AceShowbiz - The BBC has revealed the principal cast for its upcoming series Honey, which serves as a prequel to the acclaimed thriller Killing Eve. Although the broadcaster has not officially confirmed Honey as a direct predecessor to Killing Eve, industry reports have linked the two shows since last year.

Leading the cast is Ann Skelly, known for her work on House of Guinness, who will portray Martha Schmitt, a covert MI6 agent. Joining her are Nate Mann (Masters of the Air, Licorice Pizza) as Kurt Fischer, Jannis Niewöhner (Munich: The Edge of War, Napoleon) as Friedrich Bauman, and Rory Kinnear (The Diplomat, The Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power) as Graham Anderson.

The storyline centers on Martha Schmitt, an undercover British intelligence officer who operates under constant threat of exposure. Her primary adversary is Friedrich Bauman, the newly appointed head of the Stasi’s counterespionage division targeting British agents. Additional cast members include Oliver Cudbill as Stefan Weiss, Sonita Henry as Anne Anderson, Victoria Mayer as Ingrid Schimmel, Valentino Dalle Mura as Rolf Muller, July Namir as Kamilla Akhmedova, Julian Niedermeier as Otto Kowalski, Sofia Oxenham as Greta Abstreiter, and Daniel Zielinski as Tomas Klein.

Honey is the first project emerging from a new co-production between the BBC and the German network ZDF. The series is produced by Sid Gentle Films, a division of BBC Studios, and distributed worldwide by Fifth Season. Emma Moran, the lead writer and executive producer, crafts the script, with Emme Hoy contributing as a writer. Executive producers include Sally Woodward Gentle and Lee Morris, with Christopher Hall serving as producer. Toby MacDonald directs the first three episodes, while Michelle Savill directs episodes four through six.

Importantly, it has been confirmed that Martha Schmitt is a younger version of Carolyn Martens, a character originally portrayed by Fiona Shaw in Killing Eve. The younger Carolyn appeared briefly in one episode of Killing Eve played by Imogen Daines, but the BBC has cast Skelly in the lead role for Honey. The series is anticipated to be one of the BBC’s major launches for 2026.

The commissioning of Honey was overseen by Lindsay Salt, Director of BBC Drama, for BBC iPlayer and BBC One, and Frank Seyberth, Head of Coproduction, International Fiction, for ZDF. While the BBC has not publicly commented on the show’s connection to Killing Eve, the production is set to deepen the espionage universe fans have come to admire.