Marian Keyes has been writing bestselling novels for decades without any major film or television adaptations, so fans like me had almost given up hope. Then came the news: the BBC was adapting five of Keyes’ novels into one series, The Walsh Sisters.
Over five books, and now six episodes, the five Walsh sisters navigate addiction, grief, motherhood, relationships and the inescapable chaos of family.
More than 35 million copies of Keyes’ novels have been sold, and her works have been translated into 33 languages.
When I speak to Louisa Harland, who plays Anna, she tells me she attended a funeral earlier that day. It feels strangely on the nose, given that Anna’s storyline centres on grief — or, more precisely, running from it. Anna lost her fiancé, Aiden, shortly after the two became engaged.
I nervously mention the coincidence, and Harland agrees.
“I suppose in a way it is,” she says.
PHOTOGRAPHER:,Enda Bowe
Keyes originally wrote five novels about the Walsh sisters, with each book focusing on one sister’s story. Anna’s Anybody Out There follows her life after losing her partner, while Rachel’s story centres on rehab and confronting her addiction. The series adapts this five novels into one packed season, filled with Irish humour, heart wrenching moments and the unwavering strength of sisterly love.
Harland tells me she had been a fan of Marian Keyes’ novels long before being cast. In fact, her love of the source material nearly became a complication during the audition process.
“When we got to rehearsals, I kept referencing the book, and the director and writer, Stefanie Preissner, who adapted it, kind of said, ‘Stop thinking about the book and use the scripts as the Bible.’ Because it was different years, and things had to change to put all the sisters in one series.
“So I think it was great to do the research, almost reading the book, but then we had to leave that and focus on the new world of The Walsh Sisters, where the characters exist at different ages at the same time.”
PHOTOGRAPHER:,Enda Bowe