Ruth Wilson to star as her own grandmother in new BBC1 drama about her family’s secrets
The Wilsons will be a three-part series inspired by a true story
Luther and The Affair star Ruth Wilson is to play her own grandmother in a new BBC1 drama about her real-life family secrets.
The Wilsons will tell the true story of her grandmother Alison who thinks she is happily married – until her husband Alec suddenly dies and a woman turns up on her doorstep, claiming that she is the real Mrs Wilson.
Alison is determined to prove the validity of her own marriage – and Alec’s love for her – but is instead led into a world of dark and troubling secrets.
"Alec was a British spy and a best-selling novelist... but what else besides?," said the BBC in a statement. "Where did his truth end and his fiction begin? Alison will be pushed to the very brink to find out."
Inspired by the true story of Wilson's family, this three-part drama is set in 1960s London, 1940s London and India in the 1930s. It is expected to air on BBC1 next year.
Ruth Wilson, who will star and executive produce, said: "I am so excited to bring to the small screen the extraordinary lives of my grandparents. Theirs is a profoundly moving story and the BBC is the perfect home for it."
Piers Wenger, Controller of BBC Drama, said The Wilsons, written by Anna Symon, will tell an "extraordinary story".
