BBC One and BBC Drama have commissioned an adaptation of The Casual Vacancy from The Blair Partnership, which represents J.K. Rowling. The series will be produced through an independent production company operated by Neil Blair, on behalf of The Blair Partnership, and Rick Senat. The deal was struck following discussions between Neil Blair and BBC One Controller Danny Cohen.

The Casual Vacancy is set in the fictional town of Pagford. On the face of it, Pagford is an English idyll, “with a cobbled market square and an ancient abbey. But what lies behind the pretty façade is a town at war. Rich at war with poor, teenagers at war with their parents, wives at war with their husbands, teachers at war with their pupils… Pagford is not what it first seems.”

J.K. Rowling says: “I”m thrilled that the BBC has commissioned The Casual Vacancy. I always felt that, if it were to be adapted, this novel was suited to TV and I think the BBC is the perfect home.”

Danny Cohen added: “It is thrilling to be bringing the work of J.K. Rowling to BBC One audiences. J.K. Rowling’;s story-telling is of course peerless in its popularity, and I am looking forward to collaborating with her. This project highlights the ambition and scale of BBC One Drama, as well as the ability of modern television to attract the world’;s biggest talent and most exciting creative ideas.”

The series has been commissioned for the BBC by Danny Cohen, Controller of BBC One, and Ben Stephenson, Controller of BBC Drama, and is expected to air in 2014. J.K. Rowling will collaborate closely with the project, with the number and length of the episodes to be decided once the creative adaptation process has formally begun.

You can track the production developments of The Casual Vacancy on Production Intelligence, the online database of advance productions from The Knowledge: