Casting revealed for BBC drama based on the memoir of trans activist Paris Lees
Paris Lees is thrilled with the way the BBC has cast the upcoming drama based on her memoir.
Paris Lees is thrilled with the way the BBC has cast the upcoming drama based on her memoir.
The journalist and the BBC have chosen Ellis Howard to star as Paris' fictional alter ego Byron - the name she adopted to write about her pre-transition self -in the upcoming adaptation of her autobiography 'What It Feels Like for a Girl'.
Ellis will appear alongside Laura Haddock, Laquarn Lewis, Hannah Jones, Adam Ali, Alex Thomas-Smith, Calam Lynch, Jake Dunn, Dickie Bea, Hannah Walters and Michael Socha.
Paris said: “This is a proudly working-class story, and it needed a cast who could bring it to life authentically. We've struck gold with these highly talented actors, some of whom are already familiar faces - and some who are about to be. The biggest challenge was always the lead role – we're following someone who’s going from, in the eyes of the outside world, a schoolboy, right up to a trans woman starting university, and all that's in between."
The drama series is set in Nottingham and follows Ellis as he runs off to join the city's club scene during the early 2000s and becomes part of a gang known as the Fallen Divas and then meets a boy who turns his world upside down.
Paris added: "The moment I saw Ellis, I recognised something in him - a cheekiness, a delicateness, a complexity - and knew he was the one. And he rose to the challenge, again and again. The chemistry between El, Hannah, Laquarn and the rest of the Fallen Divas is something you can only dream of in drama.”
Lindsay Salt, Director of BBC Drama, said: “We can’t wait to take viewers back to the early noughties to see our magnificent cast shine in this big-hearted and brave new series. Paris and the Hera Pictures team have created a phenomenal eight episodes of genre-defining television, packed with swagger, humour, and humanity.”
'What It Feels Like For A Girl' will arrive on BBC iPlayer and BBC Three later this year. ITV Studios will handle international distribution.
