TV

'My Name is Leon': Malachi Kirby, Monica Dolan join BBC adaptation

By Wade Sheridan   |   March 1, 2021 at 7:53 AM

March 1 (UPI) -- Malachi Kirby (Small Axe), Monica Dolan (A Very English Scandal), Olivia Williams (Counterpart) and more have joined the cast of BBC One's upcoming adaptation of author Kit de Waal's debut novel, My Name is Leon.

Christopher Eccleston (The A Word), Poppy Lee Friar (In My Skin), Sir Lenny Henry CBE (The Lord of the Rings) and Cole Martin have also joined the cast.

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Martin will play the lead role of Leon, a 9-year-old mixed race boy who is on a quest to reunite his family after being separated from his blonde, blue-eyed baby brother.

Production has begun on the television film, which is set in 1980s Birmingham, England. My Name is Leon is produced by Douglas Road Productions in association with Tiger Aspect Productions, Ringside Studios and Vicarious Productions for BBC One and BBC iPlayer.

Lynette Linton will be making her directorial debut, based off a script by Shola Amoo.

"We are absolutely delighted to be working with Douglas Road, Ringside and Vicarious on this very special adaptation of My Name is Leon for BBC One. I can't wait to see Lynette and our fantastic cast bring Shola's take on Kit de Waal's brilliant and utterly affecting story to life," Mona Qureshi, executive producer for BBC One says in a statement.