A snippet of David Bowie’s theme for Sky Atlantic’s new series The Last Panthers has emerged.

‘Blackstar’, which finds Bowie layering mournful treated vocals over strings and drums with an industrial edge, was commissioned for the opening credits to the show, which starts on November 12.

The six-part series stars Samantha Morton, John Hurt and A Prophet star Tahar Rahim, and kicks off with a diamond heist before delving into Europe’s criminal underbelly of gangsters and “banksters”.

Johan Renck, who directed the series, said of Bowie’s contribution: “I was looking for one of the icons of my youth to write the music for the title sequence, but was presented with a god. His first response was precise, engaged and curious.

“The piece of music he laid before us embodied every aspect of our characters and the series itself – dark, brooding, beautiful and sentimental (in the best possible incarnation of this word). All along, the man inspired and intrigued me and as the process passed, I was overwhelmed with his generosity. I still can’t fathom what actually happened.”

The track marks the first time Bowie has contributed original music for film or television in over 20 years, when he recorded the theme to the BBC’s The Buddha of Suburbia in 1993. [via Quietus]