FILMING COMMENCES ON HIGHLY ANTICIPATED NEW CRIME DRAMA GRACE BASED ON PETER JAMES’ ROY GRACE SERIES

Credit: James Clarke

Filming has commenced on brand new ITV crime drama, Grace, based on international bestselling author Peter James’ Detective Superintendent Roy Grace series. The series is written by acclaimed screenwriter and Endeavour creator, Russell Lewis. 

Starring acclaimed actor John Simm as tenacious detective Roy Grace, Russell has adapted two of Peter James’ award winning novels which introduce the audience to Brighton based Detective Superintendent Roy Grace, a hard-working police officer who has given his life to the job. 

Co-produced by Second Act Productions, Tall Story Pictures and Vaudeville Productions, the 2 x 120 screenplays narrate the first two stories in the popular Roy Grace series, DEAD SIMPLE and LOOKING GOOD DEAD.

Joining John Simm, as filming commences in Brighton, are Richie Campbell (Liar, Blue Story, Top Boy) who takes the role of DS Glenn Branson and Rakie Ayola (Noughts + Crosses, Shetland, No Offence) as ACC Vosper.

Laura Elphinstone (Game of Thrones, Chernobyl, Line of Duty) is DS Bella Moy, Amaka Okafor (The Split, Vera) plays DC Emma Jane Boutwood, and Brad Morrison (National Theatre Live; Twelfth Night) takes the role of DC Nicholl.

Rebecca Scrogs (Alex Rider, Flack, Scarborough) plays Branson’s wife Ari, Alexander Cobb (Doctors, Vera) plays Kevin Spinella and they are also joined by Adrian Rawlings (Chernobyl, Girlfriends, Innocent), Natasha Joseph (Get Even, Doctors, Sex Education), Tom Weston-Jones (Warrior, The Terror, Dickensian), Matt Stokoe (Cursed, Jamestown, Bodyguard), Alisha Bailey (Save Me, Chewing Gum) and Maggie O’Neill (White Lines, The Split, Shameless).

The first film, Dead Simple, opens with Grace running enquiries into long forgotten cold cases with little or no prospect of success. He’s fixated by the disappearance of his beloved wife, Sandy, which haunts his thoughts. His unorthodox police methods have come under scrutiny once again and Grace is walking a career tightrope and risks being moved from the job he loves most.

With so much at stake, his colleague Detective Sergeant Glenn Branson knows he has more to give and asks him for help with a case. When a stag night prank appears to go wrong and the groom goes missing, Branson calls upon Grace to unravel events that led to the mysterious disappearance three days before his wedding to his beautiful fiancé. 

A successful property developer with everything to live for, there is no trace of the missing groom. Is this a case of stag night shenanigans gone badly awry? Or is this something more sinister?

With nothing but instinct, a lingering suspicion and his obsessive nature, Grace doggedly pursues the groom’s disappearance and becomes uneasily close to the bride to be…

Executive producers are Andrew O’Connor and Paul Sandler for Second Act Productions, Patrick Schweitzer for Tall Story Pictures, Michael Vine for Vaudeville Productions, and Russell Lewis and Peter James.  The first film, Dead Simple, is directed by John Alexander (Belgravia, Trust Me, Jamestown) with the second film, Looking Good Dead, directed by Julia Ford (Sticks and Stones, The Bay II, Safe).

Writer Russell Lewis is also known for his work on Morse, Lewis, Murphy’s Law, Sharpe’s Peril and Kavanagh QC.

Commented Russell Lewis:

‘I’m thrilled and honoured to be involved in bringing Peter James’ brilliantly gripping series of Roy Grace novels to ITV.  Each story is a fantastic, hair-raising, twisting, switch-back of a roller-coaster ride that grips the reader from first to last, and the opportunity to translate that best-selling magic to television is like all one’s Christmases and birthdays come at once. As his millions of fans and admirers are well aware, Peter's meticulous research and eye for detail is the stuff of legend.  His long established, close relationship with the police, taken together with a knowledge of Brighton and the South Coast that is the sole preserve of the born and bred lends his stories an unimpeachable veracity of place and procedure. That John Simm will be breathing flesh to the bones of Roy Grace really is the cherry on a dark, and troublingly encrimsoned cake…’

ITV’s Head of Drama, Polly Hill, and Drama Commissioner, Huw Kennair Jones have commissioned Grace for the channel. Huw will oversee production of the drama from the channel’s perspective.

