Just a couple of years back, Dirk Maggs adapted Neil Gaiman’s Neverwhere into a radio show for the BBC, calling on big-name stars Benedict Cumberbatch and James McAvoy to take principle roles. It was a popular success, and it didn’t take long at all for fans to start asking for similar adaptations of Gaiman’s other works.
And it took little longer for rumours to formulate that Maggs’ next project would be an adaptation of Good Omens, the rather Pythonesque tale of the apocalypse that Gaiman had drawn up with co-writer Terry Pratchett in the late 80s. Today, the BBC have confirmed that the adaptation will air this December, and they’ve announced the key cast.
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Guardians of the Galaxy scene-stealer Peter Serafinowicz will be playing the demon Crowley while Mark Heap, a cornerstone of British comedy who might be best known in the US for his roles in Spaced and Stardust, will be the angel Aziraphale. Merlin’s Colin Morgan, improv comedy genius Josie Lawrence, and Paterson Joseph have other key roles, and there are plenty of secret cameos to be revealed later, perhaps only during broadcast. This will be a proper event for Gaiman and Pratchett fandom.
I wonder who will play the children at the centre of the story? In many ways, Good Omens is a biblical twist on the Just William stories, and the main figure at the centre of the chaos is Lucifer’s son. Is he the antichrist? As the novel observes, he’s genetically an angel. Just because his old man took a fall from grace, does it mean he will too?
For a good while, Terry Gilliam was attempting to turn Good Omens into a film with Robin Williams. It’s a great loss, I think, that this never happened.
As part of their press release, the BBC refer to the six-parter as a Christmas treat, so I’d guess we can expect it somewhere in the back half of December. Something to look forward to. BBC radio programs can be streamed online around the world on their website, and for free.
