Happy Valley creator Sally Wainwright teases new comedy Riot Women
But who will star in the hot new project?
Celebrated screenwriter Sally Wainwright has teased what fans can expect from her upcoming comedy series Riot Women, which follows a group of menopausal women who form a punk rock band.
The talent was recently nominated for a BAFTA TV Craft Award for her work on the final season of Happy Valley, but was pipped to the post in the Writer: Drama category by Charlie Brooker and Bisha K Ali of Black Mirror.
Wainwright also recently launched whimsical fantasy drama Renegade Nell on Disney Plus, but she isn't pausing for breath before diving into another eight-month project for the BBC.
She spoke to the Halifax Courier about the much-anticipated Riot Women, which is the latest project from the Huddersfield-born writer to be set in Yorkshire, following earlier hits like Gentleman Jack and Last Tango in Halifax.
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Of the new show's key characters, she explained: "They're angry, and they're going to sing about being angry and being of a certain age and all the stuff that goes with being of a certain age and having to go through the menopause at the same time.
"They form a punk rock band to sing about what they're angry about. It's just me letting rip, really! We've got a song about HRT called Seeing Red. I've had a lot of fun writing it."
Wainwright has been the creative force behind numerous iconic shows, but claimed that her favourite character to date is "one of the Riot Women" who has proven "really exciting to write for".
Casting is yet to be announced, but no doubt A-listers are queueing up for a chance to work with the screenwriter, whose past collaborators include Sarah Lancashire, Siobhan Finneran, Suranne Jones, Lesley Sharp, Gemma Whelan and Nicola Walker.
Formerly known as Hot Flush, Wainwright said when Riot Women was first announced: "I've been wanting to write a series like this for a long time.
"It's a celebration of women of a certain age, and all the life stuff they suddenly find themselves negotiating/dealing with.
"The show is also my own personal homage to [1970s ITV musical drama] Rock Follies of '77, and the feisty Little Ladies who woke me up to what I wanted to do with my life when I was 13."
We'll bring you more details on Riot Women as they come in. In the meantime, Wainwright's Happy Valley is available to stream on BBC iPlayer and Renegade Nell is exclusively airing on Disney Plus.
Riot Women is coming soon to the BBC.
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Authors
David Craig is the Senior Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering the latest and greatest scripted drama and comedy across television and streaming. Previously, he worked at Starburst Magazine, presented The Winter King Podcast for ITVX and studied Journalism at the University of Sheffield.