Commented Peter James:

‘John Simm, who actually looks like the Roy Grace of my imagination, is inspired casting!  With John in the lead, the brilliant scripting by Russell Lewis, and our wonderful production team, I’m confident that fans of my novels and of TV crime dramas in general will be in for a treat.’

ITV Studios GD will be responsible for the international distribution of Grace.

About Peter James
Peter James is a UK No. 1 bestselling author, best known for writing crime and thriller novels, and the creator of the much-loved Detective Superintendent Roy Grace. With a total of 16 Sunday Times No. 1s under his belt, he has achieved global book sales of over 20 million copies to date and has been translated into 37 languages.

Synonymous with plot-twisting page-turners, Peter has garnered an army of loyal fans throughout his storytelling career – which also included stints writing for TV and producing films. He has won over 40 awards for his work, including the WHSmith Best Crime Author of All Time Award, Crime Writers’ Association Diamond Dagger and a BAFTA nomination for The Merchant of Venice starring Al Pacino and Jeremy Irons for which he was an executive producer. Many of Peter’s novels have been adapted for film, TV and stage.

Praise for Peter James

‘Peter James is one of the best crime writers in the business’ – Karin Slaughter

‘Probably the closest we’ll get to a British Stephen King’ – The Financial Times

‘Peter James is one of the most fiendishly clever crime fiction plotters’ – The Daily Mail

‘Another first-rate detective superintendent Roy Grace adventure.’ –The Independent

PETER JAMES ADDS NEW ROY GRACE TITLE TO QUICK READS PROGRAMME!

International bestselling crime author Peter James is to be one of the six authors selected for the popular Quick Reads scheme, as confirmed in The Reading Agency’s announcement on 8 September, International Literacy Day. The Quick Reads Scheme is designed to promote adult literacy by creating books that are entertaining and appeal to the widest possible audience. Since its launch in 2006, over 5 million Quick Reads books have been distributed across the country. Ten years ago Peter’s novella A PERFECT MURDER was an immensely popular Quick Reads title and went on to become a smash hit play as well.

Peter’s novella, WISH YOU WERE DEAD, will be published by Pan Macmillan alongside works of leading authors Oyinkan Braithwaite, Caitlin Moran, Louise Candlish, Khurrum Rahman, and Katie Fforde. This phenomenal line-up will be released on 27th May 2021 to mark the 15th anniversary of this life-changing programme. All the titles will be available for just £1 from bookshops and are free to borrow from libraries and other institutions such as prisons and hospitals. When the Quick Reads scheme’s funding was threatened, author JoJo Moyes stepped in to fund the project for three years and Peter is delighted to be part of the re-launch line-up with WISH YOU WERE DEAD now.

WISH YOU WERE DEAD features Peter’s beloved character Detective Superintendent Roy Grace. Holidaying with his family in a beautiful old chateau in a far-flung corner of France, what should be a dream getaway quickly turns nightmarish… Told with his usual ingenuity and verve, WISH YOU WERE DEAD is a worthy addition to the Roy Grace series and we could not be more excited that it is going to be published as part of the invaluable Quick Reads scheme.

Credit: James Clarke

The 16th full Roy Grace title FIND THEM DEAD shot straight to Number One on the Sunday Times hardback bestseller list in July, and stayed in the Top Ten for 7 weeks. It will be released in paperback on 29 October, following the hardback release on 1 October of another striking standalone title, I FOLLOW YOU. The Roy Grace series will be filmed for ITV broadcast in 2021, starring John Simm as Grace, with shooting starting in Brighton shortly.

See more on Peter’s author website here.

About the author
Peter James is the international bestselling author of many award-winning novels. His books have been translated into thirty-seven languages, with worldwide sales of over twenty million copies and his Detective Superintendent Roy Grace series, set in Brighton, has given him 16 consecutive Sunday Times Number Ones. In 2015 WH Smith customers voted him the Greatest Crime Author of All Time and in 2016 he was awarded the coveted CWA Diamond Dagger, a lifetime achievement award for sustained excellence. In 2018 he received a Specsavers Honorary Platinum Bestseller Award.

