Compston to star in BBC adaptation of O'Hagan's 'searing' novel Mayflies

"Line of Duty" actor Martin Compston is to star in the BBC adaptation of Andrew O’Hagan’s novel Mayflies (Faber), which was optioned by the BBC last year.

Production company Synchronicity Films has been commissioned by the BBC to produce two one-hour dramas based on the novel. 

The series was commissioned by Ben Irving, acting director of drama, and BBC drama commissioning editor Gaynor Holmes. It was co-commissioned by Louise Thornton, head of multi-platform commissioning for BBC Scotland. It will air on BBC One, BBC Scotland and iPlayer. 

Compston, whose previous work includes “Line of Duty” and "Vigil”, will act alongside Ashley Jensen and Tony Curran. Bafta-nominated screenwriter Andrea Gibb will work with film director Peter Mackie Burns, with Brian Kaczynski producing. Synchronicity Films’ lead executive producer Claire Mundell will co-produce with Gibb, O’Hagan and the BBC’s Holmes and Gavin Smith.

Published by Faber in the UK and Commonwealth, and McClelland & Stewart in North America, Mayflies is a "memorial to youth’s euphoria and to everyday tragedy". The synopsis reads. "Everyone has a Tully Dawson, the friend who defines your life. In the summer of 1986, in a small Scottish town, Jimmy and Tully ignite a brilliant friendship based on music, films and the rebel spirit. With school over they rush towards the climax of their youth: a magical weekend in Manchester, the epicentre of everything that inspires them in working-class Britain. There, against the greatest soundtrack ever recorded, a vow is made: to go at life differently.

"Keeping that vow, Jimmy is now a successful writer, living in London. He might have escaped his small-town roots but he hasn’t cut all ties with his past. He’s still deeply connected through his 30-year friendship with Tully. Even the prospect of turning 50 can’t dent their boyish optimism. They’ve worked this whole life thing out. Somehow. Till the night Tully phones Jimmy; Tully has the worst kind of news and a request that will test their friendship, love, and loyalty to the limit."

Mundell said: “Andrew’s novel is nostalgic, poignant and moving, following a lifelong friendship and exploring the optimism of youth and the realities of later life. It honestly depicts the bonds and boundaries of a shared life and values. We are excited to be working with Andrew, Peter, Andrea and the BBC to collaborate on an authentic scripted adaptation of this acclaimed Scottish novel.”

Gibb added: “Adapting Andrew O’Hagan’s magnificent novel has been one of the highlights of my career. Andrew tells his story of enduring male friendship with love, truth, tenderness and a searing humanity. There’s not an ounce of sentimentality. It’s very funny and deeply moving. The characters of Tully and Jimmy are instantly recognisable and totally unforgettable. Both are so alive and vibrant they leap off the page. It’s been a joy and a privilege living with them.”

O’Hagan has been nominated three times for the Booker Prize, was voted one of Granta’s Best of Young British Novelists in 2003 and has won the E M Forster Award from the American Academy of Arts & Letters. He is editor-at-large of the London Review of Books and a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. He is represented by Casarotto Ramsay and Associates and RCW Literary Agency.

"For a while now, I’ve admired the work of Synchronicity Films—Scottish in its bones and international in complexion—and it’s a thrill to see them bringing Mayflies to BBC One," he said. "The story is a very personal one to me and it’s amazing to see the characters come to life in Andrea Gibb’s wonderful adaptation. Peter Mackie Burns has a singular vision and I look forward to seeing what he makes of the Ayrshire landscape and the emotional reality of this story."