Sam Clafin to star in Greg Latter's adaptation of THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO, directed by Billie August

As reported by Variety, THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO, a new series adapted from the classic Alexandre Dumas novel by Greg Latter, is now in production. Directed by legendary Danish Director Billie August, whose 1987 film PELLE THE CONQUEROR won the Palme d'Or and the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, the series will star Sam Clafin (DAISY JONES & THE SIX) in the lead role.

THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO is the first television series produced entirely by the Mediawan group. Palomar in Italy, best known for its INSPECTOR MONTALBANO series, is lead producer, in collaboration with DEMD Productions in France. The show will be distributed through Mediawan Rights and has been commissioned by broadcasters RAI Fiction in Italy and France Televisions in France.

The series follows Edmond Dantes, played by Clafin, a nineteen-year-old sailor who is wrongfully accused of treason. After years of imprisonment in the Château d’If, a frightening fortress on an island near Marseille, Dantes escapes and assumes the persona of the Count of Monte Cristo. He soon plots his revenge on those who had him imprisoned.

Carlo Degli Esposti, Palomar’s co-founder and veteran producer, told Variety he was confident that “quality of the script” written by Greg Latter, along with “the creative vision of August and performance of Sam Claflin in the title role” would give THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO “a modern edge while remaining faithful to the legacy of Alexandre Dumas’ work.” 

The series is currently filming across France, Italy, and Malta. The five-month shoot will wrap in December.

About Greg Latter

Greg is an award-winning South African writer and director who has worked all over the world. He is the recipient of the Thomas Pringle Award for Creative Writing (1982), the Sithengi Best Screenplay Award (2005), the SAFTA Best Screenplay Award (2007) and the Naledi Best Play Award (2011). In a career spanning 35 years, he has had 22 feature films, 11 television series and 5 plays produced.

Greg has worked with director Billie August several times before, including on his highly praised feature NIGHT TRAIN TO LISBON, which starred Jeremy Irons as the lead. Their most recent collaboration, the feature film ME, YOU, went into production in September 2022 and stars Tom Hollander and James Franco.

Emma Mitchell’s THE WILD REMEDY JOURNAL to be published by Michael O’Mara Books

THE WILD REMEDY JOURNAL by Emma Mitchell – an exquisite new book full of Emma’s artworks, photographs, observations and reflections on nature, along with prompts and ideas to help readers strengthen their relationship with nature and improve their mental and physical wellbeing – has been snapped up by Michael O’Mara Books. World all-language rights were acquired by Nicki Crossley from Blake Friedmann’s Juliet Pickering.

The book will be available in paperback on the 4th of January, 2024.

The journal follows 2019’s Sunday Times bestselling THE WILD REMEDY: HOW NATURE MENDS US, a deeply personal, unique record of Emma’s woodland walks and wildlife discoveries over the course of a year, detailing how each encounter significantly influenced her mental wellbeing, and an exploration of the neuroscience behind it. Having suffered with depression for over twenty-five years, Emma is an unflinchingly honest and knowledgeable writer, as well as a talented artist, designer and maker. With this journal, she invites her many followers to accompany her with her hands-on exploration of the natural world, and the benefits it can bring.

The new book has already received a ringing endorsement by naturalist and TV presenter Chris Packham, who says of THE WILD REMEDY JOURNAL: ‘At a time when disconnection from wildlife threatens our mental health this book offers the perfect adaptor to plug our brains back into nature’s therapeutic socket. Page by page it reconnects us to the real, wild world we live in. A must-read for any modern-day Homo sapien.’

Emma Mitchell said: ‘I am thrilled to be working with the Michael O’Mara team again. Centuries of anecdotal evidence and literary accounts echo my experiences, and research is beginning to elucidate the scientific mechanisms that underpin nature’s ability to soothe a troubled mind. My hope is that this book may encourage others who may have stressful lives to experience the curative effects of nature by exploring their local patch.’

Nicki Crossley, Senior Commissioning Editor for Michael O’Mara said: ‘Once again, Emma has stunned us with this beautiful book. She is so grounded in nature and there’s no one who can convey its benefits and the scientific evidence that proves those benefits in quite the way Emma does. This time she asks her readers to engage directly with her, recording their thoughts, feelings and finds when connecting with nature. Always candid, hugely knowledgeable and so, so human, this has been a very personal journey for Emma and I’m sure it will resonate with many.’

