NEW drama series ‘The Trouble with Maggie Cole’ has been filmed on location in South Devon and Cornwall — with some scenes shot in Launceston — and will air on ITV this month.

The new series hitting people’s screens in March will star Dawn French, Mark Heap, Julie Hesmondhalgh, Vicki Pepperdine, Patrick Robinson, Phil Dunster and Gwyneth Keyworth.

The Trouble with Maggie Cole, which previously had the working title of ‘Glass Houses’, has been created and written by Mark Brotherhood and is set in a picturesque small coastal town called Thurlbury with a close-knit community. It follows the stories and fall out for Maggie Cole, played by Dawn French, who doesn’t pay attention to the cautionary adage that ‘those in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones’.

Maggie is a central character in town who makes it her business to know a bit about everyone’s lives. When a radio journalist interviews her for a small reportage piece about local life she gives him far more detail, and embellishment, about the locals and their personal lives than he was counting on. In the days and weeks following the show’s broadcast, Maggie sees the butterfly effect of how her very public gossip-fest affects various figures around the town and disrupts their lives.

Maggie has been happily married to headmaster Peter, played by Mark Heap, for nearly 40 years, and their son Jamie, played by Phil Dunster, and his wife Becka, played by Gwyneth Keyworth, live nearby. Other notable residents include Maggie’s best friend Jill played by Julie Hesmondhalgh, Brian the publicanplayed by Lee Boardman, school secretary Karen played by Vicki Pepperdine, the town’s GP Carol played by Chetna Pandya, local shopkeepers Emil and Roxanna played by Tomi May and Emily Reid, and Kelly played by Kerry Howard who works in the hair salon. Also part-time resident is the handsome Marcus, played by Patrick Robinson, who rents a cottage to write his best-selling novels.

The Trouble with Maggie Cole will be distributed internationally by ITV Studios Global Entertainment. The series is produced by Genial Productions, which has a minority investment from ITV Studios. Sophie Clarke-Jervoise from Genial Productions along with Dawn French and Mark Brotherhood will serve as executive producers with Joanna Hanley as producer, Ben Gregor as director and Maya Sondhi as script consultant.

Sophie, Genial Production’s managing director and executive producer, said: “We’re delighted to be making The Trouble with Maggie Cole for ITV — it’s a cautionary tale for anyone wanting to gain popularity by passing on unfounded gossip and Mark Brotherhood’s scripts are packed full of intrigue, comedy and suspense.”

The series has been commissioned by ITV’s comedy controller Saskia Schuster. She said “The Trouble with Maggie Cole is a new drama in the tradition of Doc Martin and The Darling Buds Of May, full of warmth and intriguing characters. This new series will embrace its beautiful idyllic South Devon and Cornwall setting as we meet the villagers of Thurlbury and find out how an innocent afternoon spent indiscreetly gossiping has a domino effect on the whole village.”