Channel 4 has brought plenty of gritty dramas to screens this year from The Gathering to the second series of Suspect starring Anne-Marie Duff. And now the broadcaster has confirmed some new thrillers are on the horizon. Earlier this week, bosses announced they were adapting Summerwater, a best-selling novel from Sarah Moss, into a six-part series, you can read more on this here , and now Channel 4 has confirmed the cast list for another drama based on Louise Kennedy’s breakout debut novel, Trespasses.
Trespasses, which is about a forbidden love story in 1970's Belfast, was shortlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction. The book has now been adapted for the screen by rising talent Ailbhe Keogan (Bad Sisters, Run & Jump) and has a star-studded cast list. Lola Petticrew, known for Bloodlands, will play Cushla, a sparky young woman whose hopes and dreams have been frustrated by the grind of daily life.
The Gold and Weekend star Tom Cullen will play Michael, a barrister, alongside Sex Education and the Scoop's Gillian Anderson, who takes on the role of Gina, Cushla’s mother, a glorious wreck who is constantly sparring with her daughter. A synopsis reads: "1975, in a town outside Belfast. Whilst working one night behind the bar of her family pub, serving a mixed crowd including the locally stationed soldiers, Catholic schoolteacher Cushla meets Michael, an older Protestant married man, who often defends IRA suspects and is friends with cultured Bohemians who enrage and intri.