About Emma Mitchell

Emma trained as a scientist and has a particular interest in how simple acitivities can alter brain biochemistry in order to improve mental health. She has written segments for BBC Springwatch & Autumnwatch, featured on the BBC’s Countryfile and Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour. Emma is one of the Guardian’s Country Diarists and has written for a number of publications, including Country Living, the ipaper, and Mollie Makes. Her first book, MAKING WINTER: A Creative Guide to Surviving the Winter Months, was published to outstanding praise in 2017, and her illustrated diary THE WILD REMEDY: How Nature Mends Us, was published in 2019 and became a Sunday Times bestseller.

Emma lives on the edge of the Fens in Eastern England with her husband, two daughters and Annie their lurcher. She often records her daily nature finds with photographs and illustrations on her Twitter (@silverpebble) & Instagram (@silverpebble2).

Praise for THE WILD REMEDY

Recommended by Britney Spears

‘An absolute joy. Rarely do you find a book that soothes both the mind and the soul, but THE WILD REMEDY has managed it. This is such a powerful and beautiful book, and I can't think of anyone whose life would not be a better place for reading it.’ – Joanna Cannon

‘Emma's writing is precise, gorgeous and inspiring, and I am delighted to have a whole year's worth of her beautiful artwork. She makes me look more closely, learn more gladly and get outside more.’ – Amy Liptrot

‘A beautiful book that explores the seasons in elegant prose accompanied by Mitchell's charming illustrations. It's a diary of nature, but also of how it can heal.’ – Sunday Telegraph

Visit Emma's website

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Alan Parks’ BOBBY MARCH WILL LIVE FOREVER wins le Prix Mystère De La Critique

Alan Parks has been awarded the Prix Mystère De La Critique for BOBBY MARS FOREVER – the French title of BOBBY MARCH WILL LIVE FOREVER, the third book in Parks’s critically acclaimed Harry McCoy series. The much-loved series has won awards in several countries – this follows the Edgar Prize win for the same title in the US and the McIlvanney Prize for MAY GOD FORGIVE, presented at the Bloody Scotland festival last year.

Alan was presented with this latest prize in person at the Un Aller Retour Dans Le Noir festival in Pau on Sunday (1 October 2023). The award, one of the longest-running crime novel prizes in France, is given by Georges Rieben and his colleagues from the Mystère Magazine, with one prize for the best French crime novel, and another for international crime writing in translation.

Alan was also awarded, for the second year running, the Prix Rivages des Libraires – an honour bestowed by a panel of 100 participating booksellers from across France – following on from his 2022 victory for his previous Harry McCoy novel, L'ENFANT DE FÉVRIER (FEBRUARY’S SON).

All of the Harry McCoy novels by Alan Parks are published in France by Editions Payots-Rivages, with their next translation, THE APRIL DEAD, out in Spring 2024. The 6th McCoy title TO DIE IN JUNE, was published by Canongate in the UK in June 2023 and will be out in the US from Europa in June 2024. The Harry McCoy series is published further in translation in Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain and Sweden. Film/TV rights are also under option.  

Congratulations Alan!

About BOBBY MARCH WILL LIVE FOREVER

Glasgow. August 1973. A city on fire. Who is to blame when no one is innocent ? The papers want blood. The force wants results. The law must be served, whatever the cost.

July 1973. The Glasgow drugs trade is booming and Bobby March, the city's own rock-star hero, has just overdosed in a central hotel. Alice Kelly is twelve years old, lonely. And missing. Meanwhile the niece of McCoy's boss has fallen in with a bad crowd and when she goes AWOL, McCoy is asked — off the books — to find her. McCoy has a hunch. But does he have enough time?

About Alan Parks

Alan Parks worked in the music industry for over twenty years before turning to crime writing.

