BBC: Trailer for new Sally Wainwright drama Riot Women released
Five menopausal women form a punk rock band to take part in a local talent contest, and suddenly find they have a lot more to shout about than they ever imagined...
The BBC and BritBox have released a trailer for Riot Women, which provides the first glimpse at the brand-new drama series from the multi-BAFTA award-winning writer Sally Wainwright (Happy Valley, Last Tango in Halifax, Gentleman Jack).
The six-part series, set and filmed in Hebden Bridge in West Yorkshire, will be coming to BBC iPlayer and BBC One this October. It is made by Drama Republic, a Mediawan Company (One Day, Doctor Foster, The English), for the BBC and is a co-commission with BritBox. Worldwide distribution is handled by Mediawan Rights.
A teacher, a police officer, a pub landlady, a midwife, and a shoplifting freeloader: five menopausal women form a punk rock band to take part in a local talent contest, and suddenly find they have a lot more to shout about than they ever imagined. As they become closer, the teacher, Beth, and freeloader, Kitty, discover a surprising, heartbreaking connection.
As previously announced, members of the Riot Women band include Joanna Scanlan (After Love, The Thick of It) as Beth, Rosalie Craig (Moonflower Murders, Serpent Queen) as Kitty, Tamsin Greig (Sexy Beast, The Completely Made Up Adventures of Dick Turpin) as Holly, Lorraine Ashbourne (Sherwood, Alma's Not Normal) as Jess, and Amelia Bullmore (The Buccaneers, Vienna Blood) as Yvonne, with Taj Atwal (Line of Duty), Chandeep Uppal (Holby City), and Macy Seelochan (Shadow and Bone) as Nisha, Kam and Miranda, the band’s riotous backing singers.
The series will also star Anne Reid (The Sixth Commandment), Sue Johnston (The Royle Family), Peter Davison (Doctor Who), Claire Skinner (Outnumbered), Angel Coulby (Merlin), Jonny Green (White Lines), Ellise Chappell (Yesterday), Tony Hirst (Hollyoaks), Shannon Lavelle (The Hardacres), Mark Bazeley (Broadchurch), Amit Shah (Happy Valley), Rick Warden (Red Eye), Ben Batt (Domina), Natalia Tena (Harry Potter), Melanie La Barrie (& Juliet), Oliver Huntingdon (Sherwood), Richard Fleeshman (The Sandman), Olwen May (A Very British Scandal), Kevin Doyle (Downton Abbey), Nicholas Gleaves (Bodyguard) and Thomas Flynn (Masters of the Air).
Riot Women will feature original songs from the band ARXX.
Riot Women (6x60) is created, written, and executive produced by Sally Wainwright, who is also the lead director. Jessica Taylor (Happy Valley, Fool Me Once) is the producer. Roanna Benn (One Day, Doctor Foster) is the executive producer for Drama Republic, with Tanya Qureshi for the BBC, Robert Schildhouse and Jess O'Riordan for BritBox. The series is produced by Drama Republic, a Mediawan Company.
Riot Women will premiere on BBC iPlayer and BBC One in the UK in October 2025. BritBox will air the series in the US and Canada. Mediawan Rights will distribute the series internationally with the participation of Entourage Ventures.
Link to BBC article here.