Based on the novel by Sarah Perry, the new series stars Claire Danes and Tom Hiddleston and is set in Victorian-era England.<\/p>\n
Danes plays the lead role of Cora Seaborne, a widow with a keen interest in natural history, and who journeys to Essex to search for a gigantic serpent reported to dwell in the marshes, and which she believes to be a kind of Plesiosaur that\u2019s escaped evolution.<\/p>\n
Read on for everything you need to know about the cast and characters in The Essex Serpent.<\/p>
Claire Danes plays Cora Seaborne<\/strong><\/h2>\n ![\"""\"]( "\\"\"\"\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div> Claire Danes plays Cora Seaborne in The Essex Serpent<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\nWho is Cora Seaborne?\u00a0<\/strong>A wealthy, newly widowed woman with a keen interest in natural history. After her abusive husband dies, she packs her bags and heads to Essex, where there have been reports of a mysterious, mythical serpent lurking in the marshes.<\/p>\nWhere have I seen Claire Danes before?\u00a0<\/strong>The Hollywood A-lister is perhaps best known for her award-winning role as Carrie Mathison in the acclaimed TV series Homeland, but you\u2019ll also know her from the likes of My So-Called Life, The Hours, Stardust, and Baz Luhrmann\u2019s Romeo + Juliet, opposite Leonardo DiCaprio.<\/p>\nTom Hiddleston plays Will Ransome<\/strong><\/h2>\n ![\"""\"]( "\\"\"\"\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div> Tom Hiddleston plays Will Ransome in The Essex Serpent<\/span><\/figcaption> Apple TV+<\/i><\/span><\/div>\nWho is Will Ransome?\u00a0<\/strong>The handsome vicar of the Essex parish of Aldwinter. He is threatened by his parishioners\u2019\u00a0obsession with the mythical serpent, which he regards as a deviation from their faith.<\/p>\nWhere have I seen Tom Hiddleston before?\u00a0<\/strong>He rose to international fame as Loki in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, appearing in the likes of Thor and The Avengers, and recently reprising the role in Disney Plus series Loki<\/a>. He\u2019s also starred in Wallander, The Night Manager, Crimson Peak, Midnight in Paris, The Deep Blue Sea, and The Hollow Crown.<\/p>\nCl\u00e9mence Po\u00e9sy plays Stella Ransome<\/strong><\/h2>\n ![\"""\"]( "\\"\"\"\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div> Cl\u00e9mence Po\u00e9sy plays Stella Ransome in The Essex Serpent<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\nWho is Stella Ransome?\u00a0<\/strong>The wife of Will, and mother to their three children. She has a delicate constitution, meaning she abstains from the long walks Cora and Will venture out on.<\/p>\nWhere have I seen\u00a0<\/strong>Cl\u00e9mence Po\u00e9sy before?\u00a0<\/strong>Viewers of a certain age will recognise her as Fleur Delacour from the Harry Potter film franchise. You may also recognise her from In Bruges, 127 Hours, War and Peace, The Tunnel and more recently from Ten Percent<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Tenet.<\/p>\nFrank Dillane plays Luke Garrett\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n ![\"""\"]( "\\"\"\"\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div> Frank Dillane plays Luke Garrett\u00a0 in The Essex Serpent<\/span><\/figcaption> Apple<\/i><\/span><\/div>\nWho is Luke Garrett?\u00a0<\/strong>A talented, pioneering surgeon who befriends Cora during her late husband\u2019s final days.<\/p>\nWhere have I seen Frank Dillane before?\u00a0<\/strong>Another Harry Potter alumnus, the actor played a young Tom Riddle (or rather, Lord Voldemort) in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. He went on to star in Sense8, In the Heart of the Sea, Fear the Walking Dead, and The Girlfriend Experience.<\/p>\nHayley Squires\u00a0plays Martha<\/strong><\/h2>\n ![\"""\"]( "\\"\"\"\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div> Hayley Squires\u00a0plays Martha in The Essex Serpent<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\nWho is Martha? <\/strong>Cora\u2019s socialist maidservant, who is also nanny to Cora\u2019s young son.<\/p>\nWhere have I seen\u00a0Hayley Squires before?\u00a0<\/strong>She\u2019s known for I, Daniel Blake, Collateral, The Electrical Life of Louis Wain, The Miniaturist, and the lead role in the recent Channel 4 series Adult Material.