JK Rowling's Casual Vacancy to become BBC mini-series
JK Rowling's The Casual Vacancy is to be made into a three-hour mini-series by the BBC, in collaboration with HBO.Sarah Phelps has penned the adaptation of Rowling's book, set in the West Country, which follows an unexpected death in a small-town community.
Filming will begin this summer in south west England.
The BBC commissioned the mini-series shortly after Rowling's first adult novel was published in 2012, to mixed reviews.
At the time, BBC One controller Danny Cohen called the Harry Potter author's story-telling "peerless in its popularity".
The book sold 125,000 copies in its first week on the market, becoming the fastest-selling hardback in the UK for three years.
US cable channel HBO, which made its name with cult shows such as The Sopranos and Sex and the City, have previously co-produced Ricky Gervais comedy Extras and 2013's Parade's End with the BBC.
Rowling, who has said in the past that she believes The Casual Vacancy is "best-suited to television", will executive produce the mini-series.
TRAMA:The plot centers on Pagford, a seemingly idyllic English village with a cobbled market square and ancient abbey. Behind its pretty facade, however, is a town at war: rich at war with the poor, teenagers at war with their parents, wives at war with their husbands and teachers at war with their students.
CAST:The first confirmed cast for the BBC One mini-series, in association with HBO, adaptation of JK Rowling’s The Casual Vacancy has been announced.Tra i tanti: Rory Kinnear (
Black Mirror,
Penny Dreadful) e Michael Gambon (
Harry Potter).
The miniseries is written by Sarah Phelps (the BBC’s Great Expectations and The Crimson Field), produced by Ruth Kenley-Letts (The Tunnel, the Emmy winner The Hour) and will be directed by Jonny Campbell (BAFTA winning mini series In the Flesh, BAFTA winner Eric & Ernie). Lucy Bevan (Maleficent, Cinderella) is the show’s Casting Director. Tony Slater-Ling (The Politician's Husband, In The Flesh) is the show’s Director of Photography. Production Design is by Sami Khan (Catch Me Daddy), the Costume Designer is Rhona Russell (Scott and Bailey) and Editor Tom Hemmings (Misfits, The Tunnel).