The Doll Factory Novel Being Adapted for TV

Buccaneer Media has secured the TV rights to The Doll Factory, the debut novel from Scottish author Elizabeth Macneal.

Set in London in 1850, the novel tells the story of Iris, an aspiring artist who works in a doll-making shop, and Silas, a reclusive collector captivated by the strange and beautiful. They meet by chance in Hyde Park during the construction of The Great Exhibition. For Iris, the encounter is forgotten seconds later. But for Silas, the meeting marks a new beginning; he decides his life will be incomplete without her.

The publishing rights to the novel were acquired by Pan Macmillan/Picador for a six-figure sum after a “fiercely contested” 14-way publisher auction. Simon & Schuster/Emily Bestler Books has acquired the U.S. and Canadian rights in a two-book deal. They will publish simultaneously with Pan Macmillan/Picador in 2019. The book will be translated into at least 26 languages.

Tony Wood and Anna Burns will executive produce the TV adaptation for Buccaneer Media.

Wood, CEO of Buccaneer Media, said: “This astonishing literary thriller has already created a sensation, even before publication. Competition has been huge at each step it has taken. It’s an honor to announce a collaboration with Elizabeth Macneal; she’s an amazing talent, who I am delighted to bring into the Buccaneer fold.”

Sophie Jonathan, senior commissioning editor at Pan Macmillan/Picador, said: “To read The Doll Factory is to step across a threshold into another time—into the press and panic, the elation and vivid beauty of 1850s London. I’ve never read a novel so rich in color and texture, so to know that Elizabeth’s extraordinary story and sparkling characters will be translated to screen is impossibly exciting, and who better to work that magic than Buccaneer Media.”

Macneal commented: “As soon as I met Tony and his team, I knew that Buccaneer was the perfect company to adapt The Doll Factory. I was thrilled by their passion for the characters, their enthusiasm for London’s history, and I know that Iris, Silas and Albie couldn’t find a better home.”