Sharon Horgan Preps Women on the Verge for UKTV, RTÉ

Sharon Horgan (Pulling, Catastrophe) is producing and starring in Women on the Verge, a scripted dramedy that will air on UKTV’s entertainment channel W in the U.K. and RTÉ in Ireland.

The six-part series will be co-produced by Merman and House Productions. Women on the Verge is based on the best-selling book Woman on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown by Lorna Martin. Horgan has been working with Martin since the project was picked up in 2011 to turn the subject matter into a half-hour UKTV original drama.

Set in Dublin, Women on the Verge tells the darkly comic tale of three career-driven friends in their 30s at various stages of their lives who share the same nagging concern: while their friends and colleagues seem to be increasingly in control of their lives, their own lives seem to be moving in the opposite direction.

Kerry Condon (Three Billboards, Rome, Better Call Saul), Nina Sosanya (Marcella, W1A, Last Tango in Halifax) and Eileen Walsh (Catastrophe, Patrick Melrose) star in the series, and Horgan will play the enigmatic Dr. F.

Martin said: “I feel incredibly lucky to be working with such outstandingly talented people to bring these stories to life. The show is a love letter to women who haven’t ticked all the boxes and whose lives are a bit messier and more complicated than they ever thought they’d be.”

Pete Thornton, senior commissioning editor for UKTV, said: “The chance to bring this project to life for W represents an exciting opportunity for us as a broadcaster, and for W as a channel. We’re delighted to be working with the talented and much in demand teams at Merman and House Productions alongside a brilliant cast—led by the extraordinary Kerry Condon—to delve into the chaotic, sometimes tragic but always gripping lives of Laura, Katie and Alison.”

Adam Collings, channel director for W, added: “Women on the Verge offers a highly original, no holds barred take on a subject matter that will be instinctively familiar to the W audience. Taking the gloss of Sex and the City, combined with the brutal honesty of Girls, this is a project unlike anything else on British TV.”

Merman co-founders Clelia Mountford and Horgan added: “We were huge fans of Lorna’s book ‘woman on the verge of a nervous breakdown’ that told her personal story so compellingly and honestly. We are very happy that we’re finally getting to bring her story to the screen and destroy whatever privacy she has left.”

Juliette Howell, executive producer for House, said: “House is thrilled to be working with such a talented team on this sparklingly funny, truthful and original comedy for UKTV. With razor-sharp scripts from Lorna Martin, and a top-flight cast, helmed by the brilliant Annie Griffin, this is the one to watch.”

Justin Healy, executive producer for comedy at RTÉ, added: “We are delighted to be working with Sharon Horgan, Merman and House Productions on this Dublin based comedy drama. The writing and performing talent across the series is phenomenal, and we are thrilled to be partnering with UKTV to bring this Irish comedy not just to RTÉ, but to a U.K. audience.

“The fact that UKTV and Sharon were keen to produce an Irish scripted comedy is testament to the fact that Irish people are incredibly funny and that we have some of the best creative comic voices around, something we will continue to develop and support at home and internationally.”