...and a new Wuthering Heights on ITV

According to Brand Republic, ITV is preparing a new Wuthering Heights project:

ITV has commissioned a new version of Emily Bronte's gothic love story 'Wuthering Heights', underlining its efforts to polish up its main channel with more period drama.

The three-hour adaptation of the nineteenth century novel will be screened either in late 2007 or early 2008, after a series of Jane Austen dramas next year.

It was commissioned by Laura Mackie, ITV's controller of drama, and will be produced by Mammoth Screen, a new independent production company set up by former ITV drama producer Damien Timmer.

The writer is Peter Bowker, who was behind the BBC's 'Blackpool' musical thriller and 'The Canterbury Tales: The Miller's Tale'. It has not yet been cast.

Classic costume drama remains a reliable crowd-puller, with the BBC's recent four-part adaptation of Charlotte Bronte's 'Jane Eyre' attracting 6.7m viewers for its final episode.

ITV has already lined up three Jane Austen novels for next year: 'Mansfield Park', 'Northanger Abbey' and 'Persuasion'.

We remind our readers that this is not the only Wuthering Heights project around. Ecosse Films has a feature film project written by Olivia Hetreed.

EDIT
Some other webpages publish the ITV press release. The Stage, for instance, qu0tes Laura Mackie:

“Wuthering Heights is one of the most haunting and passionate novels in English literature, and Heathcliff and Cathy are two of the most memorable characters of all time. We’re sure that Peter’s fresh approach to the adaptation will delight the ITV1 audience.”

Categories: Movies-DVD-TV, Wuthering Heights