The BBC has announced the impressive ensemble cast of its upcoming Jane Austen spin-off, The Other Bennet Sister, which is an adaptation of Janice Hadlow's acclaimed novel of the same name.
Richard E. Grant (Downton Abbey, Saltburn) and Ruth Jones (Gavin & Stacey, Stella) will co-star as Mr and Mrs Bennet, joining Ella Bruccoleri (Call the Midwife, Bridgerton) in the title role of Mary Bennet, Elizabeth's "unremarkable and overlooked" sister from Pride and Prejudice.
As filming gets underway in Wales, find out all you need to know about the show.
© BBC/Bad WolfWho else has been cast in the series?
Indira Varma (Obi-Wan Kenobi, The Night Manager) and Richard Coyle (Heads of State, The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina) will play Mr and Mrs Gardiner, Mary's worldly aunt and uncle.
Meanwhile, Laurie Davidson (A Cruel Love: The Ruth Ellis Story, The Girlfriend) and Dónal Finn (The Wheel of Time, SAS Rogue Heroes) join the ensemble as Mr. Ryder and Mr. Hayward, respectively.
© GettyAs for the Bennet sisters, Jane is played by Maddie Close (Sunflower Child), Lizzie is played by Poppy Gilbert (My Oxford Year, Chloe), Kitty is played by Molly Wright (The A Word, APOSTASY), and Lydia is played by Grace Hogg-Robinson (The Coroner, COBRA).
Other familiar characters include Caroline Bingley, who is played by Tanya Reynolds (The Decameron, Sex Education), Charlotte Lucas, who Anna Fenton-Garvey (The Nevers) will portray, and Mr Collins, who will be played by Ryan Sampson (Mr Bigstuff, Brassic).
© UK Press via Getty Images, GettyThe series, which is adapted by screenwriter Sarah Quintrell (The Power, Ella), also introduces new characters to the world of Pride and Prejudice, including Ann Baxte, played by Varada Sethu (Doctor Who, Andor), and John Sparrow, played by Aaron Gill (Smothered, Piglets).
Meanwhile, The Gardiner children, Marianne, George and Rebecca, are played by Roisin Bhalla, Reggie Absolom, and Jasmine Sharp, respectively.
© Tristan FewingsJennifer Sheridan (Extraordinary) and Asim Abbasi (Cake) will direct the series, with nine of the ten half-hour episodes penned by Sarah Quintrell (The Power, Ellen), while Maddie Dai (We Were Dangerous) will write one episode.
What is The Other Bennet about?
The series follows Mary as she leaves her family home in Meryton in search of her own identity and purpose – finding herself in the middle of an epic love story along the way.
© GettyThe BBC's official synopsis reads: "The series takes as its premise that – when it comes to the Bennet sisters – while we dream of being Lizzy, in reality most of us are more like Mary.
"The series follows Mary as she steps out of her sisters’ shadows in search of her own identity and purpose – finding herself in the middle of an epic love story along the way. Her journey will see her leave her family home in Meryton for the soirees of Regency London and the peaks and vales of the Lake District, all in search of independence, self-love and reinvention."
The series will be on BBC iPlayer and BBC One, and in the US and Canada, it will be on BritBox. A release date has yet to be announced.
