Filming has started in Ireland on new Channel 4 drama series The Rachel Incident, adapted by Caroline O’Donoghue from her best-selling novel of the same name and produced by UCP and Element Pictures (Normal People, Poor Things) in association with PAGEBOY Productions.
Leading the cast is Máiréad Tyers (Extraordinary, The Walsh Sisters) as Rachel, who stars alongside Ellis Howard (What It Feels Like for a Girl, Red Rose) as James, Sarah Greene (Bad Sisters, Normal People) as Deenie and Daniel Ings (The Gentlemen, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms) as Dr. Fred Byrne.
Set in Cork in 2010, Rachel is a student working at a bookstore when she meets James – and it is love at first sight. Effervescent and insistently heterosexual, James soon invites Rachel to be his roommate, and the two begin a friendship that changes the course of both their lives forever. Together, they run riot through the streets of Cork City, trying to cultivate a bohemian existence while the reality of the recent financial crash looms over them. When Rachel admits to a huge crush on her married professor, Dr. Fred Byrne, James helps her devise a launch for his new book at the store, with the hope that she might seduce him afterwards… But Fred, as it turns out, has other desires. So begins a series of secrets and compromises that intertwine the fates of James, Rachel, Fred, and Fred’s wife Deenie, an incredibly cool and well-connected literary editor.
Also joining the line-up is Cúán Hosty-Blaney (Say Nothing, House of Guinness) as Carey, Ciarán Dowd (Bad Sisters, Marriage)as Ben, Helen Behan (Malpractice, The Virtues) as Bridget, Ardal O’Hanlon (Sherlock and Daughter, The Woman in the Wall) as Paul, Jeanne Ní Áinle (Hidden Assets, North Sea Connection) as Sabrina, Molly McFadden as Sinead, Maria Doyle Kennedy (KIN, Recipes For Love And Murder) as Vivian and more.
Caroline O’Donoghue said: “Máiréad Tyers is a star and has always been my first choice to play Rachel. She and the phenomenally charming Ellis Howard create what feels like an instantly iconic double act, fizzing with all the love and panic that makes being in your early twenties both nightmarish and amazing. To have the brilliant Sarah Greene and Daniel Ings as Deenie and Fred is a dream, and I’m gushing with enthusiasm for the rest of the cast who make the world of The Rachel Incident feel so alive and full of energy – including but not limited to Ardal O’Hanlon and Maria Doyle Kennedy, actors I grew up loving and still can’t believe are joining our team. Collaborating with Giulia Gandini and Megan K. Fox and our entire crew has already been such a joy and I am once again grateful to the teams at Channel 4, UCP, Element Pictures and PAGEBOY for their continued support in building this show, which I can’t wait to share with audiences.”
Rebecca Holdsworth, Commissioning Editor, Channel 4 Drama says: “Channel 4 are thrilled to be part of bringing The Rachel Incident to life alongside our partners at UCP, Element Pictures and PAGEBOY. Caroline’s scripts, just like her novel, are a joy; funny, sharp, and full of heart. We’ve found our perfect Rachel in the brilliant Máiréad Tyers, and can’t wait to see her form an iconic and irresistible duo with talented co-star Ellis Howard as he takes up the part of James.”
The Rachel Incident was commissioned by Rebecca Holdsworth, Commissioning Editor, Channel 4 Drama. The series will be produced by UCP, a division of Universal Studio Group and Element Pictures (a Fremantle company) in association with PAGEBOY Productions, filmed with support from Fís Éireann / Screen Ireland. Executive Producers for Element Pictures are Ed Guiney, Andrew Lowe, Christopher Aird and Chelsea Morgan Hoffmann. PAGEBOY Productions’ Matt Jordan Smith and Elliot Page are Executive Producers with Tuck Dowrey as Associate Producer. Jen Statsky serves as Executive Producer through her First Thought Productions. The eight-part series is written, created and executive produced by Caroline O’Donoghue. Emma Fleischer is Producer, and also serves as Executive Producer, with Giulia Gandini and Megan K Fox directing. The series will be distributed by NBCUniversal Global TV Distribution.
Jon Creamer
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