Brought together by two seemingly unrelated cases, Stefan (Strepan) and Rash (Tavassoli) will come up against rich and powerful individuals, governments and a new breed of criminals who hide behind legitimate facades.
The pair share are the same frustrations with life – underpaid, unappreciated and undermined. Lumbered with huge university loans, they can’t afford to buy a house and have little or no job security. They are both British but not part of the establishment.
As their friendship is cemented across the series, they come to understand that by quietly pooling resources and combining their different skills they make a formidable crime-solving force.
And at the same time they might be able to help each other up the promotional ladder – if they don’t get themselves fired along the way…
Commenting on the pair’s casting, Horowitz says: “When I created a hero who was Polish/British and another who was Iranian/British, I never expected that we’d actually find the real thing but with Mark and Ben we’ve done exactly that.
“They really are the ‘new blood’ that the title promises and I’m confident that they’re going to make a wonderfully surprising and entertaining team.”
Both actors say they’re fans of Horowitz’s teen spy novel Stormbreaker.
Tavassoli said it was “a privilege” to switch from being a fan of the author’s work to strarring in it, while Strepan said he felt “incredibly lucky” to be part of the show.
BBC executive producer Matthew Read commented: “It’s incredibly exciting to have Anthony Horowitz back at the BBC with New Blood, and to welcome such brilliant new talent to bring this clever and bold series to life.
“Anthony is one of the most exceptional crime writers of our time, and to have him as the driving force behind this new drama for BBC One will undoubtedly produce genius.”
New Blood begins filming this week with further casting news due soon.