Published: January 21, 2025 — Miss Austen is a 4 part drama series based on the novel by Gill Hornby and follows the story of Cassandra, Jane Austen’s lesser-known sister.

The BBC has announced that Miss Austen will launch on Sunday 2 February 2025, with all episodes on BBC iPlayer from 6am, and the series beginning its weekly BBC One transmission that evening. Adapted from Gill Hornby’s best-selling novel of the same name, the four-part drama is produced by Bonnie Productions for MASTERPIECE, in association with the BBC. The series wrapped production last year in and around the home counties.

Miss Austen has been adapted for television by BAFTA-winning writer Andrea Gibb (Elizabeth is Missing, Mayflies) and takes a literary mystery – Cassandra Austen notoriously burning her famous sister Jane’s letters – and reimagines it as a fascinating, witty and heart-breaking story of sisterly love, while creating in Cassandra a character as captivating as any Austen heroine.

The newly released trailer sees Keeley Hawes (Bodyguard, Line of Duty, It’s A Sin) in her role as Cassandra Austen, and gives a glimpse into her bond with and loyalty to her sister, Jane. The drama begins in 1830, many years after Jane has died, Cassandra rushes to visit Isabella (Rose Leslie), the niece of her long-dead fiancé, who is about to lose her home following her father’s death. Cassandra is ostensibly there to help Isabella, but her real motive is to find a hidden bundle of private letters which, in the wrong hands, she fears could destroy Jane’s reputation. On discovering them, Cassandra is overwhelmed as she is transported back to her youth. The trailer also sees Young Cassy (Synnøve Karlsen) and Jane (Patsy Ferran) in flashback as they navigate the romantic infatuations, female friendships and dashed hopes which shaped their lives, and laid the foundations for Jane’s unforgettable stories.

As previously announced, Miss Austen’s cast also includes Phyllis Logan (Downton Abbey, Shetland), Max Irons (Condor, The Wife), Alfred Enoch (How to Get Away with Murder, Foundation), Jessica Hynes (Life After Life, Years and Years), Mirren Mack (The Witcher: Blood Origin, The Nest), Kevin McNally (The Crown, Ten Percent), Calam Lynch (Bridgerton, Sweetpea) and Liv Hill (The Serpent Queen, Elizabeth Is Missing).

Miss Austen is directed by BAFTA award-winning filmmaker Aisling Walsh (Maudie, Elizabeth is Missing) and produced by Stella Merz (Gentleman Jack, Renegade Nell).

The series is a co-production of Bonnie Productions and MASTERPIECE, in association with the BBC and Federation Stories. The executive producers are Christine Langan for Bonnie Productions, Susanne Simpson for MASTERPIECE and Polly Williams for Federation Stories. Keeley Hawes, Andrea Gibb and Aisling Walsh are also executive producers. Federation Studios will distribute the series internationally.

This year marks the 250th anniversary of Jane Austen’s birth. Miss Austen launches on BBC iPlayer and BBC One on Sunday 2 February. In America, the series will air on MASTERPIECE on PBS from Sunday 4 May.