When you hear the words “Lord of the Flies,” you probably instantly think of power-crazed little boys running around an island creating havoc and violence. Right? William Golding’s 1954 novel follows a group of young boys who, upon finding themselves stranded on an uninhabited island, build their own little society, which soon descends into chaos and brutality. But although it has come to be known as a study of the dangers of masculinity and the human capacity for cruelty, the BBC’s new version offers a new perspective on the classic castaway tale.
Penned by writer Jack Thorne, whom you may remember for his work on last year’s Adolescence, this Lord of the Flies seeks not to blame the boys, but rather to understand them. Take Jack, one of the cruellest boys on the island. Thorne once saw him as the “epitome of evil” – however, he came to see that “he is as loving as he is hateful,” as he explained to the BBC. And a show that puts the spotlight on how male violence starts – and how it affects young men – couldn’t be more timely.
“The world’s still full of those confused little boys creating chaos in the world in the guise of men and hopefully this is a little microcosm of that which helps us understand that,” said Thorne.
BBC/J Redza
When is Lord of the Flies released?
Lord of the Flies lands in one big bingeable bundle on BBC iPlayer on 8 February at 6 am – so that’s your lazy Sunday sorted!
However, if you are a fan of appointment viewing, you can also tune into BBC One every Sunday at 9pm, starting on 8 February, to watch the show weekly.
Who’s in the cast of the BBC drama?
Winston Sawyers comes off the back of his first role in Paramout+’s The Crow Girl to step into the shoes of protagonist Ralph. As Sawyers explained to the BBC, he sees Winston as being symbolic of justice. “Ralph almost sacrifices himself in the name of justice because he knows what’s right,” he said. “He sees what happens when he doesn’t intervene, they go to the other camp and join Jack for a little while, then he sees bad things happen. He’s very consistent in who he is and what he believes in.”
BBC/J Redza