Jessica Brown Findlay stars as Mary Yellan in the new BBC adaptation of Daphne du Maurier’s gothic novel Jamaica Inn, written by Emma Frost.
23 year old Jessica (represented by Troika) made her film debut in the coming-of-age drama Albatross. She played Lady Sybil Crawley in Downton Abbey, went on to star in Labyrinth, and will next be seen playing Rachel in Lone Sherfig's Posh.
Set in 1820 against the forbidding backdrop of windswept Cornish moors, the story follows the journey of young and spirited Mary who is forced to live with her Aunt Patience after the death of her mother. Mary arrives at the isolated Jamaica Inn to discover her Aunt is a shell of the carefree woman she remembers from her childhood, and instead finds a drudge who is firmly under the spell of her domineering husband Joss.
The Inn has no guests - the rooms are locked and kept for storage - but it soon becomes clear that it’s a cover, as Joss is the leader of a smuggling ring, and Jamaica Inn the hub of his ‘free’ trade.
As Mary gets drawn into the dangerous world of smuggling, she finds herself attracted to Jem Merlyn, Joss’s roughly handsome younger brother. But he stands for everything that Mary despises and worse, she fears that he’s involved in Joss’s gang. Mary’s morals and loyalties become deeply conflicted. Who can she trust? Can she even trust herself?
Seeking guidance, Mary visits the parish vicar, Francis Davey, and his sister Hannah. But can they help her to navigate this dangerous new world and do the right thing, or will she lose herself in everybody else’s criminality? When Mary finds herself in peril for her own life, she is tested to the core and she’s forced to find out what she’s really made of.
Made for the BBC One by Origin Pictures the 3x60-minute drama is directed by BAFTA-winning director Philippa Lowthorpe (Call The Midwife, Five Daughters).
Filming took place on location in Cornwall, Yorkshire and Cumbria and Jamaica Inn is due to hit our screens later this year.