Helen Mirren to Lead 'The Thursday Murder Club'

Anyone who ever VPNed Doctor Who on BBC One last decade when it aired on Saturdays in the early evening has probably seen Richard Osman while establishing their iPlayer connection. The game shows Pointless and Pointless Celebrities, in which he was the reader of the clues alongside the main host, Alexander Armstrong, regularly aired just ahead of the long-running sci-fi series. However, what most Americans probably don't know is that in 2019, he started a career writing novels, and his debut release, The Thursday Murder Club, became a pandemic hit in the U.K. in September 2020. He's since released three more in the series, the last of which hit the New York Times best-seller list, and the whole series has now been optioned for the big screen.

The first novel begins in the luxurious Cooper's Chase retirement village in Kent where four pensioners, Elizabeth Best, Ron Ritchie, Joyce Meadowcroft, and Ibrahim Arif, strike up a friendship and decide to entertain themselves by doing "live murder mystery" parlor games on Thursdays. However, when an actual suspicious death occurs among the residents, with the passing of a property developer, the four start putting their skills to use in solving real crimes.

Various attempts at a movie have been in development since the first novel was a hit, and rumors have floated about suggesting Meryl Streep or Viola Davis might be circling the project. But this is a British novel set in the U.K., and a British cast and director make the most sense. (Sorry to Steven Speilberg, but also not sorry.) So it's not a surprise to hear the project is finally getting off the ground with Helen Mirren cast in the leading role of Elizabeth and Christopher Columbus directing.