Praise for Peter James
‘Peter James is one of the most fiendishly clever crime fiction plotters’ – Daily Mail

‘A master plotter’ – The Bookseller

'Peter James has penetrated the inner workings of police procedures, and the inner thoughts and attitudes of real detectives, as no English crime writer before him.' – The Times

‘Peter James is one of the best crime writers in the business’ – Lee Child

Trapeze Books Wins Two Novels From Striking New Voice Jendella Benson

Sam Eades, Publishing Director, Trapeze Books, has won UK & Commonwealth rights, excluding Canada, in a fiercely-fought auction from Juliet Pickering, to GLORY and a second novel by Jendella Benson, Head of Editorial at Black Ballad. GLORY was pre-empted in a six-figure deal by William Morrow in the US.

GLORY is a rich, heart-warming story of loss, love and family chaos, and marks an exciting new voice in fiction. Glory Akíndélé arrives back in Peckham, from her seemingly-glamorous life in LA, to mourn the sudden death of her father, and finds her previously-close family has fallen apart in her absence. Her brother, Victor, has been jailed; her sister, Faith, appears to have lost her independence and ambition; and their mother, Celeste, is headed towards a breakdown. Glory is thrown by their disarray, and rather than returning to America she decides to stay and try to bring them all together again. However, when she unearths a huge family secret, Glory risks losing everyone she truly cares about in her pursuit of the truth.

Sam Eades, editor, said: ‘GLORY is a thoughtful exploration of Nigerian heritage and how tradition and history shapes families and the relationships within them. It is also a compulsive page-turner, with several revelations and narrative turning points that will have readers racing to the end. And at this book’s centre is Glory, and what I love about her as a character is her ability to connect those around her, at a time where human connection feels more important than ever. Jendella is a phenomenal talent, and I’m thrilled that she has chosen Trapeze Books as her publisher.’

Jendella Benson, author, said: ‘I'm really excited to introduce Glory and her loving but complicated family. This book was inspired by my own "quarter-life" crisis and the push and pull you often feel as a young adult between defining yourself as an individual and the loyalty you have to your family and their expectations. Knowing how powerful it can be to see yourself and characters that you immediately recognise reflected in what you read, I really wanted to write a story that was rooted in the experience of being from a British-Nigerian family but also captured all colours and contradictions of being a Black British millennial who is still trying to make sense of their place in the world. Glory's struggle to find herself and deal with the burdens of family secrets and shame is something that I think everyone can relate to in one way or another and I'm really happy that Sam and the whole Trapeze team immediately understood what Glory's story was about. This is a slice of British life that as a reader I know we don't get to see enough, so to say that I'm delighted to contribute to British literary landscape in this way is probably an understatement.’

Juliet Pickering, agent, said: ‘To see GLORY grow from an idea into a novel has been a joy, and I’m thrilled to know that this troubled, wry and relatable young woman’s story will be widely read and enjoyed. GLORY has all my favourite ingredients: family dysfunction, friendship, romance and ambition, from a voice we don’t often find in fiction. Jendella is at the start of what I have no doubt will be a very exciting career, and I can’t wait to launch her debut alongside Trapeze in early 2022.’

About the author

Jendella is Head of Editorial at Black Ballad – the award-winning digital platform for Black British women – and has previously been a columnist for Media Diversified, MTV UK, and Christian Today. She has written for Metro Online and Independent Voices, as well as had her visual work featured in The Guardian, The Metro, The Voice Newspaper, and on London Live. Her short story, KINDLING, was published in The Book of Birmingham and her visual work has been exhibited across the UK and internationally, most notably at the House of Commons, Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery, and at the International Center of Photography in New York as part of ICP Projected in May 2018. Finally, Jendella is a TEDx speaker who has also appeared on BBC Radio 4’s Women’s Hour, as well as speaking at various universities and conferences.

