BBC ONE ANNOUNCES THE DUBLIN MURDERS

26 September 2017

BBC ONE announces that Sarah Phelps, who has most recently reimagined the Agatha Christie novels, is next turning her attention to the writing of Dublin’s leading crime novelist, Tana French, penning The Dublin Murders.

Commissioned by Piers Wenger, Controller of BBC Drama, and Charlotte Moore, Controller of BBC Content for BBC ONE, The Dublin Murders is drawn from Tana French’s first two novels In the Woods and The Likeness. The eight-part series will be produced by Euston Films, Veritas Entertainment Group and Element Pictures.

Sarah Phelps said: “Tana’s compelling novels are both nail-biting thrillers, enquiries into the nature of evil and heartbreaking stories of human frailty, love and loss. I couldn’t be more excited to be bringing The Dublin Murders to audiences.”

The Dublin Murder Squad novels have won major awards and topped bestseller lists across the world. Each novel is led by a different detective from the same Dublin squad and their signature is an intense emotional connection between cop and crime, underpinned by a disturbing tremor from another darker influence.

Piers Wenger, Controller of BBC Drama, said: “Sarah has brought Tana’s haunting stories to life with depth, flair and a deft touch of the modern gothic. More psychological thriller than police procedural, expect them to become a huge talking point on BBC One.”

Kate Harwood, Euston Films Executive Producer said: “I’ve loved Tana’s books since I first read the very first one and bringing the passionate, vivid writing skills of Sarah Phelps to bear on the work of this new mistress of crime should deliver tense and authored psychological drama”.

Alan Gasmer and Peter Jaysen, Veritas Entertainment Group (Fahrenheit 451, Crash &Burn) Executive Producers said: “We are thrilled to have brought Veritas, Euston Films and Element Pictures together in the long quest for the television rights for Tana French’s Dublin Murder Squad novels.”

Ed Guiney of Element Pictures said: “We are delighted to be working with Euston and Veritas and the brilliant Sarah Phelps to bring these iconic Dublin set books to the screen.”

Brilliantly blending the two first books in the Dublin Murder Squad series Sarah Phelps reacts to the dark drama of the novels and delivers a contemporary world of psychological mystery and darkness with a tap root that is sunk deep in Ireland’s past.

The Dublin Murders (8×60’) has been commissioned by Piers Wenger, Controller of BBC Drama, and Charlotte Moore, Director of BBC Content, and will be produced by Euston Films, Element Pictures and Veritas. The executive producers are Kate Harwood and Sarah Phelps for Euston Films, Alan Gasmer and Peter Jaysen for Veritas Entertainment Group, Ed Guiney for Element Pictures, and Elizabeth Kilgarriff for the BBC. Filming will start next year in Belfast and Dublin.

Casting will be announced in due course and FremantleMedia International will handle the international distribution of The Dublin Murders.