Epic World War II drama World on Fire will premiere on BBC First next month.
From multi-award winning Peter Bowker (The A Word), World On Fire is a heart-stopping, multi-stranded drama telling the story of World War Two through the lives of ordinary people from all sides of this global conflict.
It features a stellar ensemble cast including Academy Award winner Helen Hunt (As Good As It Gets), Emmy and BAFTA-winner Sean Bean (Game of Thrones), and Academy Award nominated and Olivier Award winner Lesley Manville (Mum), together with rising stars Johan Hauer-King (Little Women), Julia Brown (The Last Kingdom) and Polish Academy Award-winner Zofia Wichlacz (Warsaw 44). The first series draws viewers gradually into the creeping horror of the outbreak of the war during its first year. It traces the intertwining fates of relatable, vividly drawn characters from Britain, Poland, France, Germany and the United States as they grapple with the effect of the war on their everyday lives.
Delivering a never-before-seen perspective on the early days of war, this emotionally gripping drama explores the human stories hidden within one of the most pivotal and seismic moments in twentieth-century history.
Writer Peter Bowker says: “From Harry, a young English translator in Warsaw caught up in negotiations with the Nazis and trying to smuggle his Polish lover Kasia out of the country, to Lois, the girl who is waiting for him at home, a young Mancunian factory worker who will come to take all the opportunities the war can offer to live a different kind of life. From Nancy, a female US war correspondent who can’t find peace unless her life is at risk, to the Rossler family in Berlin, worried for their soldier son and willing to do anything to protect their disabled daughter from the attentions of the ruling Nazi regime. These are the stories of the ordinary people who shaped our world. Stories of loyalty and brutality, courage and fear, hopes, stories of love and loss, hopes and dreams forged in extraordinary times.”
World on Fire will premiere on BBC First on Sunday, October 13 at 8.30pm