His debut BLOODY JANUARY was shortlisted for the Grand Prix de Littérature Policière, FEBRUARY’S SON was nominated for an Edgar Award, BOBBY MARCH WILL LIVE FOREVER won the Edgar Award for Best Paperback Original, the Prix Mystère de la Critique in the foreign fiction category, and was shortlisted for the Macavity Award for Best Mystery Novel and THE APRIL DEAD was shortlisted for the McIlvanney Prize for Scottish Crime Book of the Year. The fifth Harry McCoy book, MAY GOD FORGIVE, was published in April 2022 and won the McIlvanney Prize for Scottish Crime Book of the Year 2022. It was shortlisted for the 2023 CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger Award and longlisted for the 2023 Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award. Most recently, TO DIE IN JUNE, the sixth entry in the series, was published by Canongate in 2023. The Harry McCoy series is optioned for television.

Alan was born in Scotland and attended The University of Glasgow where he was awarded a M.A. in Moral Philosophy. He still lives and works in the city as well as spending time in London.

Praise for Alan Parks

‘One of the great Scottish crime writers’ – The Times

‘Tipped to become an enduring classic of tartan noir.’ – Sunday Post

‘Dark and gritty… Gripping.’ – Crime Monthly

‘A brilliant series’ – Sunday Times Crime Club

‘Bloody and brilliant’ – Louise Welsh (on BLOODY JANUARY)

‘Pitch-black Tartan noir: bleak, but with an emotional heart that's hard to ignore.’ – Daily Mail (on FEBRUARY’S SON)

‘Manoeuvering through the mean streets of Glasgow, the morally ambiguous, deeply flawed McCoy makes an ideal antihero.’ – Publishers Weekly (on BOBBY MARCH WILL LIVE FOREVER, Edgar Prize Winner 2022)

‘Altogether one of the best police thrillers of the last few years.’ – Morning Star (on THE APRIL DEAD)

Visit Alan’s website

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Graeme Armstrong’s documentary STREET GANGS to air on BBC

Credit: BBC

STREET GANGS, a new documentary series presented by Graeme Armstrong and inspired by his novel THE YOUNG TEAM, will premiere on the BBC this Wednesday (5 October 2023). In Scotland, the programme will be broadcast on BBC Scotland at 10pm on Wednesday; viewers in both Scotland and the rest of the UK will be able to watch on BBC iPlayer shortly after.

In the three-part series ex-gang member Graeme Armstrong travels to forgotten areas of Scotland to shine a light on the allure of gang life. He encounters drill musicians and street gang members, while also exploring his own past, and tries to understand why young people are seduced by the perceived glamour and excitement of gang life by speaking to young people themselves. The series will also include interviews with the actor and filmmaker Peter Mullan (TRAINSPOTTING, MY NAME IS JOE, NEDS) and Dundonian rapper Eugene.

About the series, Graeme told Connie McLaughlin for BBC Radio Scotland: ‘this is the natural evolution for me now – if you’re not part of the gang, you’re trying to prevent gang culture… If you want to interrupt something like gang culture, you need to understand it. Looking at the past will tell you a lot of information about it, but what we need to do is go and listen and speak to young people, and see what they want to say: so we’ve given a voice to people who don’t have one, and that opportunity, that’s what the series is all about. There’s two journeys: there’s my journey into the past, but there’s also these kids’ journey into the future.’

You can hear more of Graeme’s interview with BBC Radio Scotland here (from 1:11:10).

The series is produced by Harry Bell for Tern TV, and the series producer is Pete Stanton. The directors are Jo Pagan and Alistair Ferguson, as part of BBC Scotland and Screen Scotland’s new initiative backing emerging directors.

About Graeme Armstrong

Graeme Armstrong is a Scottish writer from Airdrie. His teenage years were spent within North Lanarkshire’s gang culture. Alongside overcoming his own struggles with drug addiction, alcohol abuse and violence, he defied expectation to read English as an undergraduate at the University of Stirling; where, after graduating with honours, he returned to study a Masters’ in Creative Writing. He is currently undertaking a PhD at the University of Strathclyde.

Graeme regularly works within the community visiting prisons and schools, giving talks on his experiences of gang-culture and substance abuse. He promotes a message of anti-violence and abstinence-based recovery.

His bestselling debut novel, THE YOUNG TEAM (Picador, 2020), is inspired by his experiences. It won a Betty Trask Award, a Somerset Maugham Award, and the Scots Book o the Year 2021.

