‘Flesh And Blood’: Imelda Staunton, Francesca Annis, Russell Tovey & Stephen Rea Star In ITV Family Drama
The Girl and Vera Drake star Imelda Staunton, Cranford star Francesca Annis, Quantico and Years and Years star Russell Tovey and The Crying Game and The Honourable Woman star Stephen Rea are to front ITV family drama Flesh and Blood.
The series is written by The Long Song writer Sarah Williams, who also wrote 2007 Anne Hathaway feature Becoming Jane. It is the story of three adult siblings — Helen, Jake and Natalie — who are thrown into disarray when their recently widowed mother Vivien declares she’s in love with a new man. Flesh and Blood is directed by Cheat and Cold Feet‘s Louise Hooper.
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The cast also includes Claudie Blakley (Manhunt), Lydia Leonard (Gentleman Jack), Sharon Small (Trust Me), Lara Rossi (Crossing Lines), Keir Charles (Love Actually), Vincent Regan (Victoria), David Bamber (The Bourne Identity), Stephanie Langton (Ransom) and Clara Indrani (Vera).
Blakley plays Helen, Tovey plays Jake and Leonard plays Natalie. Annis stars as Vivien with Rea as her new man.
As Vivien nears her 70th birthday, the siblings’ suspicions are heightened when retired GP Mark sweeps their mother off her feet, shifting her priorities away from her children. The happiness of her 45-year marriage to their father, Terry, is called into question, which sends a seismic shock through the lives of the siblings. Years of secrets, lies, rivalries and betrayals come to the surface and threaten to blow apart everything they’ve held dear. With their large family home overlooking the Sussex coast, their inheritance and the happy memories of their childhood all suddenly threatened by the arrival of Mark, the siblings attempt to find out more about him. But will their long-buried grudges and complicated personal lives allow them to pull together? Then there’s Mary, played by Staunton, who has lived next door to Vivien for 40 years. Despite not being family, Mary appears unhealthily attached to Vivien and her family’s unfolding drama.
The series is produced by Silverprint Pictures, the ITV-backed producer responsible for series including Dark Heart and Vera. Commissioned by ITV Head of Drama Polly Hill, Williams executive produces alongside Silverprint Pictures Creative Director Kate Bartlett. Letitia Knight produces.
The series begins filming today in London and on the Sussex coast. ITV Studios Global Entertainment will distribute internationally.
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