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War of the Worlds first pic

H.G. Wells' classic drama gets an Edwardian setting in BBC miniseries, now filming in Liverpool.

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BBC recently released a first photo of its War of the Worlds adaptation, currently filming in Liverpool.

The three part series is written by by Peter Harness (Wallander, Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell) and produced by Mammoth Screen.

Eleanor Tomlinson (Poldark, Loving Vincent) and Rafe Spall (Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, The Big Short) lead the cast alongside Robert Carlyle (T2:Trainspotting, Once Upon A Time) and Rupert Graves (Swimming with Men, Sherlock). It will be directed by Craig Viveiros (And Then There Were None, Rillington Place).

Set in Edwardian England, this new adaptation of H.G. Wells’ seminal tale – the first alien invasion story in literature – follows George (played by Rafe Spall) and his partner Amy (Eleanor Tomlinson) as they attempt to defy society and start a life together. Rupert Graves is Frederick, George’s elder brother, and Robert Carlyle plays Ogilvy, an astronomer and scientist. The War of the Worlds tells their story as they face the escalating terror of an alien invasion, fighting for their lives against an enemy beyond their comprehension.

Eleanor Tomlinson says: “I’m delighted to be taking on the Martians with Rafe Spall in Mammoth Screen’s adaptation of The War Of The Worlds. I’ve been a fan of Craig Viveiros’ work for a while, so creating this world with him at the helm is very exciting.”

Rafe Spall says: “I am thrilled to be a part of bringing this much loved story to the small screen. I couldn’t be in better company with Craig Viveiros, Peter Harness, all at Mammoth Screen and of course, the very talented Eleanor Tomlinson.”

The series will probably go to BBC First in Australia although it has not been confirmed.

2 Responses

  1. Wow – I didn’t know about this! It’s my favourite book of all time and (in the late ’90s) I even wrote a university paper about how War Of The Worlds and the movie Independence Day were exactly the same texts separated by almost exactly 100 years of cultural evolution (England vs America as the world’s dominant power; bacteria killing the Martians vs a computer ‘virus’, and so forth). I really hope we finally get a worthy adaptation of Welles’ classic.

  2. According to Wikipedia War of the Worlds was first serialised in 1897 so this BBC adaption is closer to the original timeline H.G, Wells lived in, but I wonder how the script writers would wish the show to be interpreted set in the past instead of the present as it usually is, I would have developed this classic story as if it were an alternative universe history similar to SS-GB or Man in a High Castle which was screened recently.

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