Tom Hardy Reteams With 'Peaky Blinders' Creator, BBC for Charles Dickens Series

Stephen Knight will adapt Dickens' novels, 'A Christmas Carol' being the first, with Hardy executive producing.

The BBC has oiled the cartwheels of a new series of Charles Dickens adaptations, this time commissioning acclaimed Brit writer Stephen Knight (Allied, Woman Walks Ahead).

Knight will adapt Dickens' classic novels over the next few years, starting with A Christmas Carol, with Ridley Scott's Scott Free London producing in association with Tom Hardy's Hardy Son & Baker outfit. Hardy and Knight are frequent collaborators, having worked together on Taboo and Peaky Blinders, which Knight also created.

“Any question about narrative storytelling is answered by Dickens," said Knight. "To have the chance to revisit the text and interpret in a new way is the greatest privilege. We need luck and wisdom to do this justice.”

Added BBC Drama boss Piers Wenger: “Steven's unique ability to reimagine the past and to turn it into must-see drama make him the perfect writer to reinvent Dickens' most famous works for a new generation."

Said Scott: “It’s terrific to be continuing the creative partnership of Scott Free London with Tom and Steve that started with Taboo and continues with this exciting and ambitious anthology of British classics.”

A Christmas Carol, telling the iconic story of Ebenezer Scrooge, is due for broadcast on BBC One in three hourlong episodes. Alongside Scott Free London producing in association with Hardy Son & Baker, executive producers are Knight, Scott, Hardy, Wenger, Kate Crowe and Dean Baker.

The new series adds to an exceptionally busy slate for Knight, whose future projects include The Girl in the Spider's Web, starring Claire Foy as Lisbeth Salander, and StudioCanal's Rio, starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Jake Gyllenhaal. He's also written and dirtected Serenity, starring Anne Hathaway and Matthew McConaughey, which is currently in post.

The BBC's feature film arm BBC Films is already working on a big-screen Dickens adaptation, with Veep creator Armando Iannucci set to direct David Copperfield from his own script.