It has been announced that James Norton, star of Happy Valley and Playing Nice, will lead the cast of Wavewalker: Breaking Free, an adaptation of Suzanne Heywood's bestselling memoir.
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Norton will also produce the series through his production company Rabbit Track Pictures, and it will be written by Adolescence and Toxic Town creator Jack Thorne.
Wavewalker tells the story of how Heywood's parents took her on a trip around the world on a sailing boat when she was aged 7, in a journey which ended up lasting for a decade.
Norton revealed the news himself at Series Mania, as reported by Deadline, explaining that he will play the "amazing role" of Heywood's father in the show.
He said: "What starts as a dream as this roguish father paints this beautiful picture about this trip that is meant to take a year or two, takes about 10.
"The two children were basically enslaved by their father as crew members on this boat. He denied them a youth and an education.
"It’s about the against the odds fight for life and education, and the struggle between this very charismatic father, who loves his daughters very dearly, and the cruelty that he puts on them."
Jack Thorne. Alan Chapman/Dave Benett/WireImage
Norton and Thorne recently teamed up for Netflix film Joy, and this new series will take the same format of Adolescence, comprising four episodes - although, unlike in that series, they are not expected to be made up of one take.
Norton will soon be seen in BBC drama King and Conqueror, in which he plays Harold, Earl of Wessex opposite Game of Thrones star Nikolaj Coster-Waldau's William, Duke of Normandy.
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James Hibbs is a Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering programmes across both streaming platforms and linear channels. He previously worked in PR, first for a B2B agency and subsequently for international TV production company Fremantle. He possesses a BA in English and Theatre Studies and an NCTJ Level 5 Diploma in Journalism.
