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Great Expectations start date and trailer for new BBC series with Olivia Colman and Fionn Whitehead

A start date and first trailer has been revealed for the upcoming TV adaptation of Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations.

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Academy Award nominee and Bafta award winning writer Steven Knight will turn the literary classic into a six-part TV series.

The all star cast will feature Olivia Colman as Miss Havisham and Fionn Whitehead as Pip, alongside Ashley Thomas, Johnny Harris, Shalom Brune-Franklin, Hayley Squires, Owen McDonnell, Trystan Gravelle and Matt Berry.

Great Expectations: Miss Havisham (OLIVIA COLMAN); Estella (SHALOM BRUNE-FRANKLIN).
Great Expectations: Miss Havisham (OLIVIA COLMAN); Estella (SHALOM BRUNE-FRANKLIN). Credit: FX Networks,Miya Mizuno

The series will air on the BBC One and iPlayer in the UK from Sunday 26 March at 9PM.

A teaser shares: “Great Expectations is the coming-of-age story of Pip, an orphan who yearns for a greater lot in life until a twist of fate introduces him to the mysterious and eccentric Miss Havisham and Estella, showing him a dark world of possibilities.

“Under the great expectations placed upon him, Pip will have to work out the cost of this new world and whether it will truly make him the man he wishes to be.”

Watch the full trailer below…

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The new show is the second in a series of adaptations of Dickens’ novels following A Christmas Carol in 2019.

Charlotte Moore, director of BBC content, said: “Great Expectations is the second in Steven Knight’s series of Dickens adaptations and the perfect choice given its timely and personal narrative. His original take on one of Britain’s most loved classics will make it must-see drama for a whole new generation.”

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Steven Knight added: “Adapting Dickens’ work is a delight. I chose Great Expectations as the next work to bring to the screen not just because of the timeless characters, but also because of the very timely story.

“A story of class mobility and class intransigence, told through an intensely emotional and personal first-person narrative. As the son of a blacksmith myself, Pip’s journey from the forge into society is a very special one to me.”

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