The BBC has greenlit “The A Word,” a drama series about a boy with autism and his family, which has been adapted from an Israeli series by U.K. scribe Peter Bowker, best known for musical-murder mystery drama “Viva Blackpool,” which was remade in the U.S. by CBS.
“The A Word,” which will be co-produced by Fifty Fathoms Prods., Tiger Aspect Prods. and Keshet U.K., is adapted from the series written by Keren Margalit, and produced by July August Prods. for Keshet Broadcasting in Israel.
The BBC drama centers on the Scott family, who work and love and fight like every other family. Then their youngest son is diagnosed with autism and they don’t feel like every other family anymore. They realize that if their son is ever going to communicate, they are going to have to learn how to communicate themselves.
Filming will start in summer 2015. The six-part show is expected to air on flagship channel BBC One in early 2016.
Popular on Variety
Bowker, who has been nominated for a BAFTA seven times and has won twice, said: “We have the opportunity here to make something funny, tough, realistic and inventive about contemporary family life and autism.”
He added: “In a society where imperfection increasingly comes with blame attached it seems timely to look at how autism is regarded both within a family and the wider community — and to give some insight into how that experience might be for the child on the autistic spectrum.”
“It’s a drama full of ideas — about parenthood, about disability, about communication, about community — and will emphatically engage an audience whatever their experience of the subject.”
The series will be executive produced for Fifty Fathoms and Tiger Aspect by Patrick Spence and Bowker. Executive producers for Keshet are Sara Johnson, Avi Nir and Margalit. Lucy Richer will executive produce for BBC One.
