BBC orders new 1950s drama about a group of Brits emigrating to Australia

The cast has been announced for a new series set in the mid-1950s.

Ten Pound Poms is created by Shameless writer Danny Brocklehurst.

The English screenwriter has written some of the biggest British dramas of the past two decades, including Clocking Off, Brassic, Accused, and Netflix’s The Stranger.

The six-part drama will follow a group of Brits as they leave dreary post-war Britain in 1956 to embark on a life-altering adventure on the other side of the world.

Leading the cast is Our Girl star Michelle Keegan, alongside Faye Marsay (Game of Thrones) and Warren Brown (Luther).

They’ll be joined by Australian actors Rob Collins (Mystery Road), Leon Ford (Elvis), Declan Coyle (Life Of Jess), David Field (Shantaram; Preacher), Stephen Curry (The Castle), Hattie Hook (Savage River), Finn Treacy (Young Rock), and Emma Hamilton (Mr Selfridge).

Writer Danny Brocklehurst commented: “Ten Pounds Poms demands an ensemble cast that we are always rooting for, actors we love and want to succeed. I am thrilled to have found those actors.”

He added: “It is a delight to welcome so much exciting Australian talent as well as working with the brilliant Faye and Warren for the first time. This is my third outing with the wonderful Michelle Keegan and I’m positive we will make another winner together.”

Ten Pound Poms is currently filming in Australia.

The official synopsis reads: “For only a tenner, they have been promised a better house, better job prospects and a better quality of life by the sea in sun-soaked Australia.

“But life down under isn’t exactly the idyllic dream the new arrivals have been promised. Struggling with their new identity as immigrants, we follow their triumphs and pitfalls as they adapt to a new life in a new country, far from Britain and familiarity.

“At the heart of the drama are Annie (Faye Marsay) and Terry Roberts (Warren Brown). They try to make the best of the situation for their family, but the poor living conditions at the migrant hostel and local attitudes towards immigrants test them in ways they couldn’t have imagined.

“They aren’t the only people at the hostel avoiding the truth. Kate (Michelle Keegan) is a young nurse who arrives without her fiancé and will do whatever it takes to try and rewrite her devastating past. Bill (Leon Ford) has lost his family business back home and is so desperate to prove he’s living the Australian dream that he’ll stop at nothing in order to get a lifestyle he can’t sustain.

“Teenager Stevie (Declan Coyle) comes from a troubled background and hopes to use this new adventure to escape his oppressive father. Meanwhile, Ron (Rob Collins), an Indigenous Australian war veteran, struggles with feeling like an outsider in his own country.”

Ten Pound Poms will premiere in 2023 on BBC One and BBC iPlayer in the UK, and as a Stan Original Series in Australia.

The original UK version of Shameless is available to watch on Amazon Prime Video.