Entertainment

Sienna Miller, Paul Rudd and Steve Coogan to star in Channel 4 series Chivalry

Wanda Sykes will also appear in the six-part comedy drama.
Wanda Sykes will also appear in the six-part comedy drama. Wanda Sykes will also appear in the six-part comedy drama.

Sienna Miller, Paul Rudd and Steve Coogan are to star in new Channel 4 comedy drama Chivalry.

The series will see Alan Partridge actor Coogan play film-maker Cameron O’Neill, who has to try to stay “relevant at a time when cancel-culture is all too real”.

Alfie star Miller plays Lark, the leading actress in one of O’Neill’s films, while Ant-Man actor Rudd will make a cameo appearance.

Greed special screening – London
Greed special screening – London Steve Coogan (Ian West/PA)

The programme “unabashedly explores the complex state of gender politics in the #MeToo era in the film and television industry”, Channel 4 said in a statement.

Chivalry will also star Wanda Sykes as shrewd studio executive Jean Shrill, while Lolly Adefope, Robert Lonsdale and Adjani Salmon will also feature in the six-part series.

The script has been written by Sarah Solemani and Coogan.

Additionally, Channel 4 has commissioned an adaptation of Candice Carty-Williams’ novel Queenie.

Last year, Carty-Williams became the first black woman to win the book of the year prize at the British Book Awards with the novel.

Queenie tells the story of Queenie Jenkins, a young journalist who “works at a national newspaper where she’s frequently forced to compare herself to her white, middle-class peers”, Channel 4 said.

“After a less than clean break-up from her long-term white boyfriend Tom, she finds herself somewhat lost and searching for comfort in all the wrong places, including the beds and backseats of several undeserving men who do a great job of occupying her brain space, but a bad one of affirming her self-worth,” a statement from the broadcaster added.

Women of The Year Lunch and Awards 2019 – London
Women of The Year Lunch and Awards 2019 – London Candice Carty-Williams (Ian West/PA)

Carty-Williams said: “Being able to bring Queenie, her family, and of course the Corgis to the screen is so exciting to me.

“And to do that with Channel 4, who has always set the tone for what television is about by pushing the boundaries of what we watch, is an added bonus.

“It’s clear to me that Queenie, a character whose story came to me when I was battling my way through my own messy 20s, is still so relevant today, and it’s about time that a show like this can explore why.

“To adapt and breathe new life into a story that has been talked about across the globe, and to bring Queenie, our problematic fave, to a whole new audience, is such a privilege.”

Caroline Hollick, head of drama at Channel 4, said: “Candice is the stand-out voice of her generation and has created an iconic character in Queenie, whose honesty, vulnerability and sharp sense of humour shines an unflinching light on who we are today.

“I’m so excited for this adaptation, and I’m in no doubt that both Queenie and Candice are going to take Channel 4 by storm!”

Production of Queenie will begin next year.