THE hit BBC One Strike series - based on J.K. Rowling's crime novels - returns to our screens this Sunday with the scenes filmed in Cumbria.

Barrow Island streets, Devonshire Dock Hall, The Crow's Nest pub and Michaelson Road Bridge, are all due to feature in episode one of Career of Evil at 9pm.

The best seller books, penned by the Harry Potter author under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith, have been adapted into a hugely popular BBC One crime drama series.

Tom Burke stars as Cormoran Strike, a war veteran turned private detective, and Holliday Grainger plays Robin Ellacott, Strike's assistant.

Strike and Ellacott head to Barrow in the opening episode of the two-parter.

Filming took place in Barrow in January last year with Burke and Holliday filming scenes outside The Crow's Nest pub and on the Barrow Island streets.

In a BBC preview clip, Strike poses the question "Does anyone ever come to Barrow-in-Furness on holiday?"

In the Career Of Evil novel, the characters pass Barrow’s Craven Park rugby ground and there are references to the Crow’s Nest, the Olympic takeaway, Barrow Grammar School for Boys and BAE Systems. They also eat in The Last Resort cafe, in Cavendish Street. Ken and Jean Crosby, of Ulverston, spotted the superstar author in Barrow town centre back in 2014. J.K Rowling came to Barrow for research, visiting The Last Resort cafe and going to The Crow's Nest, Barrow Island.

In 2016 Barrow and Furness MP, John Woodcock, tweeted J.K. Rowling and she replied saying: "I was in Barrow last year researching #CareerofEvil."

She went onto post: "I loved the Last Resort, they fed us well! The Crow's Nest pub was great too. My first time in Barrow."

In a recent interview with the BBC J.K. Rowling spoke about taking the Strike characters out of London, and described Barrow as "the most extraordinary place".

The superstar author said: "Career Of Evil was technically a challenge because you’ve only got three suspects, so I like to set myself these challenges and then curse myself two thirds of the way through the book thinking, who made me do this?

"It was implausible that all three of these suspects would conveniently be down the road in London. I chose very deliberately where they would come from. They were both places I’ve never actually been, even though I’ve lived in Scotland for my third decade.

"I wanted them to come from one of the pretty border towns, and my husband suggested Melrose and it was absolutely perfect. Barrow-in-Furness is the most extraordinary place. It’s a very distinctive, unique, urban, working city. I wanted a contrast."