Goolagong sports drama is coming to the BBC
BBC has acquired the global distribution rights to Australian sports drama Goolagong.
Goolagong is coming to the BBC next month.
The three-part sports drama, which tells the real life story of tennis legend Evonne Goolagong, now 74, who broke down racial barriers and went onto win 14 Grand Slam titles.
The miniseries stars The Twelve actress Lila McGuire as Goolagong, with Felix Mallard cast as Roger Cawley and Marton Csokas as Vic Edwards.
The series originally aired in Australia earlier this year, and will be available on BBC iPlayer and BBC Four in June.
Nick Lee, Head of BBC Programme Acquisition, said: “The classic recipe for a sports drama is passion and talent to triumph over adversity, Goolagong does all this with heart.
"Fans of tennis will of course indulge in Evonne’s story and the matchplay, but whether familiar with her career or not, everyone will relate to the pure human spirit that’s been so authentically dramatised in this show.”
The BBC hailed Goolagong as "one of Australia's most celebrated sporting figures", and gave a hint of what fans can expect from the drama.
In a press release, the broadcaster teased: "In 1958, an eight-year-old girl peered through the wire fence of the tennis courts near her small-town home in New South Wales. She was instantly hooked.
"Evonne Goolagong would later win 14 Grand Slam titles, challenging racial barriers in the process.
"But despite on-court success, a disturbing dynamic played out behind the scenes and threatened to derail everything – until Goolagong found the strength to step out from that shadow, reclaim her identity and follow her passion on her own terms.
"She challenged tennis orthodoxy and united a nation.
"This is the story of how Wiradjuri tennis champion, Evonne Goolagong’s love for the game carried her from rural New South Wales to international sporting glory."
Goolagong battled racism, sexism and inequality to become a tennis icon, as well as having to step away for a while to recover from a brutal ankle injury.
Leading star Lila previously told Vogue Australia: "She is such an incredible powerhouse of a human being. She is literally who I want to be when I grow up.
“She overcame so much. Imagine how much she could have done without all those systemic barriers in place.”
