The Famous Five | Preview (BBC)

Nicolas Winding Refn (byNWR) and Matthew Read (Moonage Pictures) bring Enid Blyton’s classics to life with a new and fresh reimagining of the iconic stories.

The Famous Five follows five daring young explorers as they encounter treacherous, action-packed adventures, remarkable mysteries, unparalleled danger and astounding secrets.

In the first episode, ‘The Curse of Kirrin Island’, George’s life is turned upside down when she learns that her cousins are coming to stay for the summer. But when Julian, Dick and Anne arrive, George finds herself including them in what turns out to be the most exciting adventure of her life so far.

When a body washes up on the beach, apparently the victim of a local curse, the cousins and Timmy the dog set sail to the source of the problem – an uninhabited island that belongs to the family.

In a subterranean chapel protected by a deadly booby trap they discover a goblet whose engraving strongly suggests that a lost hoard of Knights Templar treasure is waiting to be discovered.

But the Five are not the only ones looking for treasure. Ruthless antiquarian Thomas Wentworth and his right-hand man Monsieur Boswell are also on the hunt, and they’re one step ahead. Will the kids reach the cursed treasure before Wentworth does? And if their nemesis is right about its true power – what then?

George is played by Diaana Babnicova, Julian by Elliott Rose, Dick by Kit Rakusen, Anne by Flora Jacoby Richardson, Wentworth by Jack Gleeson, Fanny by Ann Akinjirin, Quentin by James Lance and Mrs Wentworth by Diana Quick.

Episode one will also air on BBC One between Christmas and New Year. Two more episodes of The Famous Five will follow in 2024.