<\/p>\nMichael Jibson\u00a0plays Matthew Evansford<\/strong><\/h2>\nWho is Matthew Evansford?\u00a0<\/strong>Will Ransome\u2019s curate.<\/p>\nWhere have I seen Michael Jibson before?\u00a0<\/strong>The stage and screen actor played King George in the West End version of Hamilton, opposite his Essex Serpent co-star Jamael Westman. He\u2019s known for a variety of on-screen projects, including the film Les Mis\u00e9rables, 1917, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Honour, Cobra, A Discovery of Witches, and the recent ITV comedy-drama Quiz.<\/p>\nJamael Westman\u00a0plays Dr George Spencer\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n ![\"""\"]( "\\"\"\"\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div> Jamael Westman\u00a0plays Dr George Spencer\u00a0in The Essex Serpent<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\nWho is Dr George Spencer?\u00a0<\/strong>A doctor and companion to Luke Garrett. He soon becomes attracted to Martha, but she does not seem to reciprocate his feelings.<\/p>\nWhere have I seen Jamael Westman before?\u00a0<\/strong>He originated the title role of Alexander Hamilton in the West End production of Hamilton, and has since transitioned to the screen, starring in the series Anne Boleyn and On the Edge.<\/p>\nLily-Rose Aslandogdu plays Naomi Banks<\/strong><\/h2>\nWho is Naomi Banks?\u00a0<\/strong>A local Essex girl whose older sister, Gracie Banks, goes missing at the start of the series.<\/p>\nWhere have I seen\u00a0<\/strong>Lily-Rose Aslandogdu before?\u00a0<\/strong>Viewers will recognise her as Belinda Mullucks in Call the Midwife, and Alice Roosevelt in The Alienist.<\/p>\nThe first episode of The Essex Serpent will air at the\u00a0BFI & Radio Times Television Festival 2022<\/strong><\/a>, as well as a panel discussion with the author of the original book Sarah Perry, director Clio Barnard and cast members. Tickets are\u00a0on sale now here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/em><\/p>\nThe Essex Serpent premieres on Apple TV+ on Friday 13th May 2022 \u2013 sign up to Apple TV+ here<\/a>. Check out more of our Drama<\/a> coverage or visit our TV Guide<\/a> to see what\u2019s on tonight.<\/strong><\/p>\nThe latest issue of Radio Times magazine is on sale now \u2013\u00a0subscribe now<\/a>\u00a0and get the next 12 issues for only \u00a31. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to the\u00a0Radio Times podcast<\/a>\u00a0with Jane Garvey.<\/b><\/p><\/body><\/html>\n
","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"By Flora Carr Published: Tuesday, 10 May 2022 at 12:00 am Apple TV+ is taking viewers on a journey to the mist-covered Essex marshes with its brand new adaptation of The Essex Serpent, the bestseller about a woman who goes looking for a mythical beast. Based on the novel by Sarah Perry, the new series […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":15106,"template":"","categories":[1,5],"acf":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/05\/meet-the-cast-of-the-essex-serpent-scaled.jpg",2560,1440,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/05\/meet-the-cast-of-the-essex-serpent-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/05\/meet-the-cast-of-the-essex-serpent-300x169.jpg",300,169,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/05\/meet-the-cast-of-the-essex-serpent-768x432.jpg",768,432,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/05\/meet-the-cast-of-the-essex-serpent-1024x576.jpg",800,450,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/05\/meet-the-cast-of-the-essex-serpent-1536x864.jpg",1536,864,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/05\/meet-the-cast-of-the-essex-serpent-2048x1152.jpg",2048,1152,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"By Flora Carr Published: Tuesday, 10 May 2022 at 12:00 am Apple TV+ is taking viewers on a journey to the mist-covered Essex marshes with its brand new adaptation of The Essex Serpent, the bestseller about a woman who goes looking for a mythical beast. Based on the novel by Sarah Perry, the new series…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/15105"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/rss_feed"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15106"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15105"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15105"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"""\"](\""https:\/\/images.immediate.co.uk\/production\/volatile\/sites\/3\/2022\/03\/The-Essex-Serpent-Claire-Danes-21b71bd-e1618411359827-c8923ce.jpg?quality=90&resize=591%2C382"\" "\\"\"\"\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>Who is Cora Seaborne?