Expectation Scores TV Rights to I’ll Die After Bingo

Expectation has secured the exclusive rights to develop Pope Lonergan’s book I’ll Die After Bingo, recounting his decade of caring for the elderly, for television.

Lonergan’s novel details his time working in a British care home, where something interesting happened every day, whether he was initiating a coup d’état against new regulations with the residents or forming a bond with a 98-year-old who once called him a “fat slut.” It challenges readers to think differently about the value of the elderly and the carers who look after them.

“I’m buzzin’ to be working with Expectation,” Lonergan said. “In the creative industries (ergh), cultivating relationships is really important—and luckily Expectation is full of the nicest, most insightful and talented ‘TV people’ you’ll ever find. I’m very grateful they’ve taken a punt on me (a recovering Crack ‘ead Quaker) and my book (a book that includes a line about swallowing boobs). But seriously, I’m excited. The adaptation’s going to be both light and dark; uncompromising, poetic and, yes, very funny.”

Morwenna Gordon, executive producer of scripted for Expectation, said, “I was completely won over by Pope’s writing. Honest, insightful, empathetic and with laugh-out-loud moments, too. I’m so pleased to be working together to adapt this incredible book for TV.”

“Pope’s memoir about his work as a carer is extraordinary—he captures the personalities of the residents, their families and his colleagues in all their complexity with incredible empathy and humor,” added Hannah Weatherill, acting head of media rights at Penguin Random House. “Expectation is a brilliant partner for Pope’s story, and we can’t wait to see it on screens.”