In 2021, Graeme presented Scotland: The Rave, a documentary broadcast by the BBC that explored Scotland’s rave and PCDJ culture, subsequently nominated for a BAFTA Scotland and RTS Scotland Award 2022.

In 2023, Graeme was chosen as one of Granta’s Best of Young British Novelists, an accolade that is awarded once a decade.

Praise for Graeme Armstrong and THE YOUNG TEAM

‘Graeme Armstrong is the real deal.’ – Douglas Stuart

‘One of the most admired young voices in British fiction’ – Mike Wade, The Times

‘Has proved the novel form is still alive and kicking… a genuine literary phenomenon… Indeed, Armstrong is that rare thing, a writer whose work has become a tangible part of a social material, as has Armstrong himself.’ – James Taylor, Metal Magazine

‘Gives us a voice from a place – geographically and socio-economically – we don’t often hear from’ – John Self, The Times

‘Armstrong’s hard-hitting novel is TRAINSPOTTING for a new generation’ – Independent

‘An instant Scottish classic… While its dialect might make THE YOUNG TEAM seem like a story rooted in the specificity of its location, the novel’s exploration of mental health and drug use tells a universal tale of working-class masculinity’ — The Skinny

‘A swaggering, incendiary debut… Sharp yet tender and mischievously funny, THE YOUNG TEAM pitches Armstrong straight into the first division of Scottish writers.’ – Jude Cook, The Guardian

Follow Graeme on Twitter

Kathryn Faulke’s ‘powerful, moving’ debut EVERY KIND OF PEOPLE won at auction by Fig Tree

After a hotly-contested auction, Helen Garnons-Williams of Fig Tree has acquired Kathryn Faulke’s poignant and timely memoir EVERY KIND OF PEOPLE: A Journey into the Heart of Carework. Isobel Dixon brokered the deal for UK and Commonwealth rights (excluding Canada) and Fig Tree, a part of Penguin General, will publish in hardback, ebook and audio in July 2024.

EVERY KIND OF PEOPLE is the first-of-its-kind memoir of a home care worker, told through her encounters with the overlooked and often marginalised people she cares for. It recounts the experiences of Kathryn Faulke, a domiciliary care worker who left a senior role in the NHS, to take up what she thought would be a simpler job of caring for people in their own homes. But despite being determined not to become too involved with her 'customers', she soon found herself developing firm friendships, forging deep connections and bearing witness to the extraordinary drama to be found in ordinary lives.

With energy, compassion and hard-won humour, EVERY KIND OF PEOPLE gives an astonishing insight into this unsung – and often maligned – profession, and into the lives of the housebound and infirm. This beautifully written memoir is clear-eyed about the challenges facing the NHS and the care system, but it is, above all, a celebration of humanity and of the life-changing impact of caring, on those who offer it and those who receive it.

Helen Garnons-Williams, Publishing Director of Fig Tree says ‘We are so proud to welcome Kathryn Faulke to Fig Tree and to be publishing her powerful, beautifully moving account of working at the ‘coalface of human experience’. With warmth and honesty and (unsurprisingly) very great care, she illuminates and celebrates this undervalued profession and the often-disregarded people who depend on it.’

‘I’m thrilled to be working with Fig Tree to bring my early experience as a care worker into the public eye and shine a light on the profession that I have come to love so much,’ says Kathryn Faulke. ‘I would like people to understand not only the challenges but the satisfaction and joy to be found in doing this job that is so often swept under the carpet but is so vital to our communities.’

Isobel Dixon, Kathryn’s agent, says: ‘Kathryn Faulke’s story – and her compassion and humanity in bearing witness to the lives of others – struck right to the heart from the very first page. I knew this powerful and important book would be in the best of hands with Helen and the Fig Tree team and can’t wait for more readers to experience EVERY KIND OF PEOPLE’s particularly human magic.’

About Kathryn Faulke

EVERY KIND OF PEOPLE is Kathryn Faulke's first book. She was runner-up in the Wasafiri International New Writing Prize in 2020, and in 2021 she won the Mslexia Memoir Prize for an earlier version of Every Kind of People. She has now moved out of London but continues to work in care in the South-East of England.