GLORY by Jendella Benson will be published by Trapeze Books on 17 February 2022 in hardback, eBook and audio on 17 February 2022 in hardback, eBook and audio. Preorder now from Sevenoaks Bookshop for a signed first edition and exclusive print: https://www.sevenoaksbookshop.co.uk/shop/glory-by-jendella-benson/

Visit Jendella’s website

Follow Jendella on Twitter

MICHAEL LEE RICHARDSON IS ONE TO WATCH AT THE EDINBURGH TV FEST

A huge congratulations to Michael Lee Richardson who has been named one of Edinburgh International Television Festival’s Ones to Watch for 2020,

Ones to Watch gives television’s best and brightest access to inspiring sessions, creative debate and unrivalled networking opportunities in August, as well as support and mentoring throughout the year. A place on Ones to Watch is a life-changing, money-can’t-buy opportunity.

The 2020 edition of Ones to Watch will take place over 6 days in August - 3 days of exclusive Ones to Watch content and 3 days to 'attend' the Edinburgh TV Festival, which this year will be a digital event.

Michael’s Ones to Watch page is accessible here.

4th Estate Acquires Thought-Provoking Debut Novel GOOD INTENTIONS By Kasim Ali

Helen Garnons-Williams, Associate Publisher at 4th Estate, has acquired British Commonwealth rights (excluding Canada) at a fiercely-fought auction, in GOOD INTENTIONS, a debut novel by 25-year-old Kasim Ali, in a six-figure two-book deal from Juliet Pickering.

Photographer Credit: Naomi Burt

GOOD INTENTIONS tells the story of Nur, a young British-Pakistani man whose attempts to do the right thing by his family, his friends and the woman he loves creates an emotional pressure cooker. Deftly exploring millennial relationships alongside the complexities of immigrant obligation and racial prejudice, it is a dazzling,
urgent and captivating debut that introduces an incredibly exciting new voice in British literature.

It’s the countdown to midnight on New Year’s Eve and Nur is steeling himself to finally tell his parents he is dating Yasmina: a woman he loves deeply, has been with for years, but cannot be honest to his family about, for one reason: Yasmina is Black.

Nur wants to be a good son to his parents and a good boyfriend to Yasmina. He wants the best for his family, but also the best for his future. Nur has kept Yasmina a secret, putting growing strain on his first serious relationship, because although his parents want the best for him too, their aspirations do not match his and he doesn’t want to upset them with his choices. But is love really a choice for him, and how does Nur decide where his loyalties lie?

Helen Garnons-Williams says, ‘GOOD INTENTIONS is a beautifully crafted, wonderfully nuanced literary novel that engages, moves and provokes in equal measure. It asks big questions, without offering easy answers, exploring the conflicting dynamics of family, culture and race and introducing us to a cast of characters who too rarely take centre stage in British fiction –for whom we come to care about deeply.’

Kasim says, ‘Like every author, I’ve imagined this moment infinitely, conducted press interviews in the shower, cast the TV adaptation right before bed. And yet, speaking to Helen and her team, hearing the news from Juliet, it all felt like a hazy dream that I’d soon wake up from. There isn’t enough space to describe my elation at getting to work with Helen on this book, someone who so clearly understands it and me, who sees the characters not only for who they are but who they so desperately want to be. I couldn’t be happier to bring this book to life with the team at 4th Estate; I’ve been carrying Nur and Yasmina with me for too long, it’s time for the world to see them now.’

Juliet says, ‘When I first returned from maternity leave last autumn I was worried that my brain might never be able to absorb a whole book again! But I read GOOD INTENTIONS in one gulp, on a blessedly long and baby-free train journey, and it completely inhabited me. Kasim’s style is fresh and quick, and this novel has so many layers to it – every time I re-read it, I find something new. I had no idea Kasim worked in publishing or that he’d written the novel in just six weeks until I met him, when we hit it off immediately despite both of these revelations. I’m thrilled to have found Kasim and his novels a wonderful home with Helen and her colleagues, whose enthusiasm and commitment were dazzling from the start.’

4th Estate will publish GOOD INTENTIONS as their lead fiction debut in Spring 2022.

Kasim Ali works at Penguin Random House and has previously been shortlisted for Hachette’s Mo Siewcherran Prize, longlisted for the 4th Estate BAME Short Story Prize, and has contributed to THE GOOD JOURNAL. He comes from Birmingham and lives in London.

Follow Kasim on Twitter.