Evaristo's Girl, Woman, Other screen rights won by Potboiler

Bernardine Evaristo’s Booker winning Girl, Woman, Other (Hamish Hamilton) is being adapted for the screen by “The Constant Gardener” creator Potboiler Television.

The company, run by Gail Egan and Andrea Calderwood, won rights from Lesley Thorne at Aitken Alexander on behalf of Evaristo’s agent, Emma Paterson.

Evaristo’s book, the story of modern Britain through 12 different people who are mostly black women, was released in paperback last week and went straight into the bestseller lists. Rights to the book, now longlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction, have been sold in 25 territories around the world.

Potboiler has a history of successful literary adaptations, with "The Constant Gardener" one of three collaborations with John le Carré. It also adapted Sarah Waters’ The Little Stranger and, most recently, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Americanah, about to go into production for HBO Max, with Lupita Nyong’o.

Egan said: “We are delighted to be working with Bernardine on bringing this vibrant and joyous novel to the screen. It is a vivid and authentic as well as important story of our times.”