\u00a0<\/strong>A wealthy, newly widowed woman with a keen interest in natural history. After her abusive husband dies, she packs her bags and heads to Essex, where there have been reports of a mysterious, mythical serpent lurking in the marshes.<\/p>\n Where have I seen Claire Danes before?\u00a0<\/strong>The Hollywood A-lister is perhaps best known for her award-winning role as Carrie Mathison in the acclaimed TV series Homeland, but you\u2019ll also know her from the likes of My So-Called Life, The Hours, Stardust, and Baz Luhrmann\u2019s Romeo + Juliet, opposite Leonardo DiCaprio.<\/p>\n Who is Will Ransome?\u00a0<\/strong>The handsome vicar of the Essex parish of Aldwinter. He is threatened by his parishioners\u2019\u00a0obsession with the mythical serpent, which he regards as a deviation from their faith.<\/p>\n Where have I seen Tom Hiddleston before?\u00a0<\/strong>He rose to international fame as Loki in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, appearing in the likes of Thor and The Avengers, and recently reprising the role in Disney Plus series Loki<\/a>. He\u2019s also starred in Wallander, The Night Manager, Crimson Peak, Midnight in Paris, The Deep Blue Sea, and The Hollow Crown.<\/p>\n Who is Stella Ransome?\u00a0<\/strong>The wife of Will, and mother to their three children. She has a delicate constitution, meaning she abstains from the long walks Cora and Will venture out on.<\/p>\n Where have I seen\u00a0<\/strong>Cl\u00e9mence Po\u00e9sy before?\u00a0<\/strong>Viewers of a certain age will recognise her as Fleur Delacour from the Harry Potter film franchise. You may also recognise her from In Bruges, 127 Hours, War and Peace, The Tunnel and more recently from Ten Percent<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Tenet.<\/p>\n Who is Luke Garrett?\u00a0<\/strong>A talented, pioneering surgeon who befriends Cora during her late husband\u2019s final days.<\/p>\n Where have I seen Frank Dillane before?\u00a0<\/strong>Another Harry Potter alumnus, the actor played a young Tom Riddle (or rather, Lord Voldemort) in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. He went on to star in Sense8, In the Heart of the Sea, Fear the Walking Dead, and The Girlfriend Experience.<\/p>\n Who is Martha? <\/strong>Cora\u2019s socialist maidservant, who is also nanny to Cora\u2019s young son.<\/p>\n Where have I seen\u00a0Hayley Squires before?\u00a0<\/strong>She\u2019s known for I, Daniel Blake, Collateral, The Electrical Life of Louis Wain, The Miniaturist, and the lead role in the recent Channel 4 series Adult Material.<\/p>\n Who is Matthew Evansford?\u00a0<\/strong>Will Ransome\u2019s curate.<\/p>\n Where have I seen Michael Jibson before?\u00a0<\/strong>The stage and screen actor played King George in the West End version of Hamilton, opposite his Essex Serpent co-star Jamael Westman. He\u2019s known for a variety of on-screen projects, including the film Les Mis\u00e9rables, 1917, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Honour, Cobra, A Discovery of Witches, and the recent ITV comedy-drama Quiz.<\/p>\n Who is Dr George Spencer?\u00a0<\/strong>A doctor and companion to Luke Garrett. He soon becomes attracted to Martha, but she does not seem to reciprocate his feelings.<\/p>\n Where have I seen Jamael Westman before?\u00a0<\/strong>He originated the title role of Alexander Hamilton in the West End production of Hamilton, and has since transitioned to the screen, starring in the series Anne Boleyn and On the Edge.<\/p>\n Who is Naomi Banks?\u00a0<\/strong>A local Essex girl whose older sister, Gracie Banks, goes missing at the start of the series.<\/p>\n Where have I seen\u00a0<\/strong>Lily-Rose Aslandogdu before?\u00a0<\/strong>Viewers will recognise her as Belinda Mullucks in Call the Midwife, and Alice Roosevelt in The Alienist.