‘Victoria’ star Jenna Coleman joins new BBC psychological thriller ‘The Cry’

The BBC has announced the cast for a new TV adaptation of Helen FitzGerald’s novel The Cry.

Writer Jacquelin Perske has adapted the Australian author’s novel for BBC One as a four-part mini-series, which will be filmed in and around Melbourne, Australia and Glasgow, Scotland.

Jenna Coleman (Doctor Who) and Ewen Leslie (Top of the Lake) will lead the cast.

The Cry was published in 2013.

Coleman, currently starring in ITV’s Victoria as the titular Queen, commented: “I first read Jacquelin Perske’s script on a plane, it felt like walking a tightrope, racing page to page, unsettling, unknowable, uncomfortable, and thrilling. I look forward to tackling this challenge and bringing it to the screen with such a talented team…”

Leslie added: “From Helen FitzGerald’s addictive and exciting novel, to Jacquelin Perske’s beautifully written scripts, I’m absolutely thrilled to be a part of the amazing team that has been formed to bring these complicated characters and thrilling story to the screen.”

The official story synopsis reads: “Joanna (Coleman) and her husband Alistair (Leslie) deal with unthinkable tragedy under the white light of public scrutiny and in their private lives when their newborn baby is abducted from a small coastal town in Australia – changing their lives and their marriage forever.

“It is the catalyst for a journey into the disintegrating psychology of a young woman, exposing the myths and truths of motherhood.”

Executive producer Claire Mundell said: “We couldn’t be more excited to have Jenna and Ewen as our lead cast, and to be bringing this emotional rollercoaster of a story to BBC and international audiences.”

Piers Wenger, Controller of BBC Drama, added: “The Cry is an intense, psychological thriller which constantly surprises and I know that with the fantastic Jenna Coleman and Ewen Leslie leading the cast as the young couple thrown into haunting and exceptional circumstances, this will be a truly unmissable series for BBC One.”

The first season of Jenna Coleman’s Victoria is available now on DVD.

Season 2 is airing in the US on Sunday nights on Masterpiece on PBS.