'Outrageous' First Images Bring the Infamous Mitford Sisters to Life

Whether you know it or not, you've probably heard about Britain's infamous Mitford sisters before. The family, which contained everything from Nazis and communists to journalists and satirists, was essentially the reality TV stars of their day, and the antics of the six Mitford sisters have since spawned everything from documentaries to biographies and even a stage musical. The eldest sister, Nancy, was a writer and novelist herself, and her fictional work was at least semi-autobiographical. Her books The Pursuit of Love and Love In A Cold Climate have both been adapted for the screen in recent years (by Prime Video and the BBC, respectively) 

Basically: They're kind of a big deal; now, their family's story is finally being brought to the screen for the first time. Outrageous, a six-part series from UKTV and BritBox, will dramatize the lives and loves of the six Mitford siblings, who were a source of international fascination for much of the 1930s and 40s thanks to various wild exploits. One sibling jilted her husband --- the wealthy heir to the Guinness family — to run away with the founder of the British Union of Fascists. Another was infamously known as Hitler's "muse". And a third was a self-declared communist who eloped to Spain to participate in the civil war there.

(What I'm saying is the Kardashians could never.) 

Bridgerton's Bessie Carter stars as Nancy, a socialist on the fringes of the Bright Young Things social scene who wrote biographies and essays in addition to her novels. After divorcing her first husband, she lived in France for much of her life and had a longstanding relationship with French politician and statesman Gaston Palewski.

However, while the drama will predominantly center on Nancy, it's impossible to tell the story of the Mitford family during this time without also covering her sisters' scandalous love lives and controversial political opinions. 

The other Mitford sisters include:

• Pamela. Dubbed the "Rural Mitford" by English Poet Laureate John Betjeman, Diana married and later divorced millionaire physicist Derek Jackson and spent most of the 1960s living with Italian horsewoman Giuditta Tommasi. She will be played by Isobel Jesper Jones (The Serpent Queen). 
• Diana. Her splashy society wedding to Bryan Guinness transfixed Britain. However, she left him just a few years later, she left him for British fascist leader Oswald Mosley, marrying him in secret in the Berlin home of Joseph Goebbels. Diana's love of fascism, unsurprisingly, caused a significant rift in her relationship with her sister, Nancy. She will be played by Joanna Vanderham (Crime). 
• Unity. Reportedly the most intense member of the family, Unity was close friends with Adolf Hitler and socialized within the highest Nazi circles. She shot herself when Britain declared war on Germany and was left with brain damage for the rest of her life. She will be played by Shannon Watson (The Jetty).
• Jessica. The Mitford family's lone communist member, she eloped to Spain with journalist Esmond Romilly to participate in the Spanish Civil War. Following Romilly's death in World War II, she spent most of her adult life in America, where she joined the American Community Party. She will be played by Zoe Brough (Casualty). 
• Deborah. The youngest and most often overlooked family member, she went on to become the Duchess of Devonshire and helped rescue the iconic Chatsworth estate from financial insolvency. She will be played by Orla Hill (Stonehouse). 

The series also stars Toby Regbo (Belgravia: The Next Chapter) as the lone Mitford brother, Tom, alongside Anna Chancellor (My Lady Jane) and James Purefoy (The Veil) as parents Muv and Farve.

The series synopsis, according to BritBox, is as follows: 

Outrageous is the story of six aristocratic sisters who refused to play by the rules, their often-scandalous lives making headlines around the world. Set against the gathering storm clouds of the 1930s, masked by the decadence, frivolity and lavishness of British high society, Outrageous will bring the full, uncensored story of the Mitford sisters to the screen for the first time - a story of family bonds and betrayals, public scandal, political extremism, love, heartache and even imprisonment. The show explores how and why these women, unwilling to conform, were so ahead of their time - and what drove them to take their very different, complex and often dangerous paths. A family saga like no other, this is the Mitfords as they really were: unapologetic, outrageous and utterly human. 

Alongside those playing the Mitford family, the ensemble cast includes Joshua Sasse (Galavant) as Oswald Mosley, Jamie Blackley (Becoming Elizabeth) as Peter Rodd, James Musgrave (The King’s Man) as Hamish Erskine, Calam Lynch (Archie) as Bryan Guinness and Will Attenborough (The Hollow Crown) as Joss.

Sarah Williams wrote the series based on Mary S. Lovell’s biography, The Mitford Girls. Directors Joss Agnew (The Man Who Fell to Earth) and Ellie Heydon (Trying) split helming duties across the six episodes. Elizabeth Kilgariff, Matthew Mosley, and Craig Hollingworth executive produce for Firebird Pictures; Helen Perry for UKTV; Robert Schildhouse, Jess O’Riordan, and Stephen Nye for BritBox International are executive producers. Natasha Romaniuk (The Suspect) is the series producer. 

Filming is currently taking place in and around Buckinghamshire, and Outrageous is expected to hit screens in 2025.