Richard E. Grant, Indira Varma, & More Join Cast of THE OTHER BENNET SISTER

The full cast has been announced for the ten-episode series The Other Bennet Sister from BritBox and the BBC. Produced by Bad Wolf, the production is now shooting in Wales. The series will stream on BritBox in NORTH AMERICA and on BBC iPlayer and BBC One in the UK.

Ruth Jones (Gavin & Stacey, Stella) and Richard E. Grant (Withnail & I, Can You Ever Forgive Me?) and will co-star as Mary's parents Mr. and Mrs. Bennet. Indira Varma (Obi-Wan Kenobi, The Night Manager) and Richard Coyle (Heads of State, The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina) will play Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner, Mary’s worldly aunt and uncle. Laurie Davidson (A Cruel Love: The Ruth Ellis Story, The Girlfriend) and Dónal Finn (The Wheel of Time, SAS Rogue Heroes) also join the stellar ensemble as Mr. Ryder and Mr. Hayward respectively in this adaptation by screenwriter Sarah Quintrell (The Power, Ella). They star alongside the previously announced Ella Bruccoleri (Call the Midwife, Bridgerton) as Mary Bennet.

The Gardiners take Mary under their wing as governess to their three children—Marianne (Roisin Bhalla), George (Reggie Absolom), and Rebecca (Jasmine Sharp)—introducing her to an exciting new social world that includes Mr. Hayward, Mr. Ryder, and Ann Clarke.

Based on Janice Hadlow’s acclaimed novel The Other Bennet Sister, the series introduces new characters to the world of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, including Varada Sethu (Doctor Who, Andor) as Ann Baxter and Aaron Gill (Smothered, Piglets) as John Sparrow.

Viewers will also return to Longbourn House to meet the iconic Bennet sisters, Maddie Close (Sunflower Child) as Jane Bennet, Poppy Gilbert (My Oxford Year, Chloe) as Lizzie Bennet, Molly Wright (The A Word, APOSTASY) as Kitty Bennet, and Grace Hogg-Robinson (The Coroner, COBRA) as Lydia Bennet.

Other familiar Austen characters include Tanya Reynolds (The Decameron, Sex Education) as Caroline Bingley, Anna Fenton-Garvey (The Nevers) as Charlotte Lucas, and Ryan Sampson (Mr Bigstuff, Brassic) as Mr. Collins.

Bruccoleri will take on the role of one of Jane Austen’s most unassuming characters: Mary Bennet, the seemingly unremarkable and overlooked middle sister in Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. The series takes as its premise that, when it comes to the Bennet sisters, while we dream of being Lizzy, in reality, most of us are more like Mary.

Sarah Quintrell will write nine of the ten half-hour episodes, with Maddie Dai (We Were Dangerous) writing one episode. The series will be directed by Jennifer Sheridan (Extraordinary)and Asim Abbasi (Cake).

The series follows Mary as she steps out of her sisters’ shadows IN SEARCH OF her own identity and purpose, finding herself in the middle of an epic love story along the way. Her journey will see her leave her family home in Meryton for the soirees of Regency London and the peaks and vales of the Lake District, all IN SEARCH OF independence, self-love ,and reinvention. 

This year marks the 250th anniversary of the birth of Jane Austen, one of English literature’s most celebrated authors. Renowned for her keen social observations and unforgettable characters, Austen’s legacy endures through beloved novels like Pride and Prejudice. The Other Bennet Sister, a novel by Janice Hadlow, was released in 2020, and reimagines Austen’s world by focusing on Mary Bennet – honouring Austen’s enduring influence while offering a fresh perspective on a classic tale.

The Other Bennet Sister (10x30') was co-commissioned by Robert Schildhouse, Jess O’Riordan and Stephen Nye on behalf of BritBox, and Lindsay Salt, Director of BBC Drama, for BBC iPlayer and BBC One. Kate Crowther, Becca Kinder and Jane Tranter executive produce for Bad Wolf, Rebecca Ferguson for the BBC, with Sarah Quintrell and Janice Hadlow also serving as executive producers. The series has been developed and overseen by Bad Wolf’s Director of Content, Dan McCulloch and Chief Creative Officer, Ryan Rasmussen. 

Richard E. Grant Photo credit: Pip Seed

Indira Varma Photo credit: David Reiss

Ruht Jones Photo credit: Tom Jackson