The Bletchley Circle – New Period Drama for ITV1

A new three part drama chronicling the exploits of the key code breakers working for British Intelligence during world war II has been commissioned by ITV1. The Bletchley circle will, instead of focusing on the men (led by the legendary Alan Turing) at the heart of the group will focus on the female who also played a pivotal role.

The series stars the fab Anna Macwell Martin, Rachael Stirling, Sophie Rundle and Julie Graham. The plot thickens too when one of the girls uncovers a murder mystery.

Four ordinary women with an extraordinary flair for code-breaking and razor-sharp intelligence skills are the focus of ITV’s new murder mystery drama, The Bletchley Circle.

Twice BAFTA award-winner, Anna Maxwell Martin (South Riding, Bleak House) will star as Susan, Rachael Stirling (Women in Love, Boy Meets Girl) is Millie, RADA graduate Sophie Rundle plays Lucy and Julie Graham (Lapland, Doc Martin) is Jean.

Three x 60 minute episodes have been commissioned from World Productions (United, Line of Duty) based on the lives of four fictional women whose brilliant work at top security HQ Bletchley Park during World War II helped break codes used by the German military.

Set in 1951, Susan, Millie, Lucy and Jean have returned to their normal lives modestly setting aside the part they played in producing crucial intelligence which helped the Allies to victory and shortened the war.

Behind Susan’s conventional exterior as a 1950’s housewife and mother, there’s a steely determination you under-estimate at your peril.

Seemingly unadventurous and conservative on the surface, our unlikely heroine is a force to be reckoned with. She just hasn’t done anything about it for the last 8 years!

Until now that is…..and the unresolved murders of Jane Hart and Patricia Oakes. With her handwritten charts of numbers, dates and times, and stretched lines of wool connecting pins to clips, Susan has spotted a pattern of behaviour no-one else has…..

Susan goes to the police only to be met with utter scepticism by the desk sergeant.
Unaware of her Bletchley background, the police refuse to take Susan’s theory seriously. She quickly realises she can only begin to crack the murders and bring the culprit to justice with the help of her former friends.

Bohemian Millie, speaker of fourteen languages and with a streetwise approach to life, Lucy whose youthful, naïve exterior masks a brilliant memory for data recall and Jean, the methodical no-nonsense organiser with valuable access to key records and documents.

Sounds pretty good, the Bletchley Park era is a fascinating one and the casting is first rate too. The writer and director is the always reliable Guy Burt and filming begins in and around London at the end of April.

Source: ITV Press Centre.