Small Island

This award-winning mini-series stars Naomie Harris (Pirates of the Caribbean) as Hortense, an ambitious Jamaican who has married Gilbert (David Oyelowo, MI-5) with the sole purpose of moving to post-war London. Their high hopes and broken dreams bond them with Queenie (Ruth Wilson, Jane Eyre), married to kind but dull Bernard (Benedict Cumberbatch, The Last Enemy), in a powerful story of love, race, secrets and fulfillment.

1 - Hortense Joseph arrives in London at Queenie Bligh's house to live with her new husband Gilbert Joseph; a man she only married to fulfill her dream of leaving Jamaica to live in England. Dismayed by Gilbert's dingy attic room, she pauses to remember Michael, her first love in Jamaica, and his betrayal that led them to be banished from their childhood home on the eve of war. Queenie, meanwhile, reflects on her own unsatisfactory marriage to dull Bernard and a passionate meeting with a Jamaican Royal Air Force airman during the Blitz. Gilbert remembers his desperation to leave Jamaica and fight for the mother country, and then his meeting Queenie in Yorkshire, and the tragic shooting that separated them. Now in 1948, their lives converge in London and their long-held secrets threaten to derail their already fragile marriages.

2 - Hortense begins her new life in England and soon learns it is not the golden land she had hoped it would be. She and Gilbert suffer racism and ignorance, but in adversity come to discover new qualities in each other. Queenie witnesses firsthand the travails of her tenants, but is soon drawn into a consuming situation of her own, one that will alter the lives of all involved and force unthinkable sacrifices.

Based on the novel by Andrea Levy
Directed by John Alexander
Written by Paula Milne, Sarah Williams
Produced by Joanna Anderson
Executive Produced by Paula Milne, Alison Owen
Original Music by Martin Phipps
Cinematography by Tony Miller
Film Editing by Roy Sharman
Costume Design by Lorna Marie Mugan

Hortense
Born out of a liaison between her Jamaican father and a farm laborer, Hortense is raised by her father's cousin and becomes close to his son Michael. As she grows up, Hortense realizes that her feelings for Michael extend beyond friendship. A well-mannered and proud woman, Hortense is determined to leave her native Jamaica to live in England and work as a teacher. But when she arrives in London to meet up with her husband Gilbert, she is hardly prepared for what to expect.
Played by:
Naomie Harris
Raised by her single mother, a television writer, Naomie Harris followed her mother's footsteps into the entertainment business early - landing her first professional acting job at age 10. Trained at England's Bristol Old Vic Theatre School after studying at Cambridge University, Harris first gained wide recognition in 2002 for her role in Masterpiece's White Teeth. She made her big screen breakthrough that same year in 28 Days Later and is probably most well known to American audiences for her roles in two Pirates of the Caribbean films and the film version of Miami Vice.
Filming Small Island prompted Harris to contemplate her own family history. "Hortense and Gilberts' story is very similar to that of my grandparents and while playing the part I couldn't help but empathize with what they went through - all the hopes and dreams they had, and when they got to this country they experienced such ignorance and hostility," Harris said.

Gilbert
Gilbert Joseph, a Jamaican volunteer in the Royal Air Force, signs up to fight in the war in England. Returning back home, he discovers there are no opportunities, and takes Hortense up on her offer of paying for his travel back to England in exchange for the two being married.
Played by:
David Oyelowo
David Oyelowo, the son of Nigerian parents, was born in England, returned to Nigeria as a boy, and moved back to London as a teenager. Oyelowo went on to train at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. He then joined the Royal Shakespeare Company, where he was the first black actor to play a Shakespearean monarch there. He played Henry VI to critical acclaim, subsequently writing and publishing a book about his experiences. This led to his break-through role in the popular British television series Spooks. Oyelowo's film credits include The Last King of Scotland and Kenneth Branagh's As You Like It. Oyelowo appears in George Lucas's Red Tails, which tells the story of the first black American fighter pilots in World War II. He was recently cast as Martin Luther King in Selma, directed by Precious director Lee Daniels.
Queenie
Queenie has moved to London from her family's pig farm in search of a more exciting life. She marries banker Bernard despite the fact that the two aren't entirely well suited. Soon after their marriage, Bernard is called to serve in the war. Left in an empty house, the big-hearted Queenie takes on lodgers, including Jamaicans who would experience prejudice elsewhere.
Played by:
Ruth Wilson
Ruth Wilson's inspiration to turn to acting came when she watched her brothers participating in an after school theater club (they didn't go into acting). She trained at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, and just a year after graduating, leapt to fame for her work in the title role of Masterpiece's Jane Eyre. Her performance earned her British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) and Golden Globe nominations for best actress. Also an acclaimed actress on the London stage, Wilson has appeared in productions of A Streetcar Named Desire, Capturing Mary and Philistines among others. Wilson's interests extend beyond being on camera; she has recently been involved in a film festival bringing together a collection of short films written and directed by women.

Bernard
Bernard lives with his father, a veteran of the Great War, who because of shellshock does not talk. Bernard's routine life is disrupted by the energetic Queenie, who stirs emotions in him he didn't know he had. The two are married, and shortly thereafter Bernard is sent to war.
Played by:
Benedict Cumberbatch
The son of actors, Benedict Cumberbatch's parents were not initially thrilled that their son wanted to follow in their footsteps. Cumberbatch acted a lot in school and went on to train at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. On Masterpiece, Cumberbatch has been seen in Miss Marple, The Last Enemy, and To the Ends of the Earth. On film, he has appeared in Amazing Grace, Atonement, and The Other Boleyn Girl among others. In 2010, Cumberbatch will appear as Sherlock Holmes in Masterpiece's Sherlock.
In Small Island, Cumberbatch tried to get behind Bernard's exterior. "My character's story is very much about the love of a single woman and the redeeming force of that love."

Michael
A well-educated man from a well-to-do family, Michael and Hortense are brought up together. But while Michael views Hortense with familial affection, Hortense harbors deeper feelings for Michael.
Played by:
Ashley Walters
English musician and actor Ashley Walters was raised by his mother in a dangerous and drug infested area. Determined to steer him away from trouble, his mother sent him to a weekend theater school program to study acting and ballet. Walters was given a lead role in a television film at age 16, but left acting within a year to pursue a career in music. Walters's ensuing musical success came to a sudden stop when he was sentenced to jail for possession of a firearm. After serving his sentence, Walters was cast in the film Bullet Boy about gangs in London. He has been acting ever since, having appeared in the film Sugarhouse and the British television dramas Five Days and Hustle.

 perfect Sunday evening drama--intensely acted, skillfully shot, and subtly passionate about subjects no one should ignore," The Daily Express

"There's no moment in any of this you'd want to miss." - The Wall Street Journal

"Powerful performances." - Daily Variety

"A provocative story of substance, well-told and well-performed." - The Week

"Engagingly twisty plot." - The Boston Globe