The eagerly-anticipated drama series Conversation with Friends, from the producers of global hit Normal People, will come to RTÉ One and RTÉ Player on Wednesday 18 May at 9.35pm. Find out everything you need to know about the show here.
What is it about?
While Normal People charted the fraught first love of a young couple, Conversations with Friends wades into muddier waters.
It examines the complicated, constantly changing state of relations between 21-year-old Trinity College student Frances (Alison Oliver) and her best friend and former girlfriend Bobbi (Sasha Lane).
Their lives become significantly knottier when they become involved with an older married couple, successful writer Melissa (Jemima Kirke) and her actor husband Nick (Joe Alwyn).
Who is starring in it?
There are four main leads in Conversation with Friends, but the show undoubtedly hinges on Cork newcomer Alison Oliver's assured, nuanced portrayal of Frances, which marks her on-screen debut. The 24-year-old graduated from Dublin's Lir National Academy of Dramatic Art in 2020 and landed the coveted role just shortly afterwards.
She stars alongside well-known British actor Joe Alwyn as Frances' love interest Nick. Alwyn, who is in a relationship with pop megastar Taylor Swift, is previously best known for roles in The Favourite, Harriet and Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk.
Texan American Honey actress Sasha Lane is captivating as Bobbi, while British-American Girls star Jemima Kirke rounds off the leading cast as Melissa.
The Young Offenders star Alex Murphy has a smaller but notable role as Philip, a close friend of Frances and Bobbi's, while Smother actress Justine Mitchell and Derry Girls star Tommy Tiernan play Frances' parents.
Watch our interview with Joe Alwyn and Alison Oliver below.
We need your consent to load this comcast-player contentWe use comcast-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences
What can viewers expect?
While there are some minor storyline differences, the TV adaptation remains largely faithful to Rooney's subtle, emotionally charged book and brings the characters to life beautifully.
Speaking to RTÉ Entertainment, Alison Oliver, who was a huge fans of the novel before signing on, said she they all wanted to "really wanted to honour the book and do it justice".
"It is a responsibility but it's also such a privilege," she added.
Jemima Kirke said there was a special atmosphere on set when they were all acting together.
"It just felt so uncanny the way everyone was cast so perfectly, not for the way we looked, or even our personalities but it was almost like there was a vulnerability that we all had as individuals that fit with the character, a specific vulnerability, " she told RTÉ Entertainment.
Meanwhile, Abrahamson praised the quartet of actors taking on the central roles, saying he "can't imagine them as other people".
Who created the show?
Conversations with Friends is the second TV adaptation of acclaimed Irish author Sally Rooney's books to hit screens.
It follows in the footsteps of the wildly successful Normal People, which was released during the burgeoning Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 and made global stars out of its leading actors Paul Mescal and Daisy Edgar-Jones.
Much of the same creative team are back for this adaptation of Rooney's acclaimed 2017 debut novel. Element Pictures has produced the 12-part series and Oscar-nominated director Lenny Abrahamson has returned again at the helm, sharing directing duties this time around with Leanne Welham (Pili, His Dark Materials).
Alice Birch (Normal People, Succession), Mark O'Halloran (Rialto), Meadhbh McHugh (Asking For It) and Susan Soon He Stanton (Succession) have adapted the novel for TV.
The 12 part drama commissioned by BBC in partnership with Hulu was made in association with RTÉ and was co-financed by Northern Ireland Screen.
Watch our interview with Jemima Kirke and Sasha Lane below.
We need your consent to load this comcast-player contentWe use comcast-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences
Where can we watch it?
RTÉ will air the series over six weeks, with two episodes each Wednesday night, from 18 May on RTÉ One and RTÉ Player.
Conversations with Friends will begin on RTÉ One and the RTÉ Player on Wednesday, 18 May at 9:35pm.
