Katherine Kelly on Liar 2: ‘Everybody is a suspect!’

Katherine Kelly Liar

Katherine Kelly reveals all about playing DI Renton in Liar - which continues on Monday night - and why nobody is above suspicion for Andrew’s murder

Former Coronation Street and Cheat star Katherine Kelly is on scene-stealing form in the second series of ITV thriller Liar as ruthless DI Karen Renton. The formidable detective is investigating the murder of rapist Andrew Earlham (Ioan Gruffudd) and she has his victim Laura Nielson (Joanne Froggatt) at the top of her list of suspects.

Katherine Kelly tells us more about playing DI Karen Renton in Liar…

What do you love about playing Karen?

Katherine Kelly: “Karen swans in with one goal - to find who did it. She's good at removing her emotions because to her, that clouds how effective she can be. You see someone trying to get the job done and get to the truth.”

Is she Laura’s new nemesis?

KK: “It's not until the last scene of the series when you actually see how Karen feels about Laura. But she is a problem for Laura. Karen is instinctive and spends the series trying to prove her instincts are correct. It’s impressive to watch someone so sure and assertive.”

Joanne Froggatt, Danny Webb and Katherine Kelly in Liar

Laura (Joanne Froggatt) is questioned by DS Rory Maxwell (Danny Webb) and DI Karen Renton (Katherine Kelly) (Image credit: ITV)

How will the investigation progress?

KK: “Even though Andrew’s dead he's still ruining lives. And Karen is with the audience in trying to work it out because apart from her, everybody's a suspect! Every episode, the spotlight is put on someone. But who did it?”

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Are you good at working out whodunnits?

KK: “I’m disappointed and stop watching if I think I’ve worked out who has done it! It has to be smarter for me. Harry and Jack [Williams, the show’s writers] are great at keeping you guessing, they're so good at writing thrillers. So I found the ending satisfying and surprising.”

Liar continues on Monday on ITV at 9pm

Caren Clark

Caren has been a journalist specializing in TV for almost two decades and is a Senior Features Writer for TV Times, TV & Satellite Week and What’s On TV magazines and she also writes for What to Watch.


Over the years, she has spent many a day in a muddy field or an on-set catering bus chatting to numerous stars on location including the likes of Olivia Colman, David Tennant, Suranne Jones, Jamie Dornan, Dame Judi Dench and Sir Derek Jacobi as well as Hollywood actors such as Glenn Close and Kiefer Sutherland.


Caren will happily sit down and watch any kind of telly (well, maybe not sci-fi!), but she particularly loves period dramas like Call the Midwife, Downton Abbey and The Crown and she’s also a big fan of juicy crime thrillers from Line of Duty to Poirot.


In her spare time, Caren enjoys going to the cinema and theatre or curling up with a good book.