Channel 4 Commissions Queenie Adaptation

Channel 4 has commissioned an eight-part TV adaptation of Candice Carty-Williams’ critically acclaimed book Queenie.

The drama series will be written and executive produced by Carty-Williams, with Further South Productions producing in association with Lionsgate Television for Channel 4. Queenie is ultimately a story about a young Black woman’s value and the unrelenting trials and tribulations of life.

It follows Queenie Jenkins, a 25-year-old Jamaican British journalist living in South London. She is frequently forced to compare herself to her white, middle-class peers and, after a break-up with her long-term white boyfriend, finds herself lost and searching for comfort in all the wrong places. Surrounded by her friend group, nicknamed the “Corgis,” Queenie is forced to confront three main questions: What are you doing? Why are you doing it? Who do you want to be?

“Being able to bring Queenie, her family and, of course, the Corgis to the screen, is so exciting to me,” Carty-Williams said. “And to do that with Channel 4, who has always set the tone for what television is about by pushing boundaries of what we watched, is an added bonus. It’s clear to me that Queenie, a character whose story came to me when I was battling my way through my own messy twenties, is still so relevant today, and it’s about time that a show like this can explore why. To adapt and breathe new life into a story that has been talked about across the globe, and to bring Queenie, our problematic fave, to a whole new audience is such a privilege.”

“Candice is the stand-out voice of her generation and has created an iconic character in Queenie whose honesty, vulnerability and sharp sense of humor shines an unflinching light on who we are today,” commented Caroline Hollick, head of drama at Channel 4. “I’m so excited for this adaptation, and I’m in no doubt that both Queenie and Candice are going to take Channel 4 by storm!”

Steve November, executive producer, said, “Channel 4 is the perfect home for Candice’s provocative, timely, hilarious writing, and we are delighted to be working with them and Candice to bring Queenie to the screen.”

“It’s been a privilege to work with Candice on Queenie’s journey from page to screen, and we hope that the many, many fans of the book will love this version of Queenie and that the adaptation will allow new fans to fall in love with this amazing character for the first time,” added Sarah Conroy, executive producer.