Neil Gaiman’s Likely Stories Adapted for Sky Arts

LONDON: A collection of short stories from author Neil Gaiman are being produced for TV by Sid Gentle Films as a four-part series for Sky Arts.

Likely Stories is directed by Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard. Iconic Pulp frontman and solo artist Jarvis Cocker was tapped to create the score for the four stories. The four half-hour adaptations will be Foreign Parts, a story of identity; the ghostly tales of Feeders & Eaters and Closing Time; and the life-spanning story Looking for the Girl. The first three are written by Kevin Lehane, while Looking for the Girl was adapted by the series directors.

The series stars Tom Hughes (The Game), George MacKay (Pride), Johnny Vegas (Moone Boy), Kenneth Cranham (Maleficent) and Rita Tushingham (Doctor Zhivago) with an ensemble cast that includes Monica Dolan (W1A), Paul Ritter (No Offence), Simon Manyonda (Doctor Who), Johann Myers (Good Cop) and Montserrat Lombard (Ashes to Ashes). Gaiman himself will appear in each film in an unusual way.

Sky Vision will distribute the series internationally.

Gaiman said: “Short stories traditionally do not get a lot of love from television. I’m really excited to see what the team are going to do and make with Likely Stories—they’ve given it real thought and it feels like it’s going to be something very, very special.”

Phil Edgar-Jones, the director of Sky Arts, commented: “I’ve long admired the work of Neil Gaiman. He is a genius storyteller and an exceptional talent, and I’m thrilled to be bringing these adaptations of his work to Sky Arts. Under the British directorial powerhouse of Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard, Likely Stories is, in true Gaiman style, brilliantly bizarre and unexpected.”

Sally Woodward Gentle, executive producer and CEO of Sid Gentle Films, commented: “Likely Stories is like nothing else on TV, these utterly unique stories demand visual adaptations and we are delighted to be bringing them to Sky Arts. Each film, although self-contained, explores common themes of human consumption, destructive obsession and psychological cannibalism—all told with great humor, humanity and a completely astounding musical score.”