THE BBC have unleashed their latest whodunit drama, A Good Girl’s Guide To Murder.
This coming-of-age murder mystery sees rising star Emma Myers lead the cast.
BBC drama A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder is one to watch[/caption]It’s the Summer holidays, but teenager Pip Fitz-Amobi is focused on an unusual school research project.
In Little Kilton five years ago, schoolgirl Andie Bell went missing.
Her boyfriend Sal Singh sent a text confessing to the murder before being found dead, seemingly taking his own life.
Andie’s body was never found. Case closed.
However, Pip isn’t so sure and is determined to prove Sal’s innocence.
Actress of the moment Emma Myers takes on the leading role of Pip Fitz-Amobi.
Speaking about her character, the young star said: “Pip is a very strong character, just so determined.
“The way Holly Jackson has written her in the books and the way it’s been translated on screen by Poppy Cogan was such a joy to play. Pip’s journey and what she goes through is quite a lot.
“She’s a completely different person from the start to the end.
“It was really fun exploring that.”
Away from A Good Girl’s Guide To Murder, and Emma is best known for playing Wednesday Addams in the Netflix smash hit, Wednesday.
Before that, she shot to fame starring in The Glades.
Motherland star Anna Maxwell Martin adds to the star line-up in A Good Girl’s Guide To Murder.
Asked what drew her to the series, and she replied: “I hadn’t read the book but my daughter had, so I was aware that lots of people were going crazy for it.
“When something comes along that your children are going mad for you do tend to have a little look and get involved in it.
One of the incredible things about Emma Myers is that she draws you in. I don’t know how best to describe her, but she’s so wonderfully enigmatic.
Actor Gary Beadle
“It’s quite nice that I’m in something they can watch rather than things that are inappropriate or that makes them cringe massively and hate watching me in it.
She went on: “Additionally to that, there are just really great, and creative people on board.
“I’d wanted to be in Dolly’s orbit for a long time so that was fantastic for me.”
Fans will also recognise Anna from Line of Duty, Bleak House and Poppy Shakespeare.
This is actor Zain Iqbal’s breakout role.
Speaking about how he felt when he got the part of Ravi, the actor told the BBC: “Quite emotional, and a relief as well. I had six or seven auditions, and obviously, the more you’re auditioned and the more they call you back, the more you get invested.
“You want it even more. In the first audition, you just treat it like any other audition, but then when they keep bringing you back, you want it more and more. So it was a massive relief and I’m really grateful.”
Former EastEnders star Gary Beadle plays Victor in this BBC show.
Speaking about working with Emma Myers, the actor said: “She was an absolute gem.
“One of the incredible things about Emma is that she draws you in. I don’t know how best to describe her, but she’s so wonderfully enigmatic.
“There is something about her that is very watchable. She’s perfect to play someone who comes of age during the show.
“That first kiss, those relationships with friends. Even an old goat like me can remember those days when everything is just so fresh and new.”
Fans will also recognise Gary from the Netflix smash hit, The Gentlemen.
A Good Girl’s Guide To Murder is also Asha Banks’ biggest role to date.
Talking to the BBC about her character she said: “I play Cara Ward, who is Pip’s best friend, they are like sisters and honestly I think Cara’s just the coolest ever.
“She’s so funny, she’s really sarcastic and dry.
“During filming I spoke to Holly Jackson, who said she thought she was most similar to Cara out of the book characters, which made so much sense because everything that comes out of Holly’s mouth is sarcastic and hilarious and it’s kind of the same with Cara.
“Which is why I loved Holly so much and also love Cara.”
Before this show, Asha starred in Netflix series Rebel Cheer Squad and The Magic Flute (2022).
Gavin and Stacey star Matthew Baynton is also part of the star line-up.
Speaking about his character, he said: “Elliot Ward is Pip’s English teacher and Cara and Naomi’s father.
“He believes in Pip and wants to help her do well, and he’s attempting to be everything to his girls after they lost their mother.
“He is trying to hold things together for their sake. It is that complexity that drew me to the role.”
Viewers might also know him from BBC comedy Ghosts, Horrible Histories, Wonka, and Sky comedies Spy and Yonderland.
The series was filmed in a quaint town in Somerset[/caption]The show is set in the quaint fictional town of Little Kilton.
However, the series was filmed in the idyllic Somerset town of Axbridge.
Speaking about filming there, leading actress Emma said: “You want Little Kilton to seem perfect on the surface, like Twin Peaks in a way.”
She added: “We chose a town that when you come through the main high street, it twists and turns, and the houses are very bright colours, but it is surrounded by very woody hills.
“It feels very British but it has an edge.”
Other locations used included Redcliffe Caves, Redland and Westbury on Trym, as well as Avon Valley Railway Park.
The Bottle Yard Studios served as the hub for all production offices, costumes, props and storage.
All six episodes of A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder dropped on the BBC iPlayer on July 1, 2024, so you can watch the whole boxset right now.
Viewers in the US can watch the murder mystery on Netflix from August 1, 2024.
The series is an adaptation of Holly Jackson’s book of the same name.
The author was also heavily involved in bringing her novel to the small screen.
Speaking to the BBC, Holly, who served as an executive producer on the show, said: “I think the reason that A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder lends itself so well to a TV show is because the book is cinematic.
“I don’t start writing until I know every single beat and scene and can run the plot like a movie in my head.
“I think that’s why so many readers have been clamouring for an adaptation since the start.
“So, in a way, it felt like quite a natural translation to turn A Good Girls Guide book into the TV show, with all the big set piece scenes readers will recognise from the book, and new scenes or existing scenes envisioned in a new way to fit the visual medium.
Holly added: “All the characters we love, and the same story and plot twists are there from the book because I know readers are very protective and want to see a faithful adaptation.”
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Here’s a refresher on the popular programmes which span six decades.