William Golding’s ‘Lord of the Flies’ to Be Adapted by Jack Thorne for BBC

variety.com:

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Renowned British novelist William Golding’s “Lord of the Flies” is to be adapted for television for the first time by Eleven and multi-BAFTA award-winning screenwriter Jack Thorne, known for TV shows like “This Is England ’88,” “National Treasure” and “His Dark Materials,” and stage shows like “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.” Executive produced by Eleven’s Joel Wilson and Jamie Campbell (“Ten Pound Poms,” “Sex Education”), “Lord of the Flies” is comprised of four one-hour episodes, to be aired on BBC One and playing on BBC iPlayer.

The drama tells the story of a group of young boys who find themselves stranded on a tropical island. In an attempt to remain civil, the boys organize themselves, led by Ralph and supported by the group’s intellectual, Piggy.

But Jack, who is in charge of signal fire duty, is more interested in hunting and vying for leadership and begins to draw other boys away from the order of the group and ultimately from hope to tragedy. “I first read the book when I was seven and it made an indelible impression on me – more than any novel since,” Wilson said. “It is a great honor and joy to be taking responsibility for the adaptation of such a precious novel – particularly given I’ll be working alongside my dear friend Jack – one of the kindest and most insightful writers on the planet.

He has written some of the more detailed and affecting portraits of human beings one could hope to encounter.” Thorne added: “Joel and I were talking in his kitchen and he said ‘go on, name it, the one you’d like to do but don’t think you ever will get the chance to,’ and I said ‘Lord of the Flies,’ a book that left a scar on me like no other.