The BBC and HBO have announced the first casting details for their adaptation of JK Rowling’s The Casual Vacancy.
The Casual Vacancy centres on Pagford, a seemingly idyllic English village with a cobbled market square and ancient abbey.
Behind the pretty façade, however, is a town at war: rich at war with poor, teenagers at war with their parents, wives at war with their husbands, teachers at war with their pupils.
The novel has sold more than six million copies worldwide since its publication in 2012.
Legendary British actor Michael Gambon is joined by Keeley Hawes, Rory Kinnear, Monica Dolan, Julia McKenzie. The mini-series also introduces Abigail Lawrie.
Gambon will play Howard Mollison, owner of the Pagford delicatessen, with McKenzie playing his wife Shirley and Rufus Jones his son Miles.
Hawes stars as Miles’s wife Samantha with Kinnear playing Barry Fairbrother, Keeley Forsyth playing Terri Weedon and Lawrie her daughter Krystal Weedon.
Monica Dolan, who won a BAFTA Award for her portrayal of Rose West in Appropriate Adult, will play Tess Wall with Simon McBurney playing her husband Colin Wall.
Richard Glover (Sightseers) has been cast to play Simon Price alongside Marie Critchley (Emmerdale) playing his wife Ruth Price and Michelle Austin (Secrets & Lies) will play Kay Bawden.
In a statement, the BBC said the casting for Parminder, Vikram and Sukhvinder Jawanda, Gaia Bawden, Mary Fairbrother, Maureen Lowe, Lexie and Libby Mollison, and Andrew and Paul Price would be announced shortly.
The BBC One miniseries will consists of three one-hour parts and starts production in early July.