Was Cormoran Strike inspired by a real-life person?

Cormoran Strike is the heroic detective in the BBC series Strike, adapted from the hit detective novels by JK Rowling under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith.

The story follows Cormoran, a former army officer who is forced to leave the service after losing his leg in an explosion, becoming a private detective instead. But was the author inspired by a real-life person? Find out here…

Speaking on her website, Joanne has previously shut down any hint that Cormoran was inspired by a real person. She explained: “Strike is entirely imaginary. He was a very vivid character who came to me, the best way – he just walked into my head. Whilst he has a basis in several real-life ex-Forces people and veterans I’ve known, in the main he was my creation.”

She added: “I know a lot of people who have served in the armed forces and who have been kind enough to help with my research. I interviewed serving and ex-military people for as long as they would let me bother them. In fact, all my factual information came from military sources.

“One of these is from the SIB… I gave Strike many of the qualities of the military people to whom I am closest: strength of character, black humour, resilience, and ingenuity.”

© BBC

There are plenty of fascinating details about Strike, including the fact that he is the son of a famous rock star, Jonny Rokeby, who was largely absent throughout his childhood. However, after  Strike was injured in Afghanistan, Jonny gave him a bank loan, which helped him set up the premises for his detective agency. As Strike becomes more famous due to his high-profile cases, Jonny begins to reach out and mention him in interviews – but was this based on reality?

© Laurence Cendrowicz

While Joanne maintains that Cormoran is a completely original creation, his father’s connection to fame was something the author wanted to explore in the novels. She explained: “Apart from being an ex-military policeman, my hero is the illegitimate son of a very famous man whom he has only met twice.

“He’s damaged in certain ways due to an upbringing that’s quite unusual. Strike gives me a way to talk in an objective, de-personalised way about the oddities that come with fame.”