James Nesbitt has joined Jamie-Lee O’Donnell in Hopley Hall, a new six-part BBC comedy currently filming in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. The Cold Feet and Run Away star will appear alongside the Derry Girls actress in the workplace sitcom, which is created and written by Daniel Peak, whose previous credits include Not Going Out and Code 404. The series will air on BBC One, BBC iPlayer and BBC Northern Ireland, with filming now underway on the County Antrim coast.

Set inside a struggling Grade A listed stately home, Hopley Hall follows the staff and volunteers trying to keep the place running despite unreliable heating, questionable history, a gift shop dominated by tea towels and an ongoing rivalry with another tourist attraction nearby.

What Is Hopley Hall About?

Hopley Hall is set in a fictional coastal town in County Antrim and follows the people responsible for keeping the stately home open to the public. The building itself is already causing problems, with damp, failing heating and very little money holding the operation together, while the people working there are not exactly an obvious team. Among them is a newly appointed community engagement officer who finds dealing with actual people difficult, an enthusiastic tour guide with no sense of irony and a disgruntled gardener. The six-part comedy follows the group as they attempt to keep the building standing, deal with visitors and somehow continue working together despite having very little in common.

The BBC describes the series as a workplace comedy centred on the daily struggle to keep the roof on and members of the public out of the private toilets, with the humour rooted heavily in Northern Ireland and the characters working inside Hopley Hall.

Who Is in the Hopley Hall Cast?

James Nesbitt and Jamie-Lee O’Donnell lead the cast, with Nesbitt returning to Northern Ireland for the series after recent roles in Run Away and Missing You. O’Donnell is best known for playing Michelle Mallon in Derry Girls, with more recent credits including Leonard and Hungry Paul.

They are joined by James Martin, who has appeared in How to Get to Heaven from Belfast and Funboys, alongside Leela Harris, Georgie Glen, Tommy Belshaw and Jeany Spark.

Speaking about the series, Nesbitt said returning to the Antrim coast was “an absolute treat”, having spent much of his childhood there while his mother grew up in the area. He also said the scripts have a distinctly Northern Irish sense of humour and praised the local talent involved in the production.

Who Created Hopley Hall?

The series was created and written by Daniel Peak, with additional material from a group of Northern Irish comedy writers including Oisin Kearney, Michael McCullagh, Shannon Welby, Susannah McKenna-Strathern, the late Michael Patrick, Eileen Tracey and Caitlin Magnall-Kearns.

Tom Marshall, whose credits include Chewing Gum, Smoggie Queens and The Cleaner, directs, with Chris Martin producing. The series is co-produced by Nice One Productions and Birdie Pictures, with support from Northern Ireland Screen.

When Is Hopley Hall on BBC One?

The BBC has not announced a release date for Hopley Hall yet, although filming is now underway in County Antrim. The series will consist of six 30-minute episodes and will air on BBC One, BBC iPlayer and BBC Northern Ireland. More details about the release date are expected once filming is further along.

For CultureCues, this already sounds like a very fun setup for a new BBC comedy. James Nesbitt and Jamie-Lee O’Donnell are both brilliant performers, and putting them inside a crumbling stately home with a group of dysfunctional staff and volunteers gives the series plenty to work with. We also like that the comedy is being rooted so strongly in Northern Ireland, from the setting to the writers involved, and Nesbitt returning to the Antrim coast adds a nice personal connection too. We’ll definitely be looking out for this one when the BBC confirms when it is coming to screens.

Hopley Hall will air on BBC One, BBC iPlayer and BBC Northern Ireland.

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