Matthew Goode & Teresa Palmer Join ‘A Discovery of Witches’ On Sky 1
As we reported back in February last year, Jane Tranter & Julie Gardner’s Bad Wolf production company were developing an adaptation of Deborah Harkness’ ‘A Discovery of Witches‘. Now that series not only has a home on Sky 1 but also has a cast.
‘A Discovery of Witches’ is a contemporary love story set against the backdrop of Oxford academic life, but in a world where a handful of witches, vampires, and demons live and work unseen amongst humans, hiding in plain sight. Teresa Palmer (‘Hacksaw Ridge’, ‘Point Break’) will star as brilliant academic and historian Diana Bishop, a reluctant witch denying her heritage. The discovery of a manuscript in Oxford’s Bodleian Library throws her into the heart of a dangerous mystery – and into the path of enigmatic geneticist Matthew Clairmont (Matthew Goode – ‘Downton Abbey’, ‘The Good Wife’), who we discover also has a dark family secret: he is a vampire.
As Diana and Matthew embark on a journey to understand the secrets of an ancient manuscript and as their relationship develops and their heritage comes in to play, events threaten to unravel the fragile peace that has long existed between witches, vampires, demons, and humans.
“A Discovery of Witches is a proper love story for grown-ups,” comments Anne Mensah, Sky’s head of drama. “However, the fact that it also examines science, magic and being ‘other’ in the modern world makes it a must watch. Deborah Harkness and Kate Brooke have given us a drama that packs both an emotional and thought-provoking punch. With the breathtaking vision of director Juan Carlos Medina and the Bad Wolf team, I feel very confident we are offering our customers something truly magical.”
Australian actress Teresa Palmer has appeared in a number of movies, including ‘Warm Bodies’ with Nicholas Hoult, the 2015 remake of ‘Point Break’, and ‘The Ever After’ which she co-wrote and co-produced with her husband, Mark Webber. Matthew Goode appeared as Ozymandias in Zack Snyder’s ‘Watchmen’, was in ‘The Imitation Game’, and ‘The Good Wife’, but is probably best known to UK audiences as Henry Talbot in ‘Downton Abbey’.
“Teresa and Matthew perfectly capture my characters, comments author Deborah Harkness. “I’m so excited by the casting and how they will bring the books to life.”
The show is a Sky Original Production from Bad Wolf, and will begin shooting in September at the new Wolf Studios in Wales and on location in Oxford – If you hadn’t twigged by now, Jane Tranter & Julie Gardner were both involved in the resurrection of ‘Doctor Who’, hence the name of the studio! Kate Brooke (‘Mr. Selfridge’, ‘The Forsyte Saga’) is writing the adaptation.
“A Discovery of Witches is a bold contemporary love story beautifully adapted by Kate Brooke from the books by Deborah Harkness,” says Tranter. “We can’t wait to introduce fans of the novels to our cast and to bring in a whole new audience to these extraordinary stories.”
‘A Discovery of Witches‘ is expected to land on Sky 1 and NOW TV in 2018.
