By Lacy Baugher for Drama on March 13th, 2019

Period Drama 'Beecham House' is Coming to Masterpiece

The cast of "Beecham House" (Photo: Courtesy of ITV/FREMANTLE)

Mark your calendars, period drama fans: Our next big thing is here.

PBS’ Masterpiece has picked up the US rights to the six-part series Beecham House, which will air in the U.K. on ITV. The drama takes place in late 18th century Delhi before the British ruled the region.

The drama depicts the fortunes of the residents of an imposing mansion surrounded by acres of exotic woods and pristine lawns. Tom Bateman, most recently seen in Amazon’s Vanity Fair, stars as the enigmatic, soulful John Beecham, the handsome former soldier who purchases the magnificent house in order to start a new life with his family.

The ITV press release describes the series’ thusly:

The lives of the owner, his family and his staff will be the focus of the drama as John Beecham moves into the house determined to make it his safe haven.  Yet in spite of filling his residence with relatives and friends, intriguingly Beecham’s house still has dark corners which crackle with conspiracy, disharmony and sinister intent. 

Wealthy and distinguished, John has witnessed profiteering and exploitation during his time with the controlling East India Company and appears haunted by his past. Determined to escape that life, he sets his sights on becoming an honorable member of the region’s trading community.

Bateman is joined by an ensemble of British acting favorites, including Downton Abbey’s Lesley Nichol, Mr. Selfridge’s Gregory Fitoussi, Endeavour’s Dakoka Blue Richards, Victoria’s Leo Suter, Pallavi Sharda, Adil Ray and more.

FIRST LOOK: Beecham House, a new six-part drama, is coming to MASTERPIECE @PBS. Tom Bateman stars as John Beecham, a former soldier who purchases a mansion in Delhi to start a new life... See who else is set to star, including a few familiar faces: https://t.co/qqTGgFAVpP pic.twitter.com/ZIFDCrHhdm

— Masterpiece PBS (@masterpiecepbs) March 5, 2019

“I haven’t seen a series as visually sumptuous as Beecham House in a long time,” said Masterpiece Executive Producer Rebecca Eaton. “This is a new time and place for our audience…India in 1795, before the Raj. There is love and passion, too, and a storyline full of deepening mystery.” 

No word yet on when the series is likely to premiere, but we’ll keep you posted.

What do you think of Beecham House? Excited or not?

By Lacy Baugher for Drama on March 13th, 2019
Lacy Baugher

Lacy's love of British TV is embarrassingly extensive, but primarily centers around evangelizing all things Doctor Who, and watching as many period dramas as possible.

Digital media type by day, she also has a fairly useless degree in British medieval literature, and dearly loves to talk about dream poetry, liminality, and the medieval religious vision. (Sadly, that opportunity presents itself very infrequently.) York apologist, Ninth Doctor enthusiast, and unabashed Ravenclaw. Say hi on Threads or Blue Sky at @LacyMB. 

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