Conversations with Friends: In 2020 audiences were held captive by the intense love story of Irish author Sally Rooney’s characters, Connell and Marianne, in Normal People. If you haven’t seen it, you can watch it here on the RTE player, or the Beeb.
The slow burn of the intimate tale, much of it played out in high school bedrooms, was a cozy companion during the pandemic while most of the world was in lockdown.
So it seems fitting that Rooney’s second tale, Conversations with Friends, is set to air as a 12-part series while we are dusting off our suitcases and resurfacing from our homes.
Just as we are all ready for some exploration, the upcoming BBC/Hulu adaption of Rooney’s second novel promises lust, adventure, betrayal and excitement.
Location
Starting in Belfast, Northern Ireland, the four central characters have varying intimacies with each other; the basis of the story is in the becoming and unravelling of the relationships between them.
Ex-lovers, Frances and Bobbi, befriend mysterious author Melissa and her husband Nick. While Bobbi flirts with the slightly older and very successful Melissa, Frances fawns over her more laid-back husband; ultimately leading to an affair. Viewers be warned: these friends are having much more than conversations.
Of course, much of the character development does come from the conversations they have with each other – mostly discussions of Marxism, existentialism, art, and sexuality. It could be said that not much happens outside of the conversations and relations between the four protagonists.
Befittingly, the cast cut quite an arty and modern shape; with Girls alumni Jemima Kirke sauntering as Melissa and Joe Alwyn (Taylor Swift’s boyfriend) her mellow husband. Marvel’s Sasha Lane has been cast as Bobbi. Newcomer Alison Oliver is at the helm as the central protagonist, Frances.
Conversations with Friends: What’s Not to Love?
With Rooney well known for her character development and focus on highlighting quiet intimate moments, viewers are sure to fall in love with the cast. Filled with Irish charm and loveable quirks, there will be a raw human quality to each character that everyone can empathise with.
After a grand tour of Belfast – from bookstores to bars – Rooney takes us to everyone’s favourite steamy love affair destination: a villa in France. Here, we see all four characters thrust together in a sort of romantic, tense science experiment.
Written to be drenched in warm sunshine and heady with cold wine, the scenes in France are sure to be a visual feast and the holiday we have all been longing for since 2020.
It truly feels as if Sally Rooney’s Normal People and Conversations with Friends have both been delivered as television adaptations in perfect harmony with the universe.
Of course, it remains to be seen if audiences will obsess over the more racy Frances, Bobbi, Melissa and Nick as they did with lovebirds Connell and Marianne. The 12-part series will air on BBC and Hulu on May 15, 2022.
