Classic wartime drama Tenko set for TV reboot from Fleabag and The Tourist producers

BBC wartime classic Tenko is being given a modern-day reboot by The Tourist and The Assassin creators, Jack and Harry Williams.

Tenko originally aired for three seasons and a special between 1981 to 1985, and was set in an internment camp in Singapore during the the peak of World War II.

Starting in 1942, the story follows a group of UK, Australian and Dutch women who were forced to live together.

While the story is set in a fictional camp, it is largely based on the true stories of female prisoners of war, what they faced and how they survived.

The original Tenko cast was led by Stephanie Chase, Ann Bell and Claire Oberman, with other key cast members including Stephanie Beacham, Patricia Lawrence and Emily Bolton.

According to Deadline, the Williams brothers, who together run production company Two Brothers Pictures, are working with Tenko’s original creator Lavinia Warner to bring the show to life.

The news was confirmed by Sarah Hammond, Chief Creative Officer at Two Brothers, who told the site: “[Warner] had a lot of relationships with the women, and the families of the women who were in the war camp, so she didn’t want to hand the reins over to just anyone, but she was really excited to work with us to bring it back.”

Tenko (the Japanese word for the command “roll call”) will be written by Anna Symon, who has previously written on Deep Water, Mrs Wilson, The Essex Serpent and Joan.

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Authors

Tilly Pearce is a freelance TV journalist whose coverage ranges from reality shows like Love Is Blind to sci-fi shows like Fallout. She is an NCTJ Gold Standard accredited journalist, who has previously worked as Deputy TV Editor (maternity cover) at Digital Spy, and Deputy TV & Showbiz Editor at Daily Express US.