WHAT IT FEELS LIKE FOR A GIRL: FIRST LOOK AND CASTING ANNOUNCED FOR NEW BBC THREE DRAMA

The BBC has announced the cast and released first-look pictures for What It Feels Like For A Girl, its forthcoming Y2K spin on a coming-of-age drama, inspired by the acclaimed memoir of the same name by the award-winning writer and journalist Paris Lees.

Produced by Hera Pictures (Mary & George, Temple, Hamnet) for BBC iPlayer and BBC Three, in association with ITV Studios, the eight-part series stars Ellis Howard (Catherine the Great, Red Rose) as Byron, with Hannah Walters (A Thousand Blows, Boiling Point, Time, This is England), Laura Haddock (The Recruit, The Capture) and Michael Socha (Showtrial, This is England).

Also joining the cast are Laquarn Lewis (Jamie Johnson), Hannah Jones, Adam Ali (Waterloo Road), Alex Thomas-Smith (Too Much), Calam Lynch (Sweetpea, Miss Austen, Bridgerton), Jake Dunn (Renegade Nell), and Dickie Beau (Bohemian Rhapsody).

What It Feels Like For A Girl is a raw, heartbreaking and hilarious drama that explores escape, self-discovery and self-destruction. It's a new millennium and there's a whole world to explore. But teenager Byron (Ellis Howard) is stuck in a small working-class town that hasn’t been the same since the coal mine shut down in the 80s. Byron needs to get away and doesn’t care how.

Life explodes in a rush when Byron escapes to Nottingham’s vibrant underworld, discovering a realm of drink, drugs, and a chaotic family of troublemakers – “The Fallen Divas”. Byron finds a gang of kindred spirits in the mesmerising Lady Die (Laquarn Lewis), Sticky Nikki (Alex Thomas-Smith), Dirty Damian (Adam Ali), while an intense rivalry brews between Byron and the beautiful, acid-tongued Sasha (Hannah Jones).

Between them, they beg, steal and skank their way on a rollercoaster ride of hedonism at the heart of the UK’s early 2000s club scene. The party can't last forever though, and when Byron is seduced by bad-boy Liam, a shocking encounter occurs that will change life forever. Calam Lynch is Max, Jake Dunn is Liam and Dickie Beau is Peter.

Further cast includes Emma Shipp (Rivals), Sekou Diaby (Boarders), Laura Checkley (Screw), Oliver Huntingdon (Sherwood), Lorn Macdonald (Bridgerton), and Rhys Connah (Happy Valley), with guest appearances from Fay Ripley (Cold Feet) and Selina Mosinski (aka Charity Shop Sue).

Paris Lees says: “This is a proudly working-class story, and it needed a cast who could bring it to life authentically. We've struck gold with these highly talented actors, some of whom are already familiar faces - and some who are about to be...

"The biggest challenge was always the lead role – we're following someone who’s going from, in the eyes of the outside world, a schoolboy, right up to a trans woman starting university, and all that's in between. The moment I saw Ellis, I recognised something in him - a cheekiness, a delicateness, a complexity - and knew he was the one. And he rose to the challenge, again and again. The chemistry between El, Hannah, Laquarn and the rest of the Fallen Divas is something you can only dream of in drama.”

Liza Marshall, Hera Pictures MD and Executive Producer says: “We couldn’t be prouder of the phenomenal cast leading What It Feels Like for a Girl, who join a team of brilliant creatives in bringing Paris’s daringly distinctive vision to the screen. Ellis and the rest of the ensemble - an exciting mix of new and established talent - deliver incredible performances, bringing these anarchic, sharp-witted characters to life.”

Lindsay Salt, Director of BBC Drama, says: “We can’t wait to take viewers back to the early noughties to see our magnificent cast shine in this big-hearted and brave new series. Paris and the Hera Pictures team have created a phenomenal eight episodes of genre-defining television, packed with swagger, humour, and humanity.”

What It Feels Like For A Girl will arrive on BBC iPlayer and BBC Three later this year. ITV Studios will handle international distribution.