The BBC has unveiled the first look at ‘The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Aged 13¾‘, with filming now underway on the new adaptation of Sue Townsend’s much-loved novel for BBC iPlayer and BBC One.
Leading the cast is Oliver Savell (Changing Ends, Belfast) as Adrian, the gloriously over-serious teenage diarist at the centre of the story. He’s joined by Lisa McGrillis (Rivals, Mum) as Adrian’s mother Pauline, Colin Hoult (After Life, Slow Horses) as his father George, Pam Ferris (Matilda, The Darling Buds of May) as Grandma, Galaxie Clear (Extra Geography, Secret Service) as Pandora, and Alun Armstrong (The Choral, Breeders) as Bert.
Also joining the cast are Jude Forsey as Nigel, Rory Keenan as Mr Lucas, David Wilmot as Mr Scruton and Karl Collins as Mr Cherry.
Adapted by David Nicholls (One Day, Us), the nine-part series brings Adrian’s diary to the screen as he stumbles through family chaos, first love, teenage embarrassment and the everyday drama of growing up in early 1980s Britain. It sounds like exactly the sort of warm, funny and painfully awkward material that should suit the character perfectly.
There’s a strong writing team behind ‘The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Aged 13¾’ too, with Caitlin Moran, Caroline Moran, Dillon Mapletoft, Oliver Taylor and Jack Rooke also contributing scripts. Alex Winckler directs, while Charlotte Robinson produces, with Big Talk Studios making the series for the BBC.
The newly released first-look image gives us our first proper glimpse of Savell as Adrian, complete with newspaper bag and a suitably moody pose that already feels very on-brand for one of British fiction’s most famously dramatic teenagers.
‘The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Aged 13¾‘ does not yet have a premiere date but will air on BBC iPlayer and BBC One in the UK. If you want to keep track of this or any other shows, you can add them via our Never Miss system, and you’ll be notified when it gets a UK premiere date. Visit Never Miss.
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