BBC Drama has announced a re-working of the Henry James classic, The Turn Of The Screw

Henry James classic, The Turn Of The Screw, for BBC One, will star Michelle Dockery (Cranford, Red Riding) as the young governess, Ann, Sue Johnston (The Royle Family, Waking The Dead) as Mrs Grose and Mark Umbers (Mistresses) as the Master.

Adapted by Sandy Welch (Emma, Jane Eyre), this 90-minute drama is reset in the Twenties, when Britain is still imbued with the grief of World War One, adding a chilling extra dimension.

The Turn Of The Screw tells the story of a young governess, Ann, who is sent to a country house to take care of two orphans, Miles (Josef Lindsay) and Flora (Eva Sayer).

Shortly after Ann begins her duties, Miles is expelled from boarding school for being “a threat to the other boys” and Ann fears that there is something else behind the expulsion. She is, however, too charmed by the adorable young boy to want to press the issue.

Ann starts to see the figures of a man and woman around the grounds of the estate. The figures come and go at will without ever being seen or challenged by other members of the household, and they seem to Ann to be supernatural.

She learns that her predecessor, Miss Jessel (Katie Lightfoot) and her illicit lover Peter Quint (Edward MacLiam), another former servant of the household, a clever but abusive man, both died under curious circumstances. Prior to their death, they spent most of their time with Flora and Miles, and this fact takes on a grim significance for Ann when she becomes convinced that the two children are secretly aware of the presence of the ghosts.

Ann soon becomes obsessed with the belief that malevolent forces are stalking the children in her care, manipulating Miles and Flora and even using them to continue their relationship from beyond the grave. Ann determines to save her charges from these supernatural beings, but this comes at huge cost to herself and her sanity.

Originally published in 1898, this short novel was written by US-born British author Henry James.

Filming will begin in August in the West Country.

Image shows Michelle Dockery as Maroussia, the young wife of the grizzled old Red Army hero, General Kotov – Burnt By The Sun, National Theatre, London

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