Pillars Of The Earth To Air On Starz This Summer

Just when I think I don’t already have enough reasons to be happy I added Starz to my cable subscription, the network gives me something else to look forward to. It was announced today that Starz has acquired the rights for the TV adaptation of Pillars of the Earth.

In addition to announcing that they would be airing the eight-hour series based on Ken Follett’s bestselling novel The Pillars of the Earth this summer, Starz posted the following about the series:

“The $40 million series is directed by three-time DGA award-winner Sergio Mimica-Gezzan (Heroes, Into the West) and was shot on location in Hungary and Austria with a star-studded cast including: Ian McShane (Deadwood, Sexy Beast), Rufus Sewell (The Illusionist, A Knight’s Tale), Matthew Macfadyen (Ridley Scott’s upcoming Robin Hood, Pride and Prejudice), Eddie Redmayne (The Yellow Handkerchief, The Good Shepherd), Hayley Atwell (The Duchess), Sarah Parish (Merlin), Donald Sutherland (Dirty Sexy Money, The Italian Job), Alison Pill (Milk) and Gordon Pinsent (Away From Her).

The series is being produced by Tandem Communications, MUSE Entertainment and Ridley and Tony Scott’s SCOTT FREE Films.

“Ken Follett’s storytelling artistry presents a richness and brilliance we dream about when searching for outstanding properties for event television,“ says Ridley Scott of Scott Free. “The eight-hour television adaptation of his monumental novel ‘The Pillars of the Earth‘ is everything we could have hoped for and we’re extremely happy that Starz will be presenting ‘Pillars‘ to a U.S. audience.”

Pillars is a fictional story that spans years and centers on the building of a cathedral and the people living in Kingsbridge, England in the 12th century. I read the book reluctantly at first after my father spent years telling me how great it was. While I wouldn’t normally consider historical novels among the genres I prefer to read, as it turned out (and is often the case), Dad was right. The book’s fantastic and I doubt I’m alone in being excited to see how it’s adapted to the small screen. Given the length of the story, I think it’s going to fit much better into the eight-episode series than it would if someone were to try to adapt it to a movie.

If my (or my Dad’s) recommendation isn’t enough for you, Pillars made Oprah’s Book Club back in 2007. It’s definitely worth a read for people willing to invest the time in a truly great story. As we have to wait for summer for the series to air, there’s still plenty of time to pick up a copy of the book or if you prefer audio-books, it’s available at Audible.com.