Cast revealed for BBC Three comedy drama Back To Life
- Filming is underway on Daisy Haggard and Laura Solon's BBC Three comedy drama Back To Life
- The cast includes Geraldine James, Richard Durden, Jo Martin, Jamie Michie, Christine Bottomley, Adeel Akhtar and Liam Williams
- The series follows a woman (played by Haggard) who has come out of prison after being locked up for 18 years
The cast for Daisy Haggard and Laura Solon's forthcoming BBC Three comedy drama series Back To Life has been confirmed, with filming now underway.
Haggard (pictured) plays the lead role of Miri Matteson, with the cast list also featuring Geraldine James (Made In Dagenham), Adeel Akhtar (Swimming With Men), Richard Durden (Papadopoulos & Sons), Jamie Michie (Borderline), Liam Williams (Pls Like), Souad Faress (Bridget Jones's Baby), Jo Martin (The Crouches), Christine Bottomley (The End Of The F***ing World) and Frank Feys (A Perfect Day).
Back To Life is described as a comedy drama "with mystery at its heart".
Producers tease: "Miri Matteson is a woman who did a 'very bad thing' a long time ago. So bad in fact, that she went to prison for 18 years because of it."
The series follows Miri's first few weeks out of prison, navigating her way as a naïve but determined 'Adult Beginner', trying (and frequently failing) to lead a normal life in her picturesque but claustrophobic seaside hometown.
The BBC explains: "We'll see her attempts to rekindle old relationships, make new ones, look for work and readjust to life outside, whilst desperately waiting for the world to forget about what happened that fateful night.
"Guiding Miri as she tries to adapt to life outside are a cast of offbeat and intriguing characters with secrets all of their own, including her sexually frustrated mother Caroline (Geraldine James), her recycling obsessive father Oscar (Richard Durden) and her parole officer without a verbal filter, Janice (Jo Martin). We'll also meet first love Dom, (Jamie Michie), ex-best friend Mandy (Christine Bottomley), next door neighbour Billy (Adeel Akhtar) and chip shop owner Nathan (Liam Williams)."
Shane Allen, Controller Comedy Commissioning for the BBC, says: "The nimble story-telling dazzles and hooks you in right from scene one. Miri is a terrific creation as the viewer's empathy ebbs and flows depending on our perception of what she might have done. It's a distinctive world of intriguing characters and laced through with off-beat humour. This series cements BBC Three's reputation as the vital place to try out ambitious new forms and tones of narrative."
Production company Two Brothers Pictures comments: "We're delighted to be working with Daisy and Laura on Back To Life. They have crafted a hugely compelling, funny and moving world that will have viewers hooked from the start."
Six half-hour episodes of Back To Life are being filmed. They will be broadcast in 2019.