and unwelcome visitor.
Episode 3: Robin and Strike make a major breakthrough, having eliminated several suspects. Robin’s cover is blown, and Strike stays the night at her new flat. Meanwhile, Anomie claims another two victims.
Episode 4: The agency is the target of a devastating attack. Strike figures out who killed Edie, and having secured proof, Robin puts herself in danger in order to save lives.
'Strike: The Ink Black Heart' Trailer
'Strike: The Ink Black Heart' FAQ
What has screenwriter Tom Edge said about "Strike: Ink Black Heart"?
Edge also adapted Strike shows Troubled Blood, The Silkworm, Career of Evil and Lethal White.
How did you approach a book that is, not ostensibly, but to a large degree, set in the world of online chat rooms?
The book has a puzzle piece game that Jo is playing, which gets to the heart of online identity, and the point at which it clashes with the real world. There is a game in the book of puzzling out who the real person is connected to, their online identity and their username. That becomes important for Strike and Robin. But that's very difficult to realise on screen.
I think the core of the story that she that she wanted to tell, we were able to achieve without stacking everything on that particular game.
There's a lot of stuff in the book about parasocial relationships, which is when people who are online become deeply attached to a content creator or a game, some other community, and they begin to form relationships that have an enormous intensity, both with each other and with those who are the creators of the content, supposedly in charge.
I think those relationships are fascinating. Jo also has a lot to say about the disjunct between how we behave towards one another as human beings in real world communities – and what we're prepared to say to each other's faces. The value and function of common courtesy and manners and how when responsibility for your actions, having to own the words that you say to someone, is stripped away from you.
What very quickly can creep into that space is a loss of any sense of responsibility - almost a gamification of those relationships. So that even if the game being played is destroying someone by pulling them apart and turning people against them, because you don't have to deal with the human consequence of seeing their distress, it can stay as a game for you.
As a society, we're only really beginning to reckon with the impact that has on people - in particular, young people. And young people are a big core of the fans of Drek’s Game within this narrative.
What elements of the adaptation did you find the most challenging?
It's always a challenge, but it's a lovely challenge. I think Tom and Holliday are so good that even in the earlier stages, there's a delight in knowing how much they will be able to deliver.
There's a high degree of confidence as a starting point for which I'm really grateful. I think this season between Robin and Strike is a really interesting one because it begins with Strike's attempt to kiss Robin and her pulling away from that, and that creates this gulf between them.
It creates an awkwardness and a disconnection. What it also does is force them both to think very clearly about what they feel and what to do about that. And for Strike, it is the decision to try and flee from it.
In previous series we’ve seen him bury his feelings in women he doesn't care about, or booze. And now we see an attempt by him to return to those patterns, but he can't sustain them anymore.
We see his body literally breaking down under the strain of it and take him to a point where the truth of what he feels is no longer something that he can run from.
And Robin's journey sits almost in counterpoint that she sees that her feelings for Strike can destroy everything and has to force herself to actively step into a world where she does date again.
So, both of them are trying to run from something that is essentially true.
There's a really interesting subplot in this book where Charlotte returns and requires Strike's help to gain dirt on her ex-husband under the threat that the divorce proceedings will otherwise ruin Strike's reputation and his agency, making it impossible for him to operate.
So, all of the dysfunction that lay within his relationship with Charlotte, and which is not yet fully put to bed, becomes something that jeopardises the agency that he and Robin have built together. The relationships conducted by Strike, if they're done with his customary dysfunction, have the capacity to create vast destruction.
What else can I watch on BBC iPlayer?
Lots – including "I Kissed a Girl", "The Assembly", "This Town", "The Space Shuttle That Fell to Earth", "The Reckoning", "Navalny" and "The Stones and Brian Jones".
