Toby Jones, Lesley Sharp among stellar cast

Casting has been announced for Peter Bowker’s new BBC One adaptation of John Lanchester’s bestselling novel, Capital.

The three-part drama will star Toby Jones (Marvellous), Lesley Sharp (Scott And Bailey) Wunmi Mosaku (In The Flesh) and Adeel Akhtar (Utopia).

They cast also stars Rachael Stirling (Detectorists), Gemma Jones (Marvellous), Robert Emms (War Horse), Bryan Dick (Wolf Hall), Radoslaw Kaim (Spies Of Warsaw), Shabana Azmi and, Zrinka Cvitešić (Olivier award-winning musical Once).

Capital focuses on the residents of Pepys Road, in South London, who have been targeted for a hate campaign following soaring property prices on houses that was once the home of modest lower-middle class families, transformed into gentrified multi-million pound houses.

The denizens of Pepys Road include investment banker Roger (Jones), rubbing his hands in anticipation of his £1m bonus, his spendthrift wife Arabella (Stirling), Polish builder Bogdan (Kaim) who has come from Warsaw to indulge the rich in their interior decoration whims, Quentina the Zimbabwean refugee with a PhD working as a traffic warden (Mosaku), local newsagent Ahmed (Akhtar) and OAP Petunia (Jones), who has lived her entire life on Pepys Road, and who is now contemplating death in the house in which she was born.

One day, the street’s residents all receive an anonymous postcard through their front doors bearing a simple message: “We Want What You Have.” Who is behind the anonymous hate campaign? And what do they want?

Toby Jones says: “Obviously I am thrilled to be part of such a fantastic, diverse and talented cast, and also I’m excited to renew my working relationship with Pete Bowker.”

Wunmi Mosaku adds: “What a treat to be working with an incredible director like Euros and so many actors I admire in a city I love! I feel so lucky!”

Lucy Richer, Executive Producer for the BBC, says: “It is wonderful to see such a stellar cast starring in Capital. They are sure to bring Peter Bowker’s stunning scripts to life in their portrayal of such funny, true and brilliant characters. The wealth of talent involved both on- and off-screen will cement Capital as a truly special drama for BBC One.”

Capital has begun filming has in London and is produced by Kudos and Directed by Euros Lyn (Happy Valley, Last Tango In Halifax).