2025 IFTA nominee Nicola Coughlan, best known as Penelope Featherington/Lady Whistledown in Bridgerton and as Clare Devlin in Derry Girls is among the ensemble cast for the film adaptation of Enid Blyton's The Magic Faraway Tree.
Other cast members include Andrew Garfield (We Live in Time) and Claire Foy (The Crown), and Jessica Gunning (Baby Reindeer), and Rebecca Ferguson (Dune).
Based on the Faraway Tree series of novels for children by author Enid Blyton, the film follows Polly (Foy) and Tim Thompson (Garfield) and their children, Beth, Joe and Fran, (played by Delilah Bennett-Cardy, Phoenix Laroche and Billie Gadsdon), who find themselves forced to relocate to the remote English countryside. There, the children discover a magical tree and its extraordinary and eccentric occupants — a far cry away from the distractions of their 21st-century screens.
From All3Media’s Neal Street Productions, Elysian Film Group and Ashland Hill Media Finance, Ben Gregor says The Magic Faraway Tree is a film for adults and children. Gregor commented: “What you gotta do is just treat young people as sensible adults”.
Speaking about Nicola Coughlan’s character, director Ben Gregor said: “Nicola Coughlan, who’s basically the leader [of the group of the tree’s inhabitants], Moonface (Nonso Anozie) thinks he’s the leader of the tree gang, but it’s really Silky (Coughlan) who runs it. She was absolutely amazing and was very passionate about doing it. She’s an unbelievably perfect Silky.”
‘Magic Faraway Tree’ is currently in editing.
