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Ricky Tomlinson, Steve Evets and Kenneth Cranham have joined the cast of BBC Three’s new zombie drama written by Dominic Mitchell, In The Flesh, which is now shooting in the northwest

In The Flesh is the story of teenager Kieren Walker and his reintegration back into both the local community and the heart of his family. After his death four years ago, his friends and family thought they’d never see Kieren again. But then, shortly after his funeral, thousands of the dead were re-animated in one freak night; and now, after months of re-habilitation and medication, the zombies are gradually being returned to their homes.

Luke Newberry leads the cast as Kieren, together with David Walmsley (best friend, Rick Macy), Emily Bevan (fellow zombie, Amy Dyer) and Harriet Cains (sister, Jem Walker). The cast also includes Alex Arnold (Alex) (Skins), Steve Cooper (Steve Walker), Marie Critchley (Sue Walker), Stephen Thompson (Philip Wilson), Sandra Hugget (Shirley Wilson), Gerard Thompson (Dean), Kevin Sutton (Gary), John Owen-Jones (Keith), Karen Henthorn (Janet Macy), Oliver Birch (Giles Weir), Steve Garti (Duncan Lancaster), Juliet Ellis (Patty Lancaster).

BBC Three Controller Zai Bennett says: “It’s a testament to Dominic Mitchell’s fantastic script that some of the greats of UK drama are joining our exciting young actors for BBC Three’s new zombie drama, In The Flesh. ”

Director Jonny Campbell says: “From the moment I read the opening scene I was hooked. Dominic is an utterly fearless and instinctive young writer with an uncanny ability to tell a great story full of humour and humanity in a most original way. An elusive and rare combination in TV drama. What’s most exciting about In The Flesh is that it challenges our pre-conceptions about the standard zombie genre and in so doing almost certainly creates a new one.”

Writer Dominic Mitchell says: “When I took part in the fantastic BBC Writersroom Northern Voices scheme, never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that my drama about the medicated undead would be produced, let alone with such an incredibly talented cast and crew attached.”

Actor Luke Newberry says: “I am really excited to be playing Kieren who is an amazingly complex character. He is on an unthinkable rollercoaster of a journey, one in which he has been given a second chance at life and he has to come to terms with how to deal with that. The characters may look like zombies but this is a very human story about people trying to survive.”