About the Show

Gemma Arterton (James Bond: Quantum Of Solace, St Trinian's) stars as Tess in this lavish four-part adaptation of Thomas Hardy's complex, profound and heart-breaking novel, Tess of the D'Urbervilles.

Hans Matheson (The Virgin Queen) is the caddish Alec, Eddie Redmayne (Elizabeth: The Golden Age) plays Angel, with whom she falls in love, and Jodie Whittaker plays Izz, her best friend.

The drama also features Ruth Jones (Gavin & Stacey) as Tess's mother Joan, and Anna Massey (Oliver Twist, The Importance Of Being Earnest) as Mrs D' Urberville.

Tess of the D'Urbervilles is directed by David Blair and adapted by David Nicholls, whose work includes the BBC's modern retelling of Much Ado About Nothing.

"Hardy is very intense and passionate and melodramatic. It isn't the buttoned-up quality you find in Eliot or Dickens" says Nicholls. "People think of Hardy as this chocolate-box author, but there's rape, murder and suicide. Tess is often tough in places, as well as being a beautiful and lyrical book."

Violated by one man, forsaken by another, Tess Durbeyfield is the magnificent and spirited heroine of Thomas Hardy's immortal work.

When Tess's drunken father discovers their family can trace their ancestry back to Norman nobility, Tess's unhappy fate is set in motion as a train of events is unleashed. Exceptionally beautiful, Tess is given a place with her supposed noble kinsmen and is seduced and raped by the son of the family, Alec D'Urberville.

Executive Producer Kate Harwood is quick to underline the strength of Nicholls' adaptation, "Hardy's novel explores love, betrayal and the emotional burden of secrets locked away at the heart of a passionate, loving relationship which, when unlocked, implode with heart-breaking consequences. David Nicholls' adaptation brings Hardy's tragic heroine, Tess, to life with verve, passion and sensitivity."

The drama was filmed on location in Somerset, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire and Dorset in Spring 2008.