The BBC One has taken on the Sebastian Faulks novel Birdsong in a two-part period drama due to start on Sunday 22 January 2012. Eddie Redmayne stars as Stephen Wraysford and Clémence Poésy as his sweetheart Isabelle Azaire in the two 85 minute episodes that tell the story of how the couple were brought together and then separated by the First World War.
Stephen is a young Englishman who in 1910 arrives in northern France and falls in love with Isabelle. Six years later, he is fighting on the very same area, struggling with his memories of what happened. He starts to form a connection with tunneller Jack Firebrace (played by Joseph Mawle).
Actors in Birdsong
Eddie Redmayne was one of the stars of 2010’s The Pillars of Earth mini-series playing the role of Jack. He was also impressive two years earlier as Angel Clare in Tess of the D’Urbevilles. Though he has no television awards to his name, he does have a Tony Award as best featured actor in a play for his portrayal of Ken in Red. He was recently in the movie My Week with Marilyn as Colin Clark.
French actress and model Clémence Poésy is possibly best known for playing Fleur Delacour in the Harry Potter films. Her TV career started in 1999 when she played Hélène in Un Homme en Colère. Other notable roles include EC in Revelations, Natasha Rostova in War and Peace and Eva Coupeau in Gossip Girl. And she is scheduled to play Queen Isabella in the upcoming TV movie Richard II.
Joseph Mawle made his TV breakthrough in the 1998 mini-series Merlin. Other roles have included Adrian Burney in Silent Witness, Charlie Barron in Dalziel and Pascoe, Jesus in The Passion, Stefan Koscinski in Waking the Dead and Tom Stephens in Five Daughters. More recently, he has been Gerald Crich in Women in Love, Benjen Stark in Game of Thrones and Edward Judd in The Awakening.
The show also features Richard Madden as Weir, Laurent Lafitte as Rene Azaire, Matthew Goode as Captain Gray, Anthony Andrews as Colonel Barclay, Marie Josee Croze as Jeanne Fourmentier and Thomas Turgoose as Tipper.
Team Behind Birdsong
The novel was adapted by Abi Morgan and produced for the BBC by Working Title Television. It was directed by Philip Martin and produced by Lynn Horsford. The executive producers were Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner and Juliette Howell for Working Title and Lucy Richer for the BBC.
Birdsong the Novel
The novel Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks was published in 1993. BBC Radio 4 did a three-part adaptation in 1997 and there was a stage play version in 2010.
Steve Rogerson - Steve Rogerson is a UK-based writer specialising in television, technology, sports and beer.
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