Listen up, crime drama fans! An "absolutely gripping" spy thriller starring The Crown's Lesley Manville is on the way – and it's hitting screens sooner than you might expect!
Winter of the Crow follows a British psychiatry professor, played by the wonderful Lesley, who witnesses the murder of a student by the secret police in 1981 Warsaw.
When she photographs the incident, Professor Joan Andrews unwittingly becomes the next target of corrupt forces and must escape a strict regime under martial law before becoming a victim herself.
Based on Olga Tokarczuk's short story Professor Andrews Goes to Warsaw, the film switches the book's male protagonist for a female lead, offering a fresh perspective on martial law through the eyes of a foreigner.
Directed by Kasia Adamik, the thriller will premiere at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival in September, giving select audiences the first chance to see this chilling story brought to life.
HELLO!'s Acting TV Editor Nicky Morris said of the film: "Lesley Manville is one of Britain's finest actors. The Oscar-nominated actress boasts an impressive list of award-winning TV and film credits, from Sherwood to Phantom Thread – it's fair to say Lesley knows how to pick a good script. I can't wait to see what she brings to Winter of the Crow, which sounds absolutely gripping."
What is Winter of the Crow about?
Inspired by the work of Nobel Prize-winning author Olga Tokarczuk, the story unfolds in Warsaw, on the night of 13 December 1981.
The official synopsis reads: "Overnight, martial law is declared and a whole country turns into a prison. Taxis are replaced by tanks. Citizens are treated like criminals.
"Having just arrived the previous night, British professor Joan Andrews suddenly finds herself trapped in a satellite town, like a rat in a maze.
"When she witnesses the murder of a student by the secret police, Joan becomes a target herself!
"Isolated from the outside world, she must rely on intuition, survival instinct and imagination. She will outsmart a totalitarian regime and its communication ban by supporting a young resistance member and smuggling incriminating photographs out of Poland.
Filming took place in the UK, Luxembourg and Poland.
Who stars in Winter of the Crow?
Lesley Manville (Mrs Harris Goes to Paris, Magpie Murders, Sherwood) leads the thriller as the compelling Professor Joan Andrews.
She's joined by Sascha Ley (Shadow of the Vampire), Zofia Wichlacz (Warsaw 44), Andrzej Konopka (25 Years of Innocence), Denis Jousselin (Two of Us) and British star Tom Burke (Strike, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga).