His melancholy detective Kurt Wallander started a boom in ‘Scandi’ crime fiction. So why is he ditching him?

Swedish Wallander Season1 Eps 1-7

Why had a region best known for Volvos, Abba and Ikea begun producing dark and violent thrillers filled with brooding detectives and avenging cyberpunks?

Rolf Lassgard's portrayal of Wallander – airing on BBC4 this Christmas – brings yet another dimension to Henning Mankell's rumpled detective

The new series of Swedish Wallander films starring Krister Henriksson has been awarded The International TV Dagger.

The bleak Scandinavian landscapes have inspired a series of hit books about dour detectives, and more writers are now lining up to claim the Nordic crime crown

Ålder kan vara ett känsligt ämne. Och att spela en klassisk karaktär som 60-plussaren Willy Loman i ”En handelsresandes död” är inget för valpar. I höst tar Krister Henriksson steget in i ett nytt register.

Ystad. Kurt Wallander lever vidare trots att Henning Mankell skrivit sin sista bok om Ystads numera världsberömde kommissarie. Nu kommer en reportagebok som tar avstamp i Wallanderland.

TV review: Wallander (BBC4) has been up there with Mad Men when it comes to capturing the vague feeling of yearning for something else that haunts the frantic ambition of modern life.

Kurt Wallander är Ystads största attraktion. Henning Mankells romanfigur lockar årligen tusentals turister till Sveriges sydligaste stad. Och de flesta av kommunens drygt 27 000 invånare är inte så lite stolta över den melankoliske kriminalkommissarien som löser mordfall på löpande band i den lilla kullerstensstaden.

"By the time he reached Blekegatan he was out of breath. From Mariagatan he had jogged along Oskarsgatan, although it wasn't far and he had not run particularly fast, the chill, damp autumn air bit into his lungs and his heart pounded."

The creator of Wallander talks about his crime fiction, his novels and his African theatre company.

More episodes of Swedish detective drama – including three original stories – thought to be in the pipeline.

Kenneth Branagh has won the prize for best actor at the Broadcasting Press Guild Awards (BPG) for his performance in the BBC drama Wallander.

Swedish inspector Kurt Wallender investigates an attack on an elderly couple. Written by Henning Mankell, read by David Warner.

Replete with blameless blue skies and billowing yellow fields, Wallander, the three-part adaptation of Henning Mankell's detective novels, almost literally waved the flag for Sweden.