<\/p>\n The first episode of The Essex Serpent will air at the\u00a0BFI & Radio Times Television Festival 2022<\/strong><\/a>, as well as a panel discussion with the author of the original book Sarah Perry, director Clio Barnard and cast members. Tickets are\u00a0on sale now here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/em><\/p>\n The Essex Serpent premieres on Apple TV+ on Friday 13th May 2022 \u2013 sign up to Apple TV+ here<\/a>. Check out more of our Drama<\/a> coverage or visit our TV Guide<\/a> to see what\u2019s on tonight.<\/strong><\/p>\n The latest issue of Radio Times magazine is on sale now \u2013\u00a0subscribe now<\/a>\u00a0and get the next 12 issues for only \u00a31. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to the\u00a0Radio Times podcast<\/a>\u00a0with Jane Garvey.<\/b><\/p><\/body><\/html>\n By Flora Carr Published: Tuesday, 10 May 2022 at 12:00 am Apple TV+ is taking viewers on a journey to the mist-covered Essex marshes with its brand new adaptation of The Essex Serpent, the bestseller about a woman who goes looking for a mythical beast. Based on the novel by Sarah Perry, the new series […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":15106,"template":"","categories":[1,5],"acf":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/05\/meet-the-cast-of-the-essex-serpent-scaled.jpg",2560,1440,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/05\/meet-the-cast-of-the-essex-serpent-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/05\/meet-the-cast-of-the-essex-serpent-300x169.jpg",300,169,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/05\/meet-the-cast-of-the-essex-serpent-768x432.jpg",768,432,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/05\/meet-the-cast-of-the-essex-serpent-1024x576.jpg",800,450,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/05\/meet-the-cast-of-the-essex-serpent-1536x864.jpg",1536,864,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2022\/05\/meet-the-cast-of-the-essex-serpent-2048x1152.jpg",2048,1152,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"By Flora Carr Published: Tuesday, 10 May 2022 at 12:00 am Apple TV+ is taking viewers on a journey to the mist-covered Essex marshes with its brand new adaptation of The Essex Serpent, the bestseller about a woman who goes looking for a mythical beast. Based on the novel by Sarah Perry, the new series…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/15105"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/rss_feed"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15106"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15105"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15105"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Tom Hiddleston plays Will Ransome<\/strong><\/h2>\n
![\"""\"](\""https:\/\/images.immediate.co.uk\/production\/volatile\/sites\/3\/2021\/03\/Unknown-3-dcc16b1.jpeg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413"\" "\\"\"\"\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>Cl\u00e9mence Po\u00e9sy plays Stella Ransome<\/strong><\/h2>\n
![\"""\"](\""https:\/\/images.immediate.co.uk\/production\/volatile\/sites\/3\/2022\/05\/TheEssexSerpentPhoto010106-5a41abd.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413"\" "\\"\"\"\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>Frank Dillane plays Luke Garrett\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n
![\"""\"](\""https:\/\/images.immediate.co.uk\/production\/volatile\/sites\/3\/2022\/05\/TheEssexSerpentPhoto010104-f1dee9b.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413"\" "\\"\"\"\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>Hayley Squires\u00a0plays Martha<\/strong><\/h2>\n
![\"""\"](\""https:\/\/images.immediate.co.uk\/production\/volatile\/sites\/3\/2022\/05\/Screenshot-2022-05-10-at-11.50.20-188b7f8.png?quality=90&resize=620%2C401"\" "\\"\"\"\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>Michael Jibson\u00a0plays Matthew Evansford<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Jamael Westman\u00a0plays Dr George Spencer\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n
![\"""\"](\""https:\/\/images.immediate.co.uk\/production\/volatile\/sites\/3\/2022\/05\/Screenshot-2022-05-10-at-11.50.39-527d2b0.png?quality=90&resize=620%2C400"\" "\\"\"\"\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>Lily-Rose Aslandogdu plays Naomi Banks<\/strong><\/h2>\n
","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"