Lena Dunham’s Industry hits BBC tonight – here’s everything we know about the sexy office drama dubbed ‘the new Mad Men’
LENA Dunham's Industry hits BBC Two tonight, so read on for everything we know about the sexy office drama dubbed 'the new Mad Men'.
The new offering has been written by former City Boys Mickey Down and Konrad Kay, with the first episode directed by the Girls creator and star.
Lena, 34, is also executive producer on the show which airs on both HBO and BBC Two.
It aired on HBO last night and is already being .
So, what's it all about?
Industry is a brand new drama following graduate recruits at a London investment bank who have six months to prove themselves before half of them are fired.
Six-figure bonuses, cocaine habits and big egos are set to be depicted as the BBC drama examines issues of gender, race, class, and privilege in the workplace.
Five ambitious people try to survive at Pierpoint & Co’s trading floor, as the lid is lifted on the sordid world of London’s Square Mile before the 2008 financial crash.
Who are the stars of Industry?
This is a drama which is not relying on a wealth of big names to attract audiences.
Instead the main roles are either taken by fairly unknown actors, or those with only a few acting roles.
The series is seen through the eyes of outsider Harper Stern, who is a talented woman from upstate New York.
Myha'la Herrold takes on the role of Harper, she is relatively new to the acting scene.
She is best known for playing Tami in Amazon original series Modern Love and for the short The Tattooed Heart.
She also played Dymond in the movie Prematu.
The other graduates include Nabhaan Rizwan (Informer, The Accident) as Hari, a former state school student Hari who has won a place on the Pierpoint placement scheme and David Jonsson (Endeavour, Deep State) as Gus, a confident individual who has studied at both Eton and Oxford.
Marisa Abela (Man in a Box, Cobra) plays Yasmine, a people pleaser who craves verbal validation from her peers.
While Harry Lawtey (The Letter to the King, Marcella) is Robert, the drug and party loving recruit.
Other stars include Ruby Bental (Poldark), Will Tudor (Game of Thrones), Freya Mavor (Skins) and Ken Leung (Star Wars, X-Men).
Most read in Drama
Where was the show filmed?
Lena herself let the cat out of the bag when she uploaded an Instagram post from the director's office, revealing her move to Wales for the summer.
The American wrote: "AHHHH! I'm so excited to announce I’m directing & executive producing a new series with @hbo called INDUSTRY.
"It’s all about the cutthroat world of international finance. Think Wolf of Wall Street meets Melrose Place.
"I've moved across the pond for the summer to shoot this - specifically Wales UK - which is a dreamy place with fairytale gardens, super sweet humans, and dragon mythology.
"So taking reccs on secret spots, cuisine, you name it!"
Crews were seen filming across Cardiff and Newport in Wales, as well as iconic locations in London.
When the show premiered Stateside, Lena posted a series of snaps of herself on the set with cast members and elaborated on her experience in Wales.
She said: "A year ago I found myself living in Wales, the land of dragons and scones and… sexy international finance?
"You see, I was there to direct and produce the pilot episode of Industry, a new HBO drama from the brilliantly broken minds of Mickey Down and Konrad Kay.
"From the minute I read this script, I knew I had to be a part of making the world they had so deftly written a reality- like all the best writing, it sang to me and then created pictures."
Lena went on: "I loved the way they understood and explored the tenuous and painful role that money plays in issues of race, gender, mental health and bodily autonomy.
"But despite the seriousness of the message, this show gets joyful and rowdy and so did my incredible young cast: Myha’la, Marisa, Harry, David, Nabhaan- I am so grateful for the trust and the play and the world we found.
"To the rest of the cast and crew: dwi'n eich edmygu (that means “I admire you” in Welsh.) Being a director is the best job I could ever ask for because how else could a Jewish girl from New York learn about the emotional manipulations of London day trading?"
When is Industry on the BBC?
Industry will kick off on on BBC Two TONIGHT (November 10, 2020) at 9.15pm.
It will run for eight episodes every Tuesday night.
Read More on The Sun
You can catch episodes on the iPlayer after they have aired.