Keeley Hawes to star in new 5-part drama for Channel 4

The Line of Duty actress is set for screen return in 2021

Keeley Hawes is starring in a new five-part drama It’s A Sin.

Many of you will be familiar with seeing Keeley in Honour, Bodyguard, The Durrells and Line of Duty, but the actress is set to return to screens as a mum in the new Channel 4 production.

Written by multi-BAFTA award winning writer Russell T Davies’ whose previous credits includeQueer As Folk, A Very English Scandal, Years and Years, and Doctor Who, it follows the story of AIDS, and charts the joy and heartbreak of a group of friends across a decade in which everything changed.

Notifying fans about the upcoming drama, Keeley captioned a promo clip, "Previously known as BOYS...#ItsASinComing soon…@channel4@hbomax@russelltdavies63@redproductionco"

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And writer Russell explained, “I lived through those times, and it’s taken me decades to build up to this. And as time marches on, there’s a danger the story will be forgotten. So it’s an honour to write this for the ones we lost, and the ones who survived."

Years & Years singer Olly Alexander, plays Ritchie Tozer - the family’s 18-year-old golden boy who has a few secrets. He leads a cast of stars in which Keeley Hawes plays Valerie, Ritchie’s mum.

What do fans make of the new show?

And fans can't wait to see her in action on the channel, which has planned the return of Changing Rooms. One fan wrote, "I can’t wait to meet Valerie!" and another put, "I'm so psyched for this! What a combination..the fabulousness of Keeley and the absolutely brilliant creative mind of RTD!"

And star Olly is equally excited said, “I feel like the luckiest boy in the world to be a part of this project, I’ve been a fan of Russell T Davies ever since I watched Queer As Folk in secret at 14 years old. His work helped shape my identity as a gay person so I’m absolutely over the moon we’ll be working together. The script was amazing to read, I laughed and I cried a lot, it’s a privilege to be helping to tell this story and I’m so excited.”

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Starring opposite Keeley is Shaun Dooley(star ofGentleman Jack, Broadchurch, Woman in Black) who plays Clive, his dad. Neil Patrick Harris as Henry Coltrane, Stephen Fry as MP Arthur Garrison, and Tracy Ann Oberman as Carol Carter.

Meanwhile newcomer Omari Douglas plays London-born 17-year-old Roscoe Babatunde, a wild, brittle party boy, always on the run. Newcomer Callum Scott Howells plays Colin Morris-Jones, a quiet, unassuming boy from Wales, about to become an apprentice on Savile Row.

Lydia West (Years and Years) plays Jill Baxter, Ritchie’s friend from college, straight-talking, funny, and the rock on which they rely. And newcomer Nathaniel Curtis plays Ash, a faithful friend through thick and thin.

What is the synopsis of Keeley Hawes drama It’s A Sin?

It’s 1981, the start of a new decade and Ritchie, Roscoe and Colin begin a new life in London. Strangers at first, these young gay lads, and their best friend Jill, find themselves thrown together, and soon share each other’s adventures. But a new virus is on the rise, and soon their lives will be tested in ways they never imagined. As the decade passes, and they grow up in the shadow of AIDS, they’re determined to live and love more fiercely than ever.

It’s the story of these boys’ friends, lovers and families too, especially Jill, the girl who loves them and helps them, and galvanises them in the battles to come. Together they will endure the horror of the epidemic, the pain of rejection and the prejudices that gay men faced throughout the decade.

There are terrible losses and wonderful friendships. And complex families, pushed to the limit and beyond. This is a series that remembers the boys we lost, and celebrates those lives that burned so brightly.

While we eagerly await the show in 2021, here's the best Halloween movies on Netflix to get you in a frightful mood...