Daniel Mays

The Thursday Club is based on the best-selling book from former Pointless star Richard Osman.

The Thursday Club is set to make its cinema debut this week with fans understandably excited thanks to the unbelievable cast.

Hype has been mounting for the premiere of the silver screen adaptation of Richard Osman’s The Thursday Murder Club for quite some time but now the wait is almost over.

The Pointless star’s best-selling 2020 novel revolves around four friends in a retirement home who spend their time solving cold case murders for fun.

However, things actually get real for them when a property developer is found dead and the gang find themselves in the middle of the murder investigation.

The Thursday Murder Club cast in full

Elizabeth Best – Helen Mirren

The one and only Helen Mirren is behind Elizabeth Best in this eagerly anticipated adaptation, an ex-spy and the founder of the Thursday Murder Club.

Mirren is renowned for starring in massive hits such as The Queen, Hitchcock, Age of Consent, Excalibur, Gosford Park and Calendar Girls.

Ron Ritchie – Pierce Brosnan

Fellow member of the Thursday Murder Club is Ron Ritchie, a former union activist.

Irish star Pierce Brosnan is globally best remembered for starring as James Bond in the iconic franchise but has also been in Mamma Mia! and most recently starred in Paramount+’s Mobland.

Ibrahim Arif – Sir Ben Kingsley

Ron and Elizabeth are joined by fellow retiree and ex-psychiatrist Ibrahim Arif.

Sir Ben Kingsley has featured in major blockbusters including Sexy Beast, Shutter Island, Jules, William Tell and Richard Attenborough’s Gandhi.

Joyce Meadowcroft – Celia Imrie

Actress Celia Imrie is a star of both TV and film, with projects like The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, Bridget Jones’ Diary, Calendar Girls, Keeping Faith, The Diplomat and Patrick Melrose under her belt.

Imrie is behind former nurse and latest member of the club, Joyce Meadowcroft.

DCI Chris Hudson – Daniel Mays

Another recognisable star of British TV is actor Daniel Mays who is known for his work in Lin of Duty, Ashes to Ashes, White Lines, Des and Code 404.

He is behind DCI Chris Hudson who gets sucked into the workings of the Thursday Murder Club.

Donna de Freitas – Naomi Ackie

In Osman’s novel, Donna de Freitas is an eager policewoman who has just been transferred from South London.

Actress Naomi Ackie won the BAFTA for Best Supporting Actress in Netflix ’s The End of the F*****g World, and has also been in BBC ’s Small Axe, Star Wars : Rise of Skywalker and portrayed Whitney Houston in the biopic I Wanna Dance With Somebody.

Stephen Best – Jonathan Pryce

Welsh star Jonathan Pryce has featured in mega hits like The Age of Innocence, Pirates of the Caribbean, Evita, Tomorrow Never Dies and The Two Popes.

Pryce, who will play Elizabeth’s husband Stephen Best, also portrayed Prince Philip in the final two seasons of The Crown.

Ian Ventham – David Tennant

Scottish star David Tennant has featured in an abundance of exciting shows and films including Broadchurch, Good Omens, Deadwater Fell, Jessica Jones, the Harry Potter franchise, The Sandman and, of course, as the tenth Time Lord in Doctor Who.

In The Thursday Murder Club, Tennant portrays Ian Ventham, the dodgy owner of the retirement village Coopers Chase.

Bogdan Jankowski – Henry Lloyd-Hughes

Actor Henry Lloyd-Hughe is behind the Thursday Murder Club’s right-hand man, although how he becomes involved isn’t made clear.

Lloyd-Hughes has starred in The Irregulars, Indian Summers, Parade’s End and The Long Shadow but many may remember him best for playing bully Mark Donovan in The Inbetweeners.

Tony Curran – Geoff Bell

Actor Geoff Bell has starred in The Business, Once Upon a Time in London, Daylight Robbery and, most recently, Mobland, just to list a few.

He is behind Tony Curran, a builder and business partner at the retirement village.

Jason Ritchie – Tom Ellis

Jason Ritchie is Brosnan’s character Ron’s son who used to be a famous boxer who previously made some “shady deals”.

He is brought to life by the unforgettable Tom Ellis who starred as Lucifer himself in the titular drama, and also had roles in Miranda, Washington Black and Once Upon A Time.

Bobby Tanner – Richard E Grant

Also joining the cast is actor Richard E Grant who is playing a character called Bobby Tanner.

Grant is known for his roles in Saltburn, Waltlock, Death of a Unicorn, Dom Hemingway and Withnail and I.

John Grey – Paul Freeman

John Grey is a fellow resident at Coopers Chase and the husband of a friend of Elizabeth’s.

Actor Paul Freeman is remembered for starring in The Dogs of War and Raiders of the Lost Ark.

Patrice de Freitas – Sarah Niles

Actress Sarah Niles is best known for starring as Dr Sharon Fieldstone in Apple TV+’s Ted Lasso.

She is playing Patrice de Freitas, young police officer Donna’s mum.

Joanna Meadowcroft – Ingrid Oliver

Actress and comedian Ingrid Oliver, who was part of the double act Watson and Oliver and played Petronella Osgood in Doctor Who, is behind Joyce’s daughter Joanna Meadowcroft.

In real life, Oliver is also the wife of The Thursday Murder Club author Richard Osman.

The Thursday Murder Club premieres on Friday, August 22, in cinemas, and on Thursday, August 28, on Netflix.

The film is based on Richard Osman’s 2020 novel of the same name, but not everything has made it into the adaptation.

The Thursday Murder Club, which now has a full trailer, airs on Netflix on August 28 and fans of Richard Osman’s novel are desperate to see how it has been adapted for the small screen.

Boasting a star-studded cast, the movie follows four retirees who spend their time solving cold case murders for fun, but they end up with a real whodunit on their hands.

The film stars Helen Mirren as Elizabeth, Pierce Brosnan as Ron, Ben Kingsley as Ibrahim and Celia Imrie as Joyce, and it was directed by Chris Columbus.

Chris said of the film: “There’s a wonderful mystery at its core, so fans of detective and thriller films will not be disappointed.

READ MORE: Thursday Murder Club’s Celia Imrie drops news on adapting Richard Osman bookREAD MORE: Netflix makes huge Thursday Murder Club announcement and fans won’t want to miss it

“Thematically, I found it interesting that at the heart of the novel, there are four elderly people, living in a retirement community, who are obsessed with death and murder.

“They are in the last act of their lives, facing their own mortality, yet they are somehow obsessed with studying cold cases that deal with violent murders. I fell in love with that concept. It’s darkly comedic and deeply emotional.”

Translating the complex 350 page novel, which is full of plot twists, into a screenplay was actor and comedian Katy Brand’s responsibility.

“I remember thinking ‘there’s so much to play with here – it’s such an explosion of ideas.’ My immediate sense regarding adapting the book was that I wanted to draw out the emotion and Chris Columbus seemed to respond to that when we first met,” she said.

Chris opened up about how he initially became involved in the project, admitting the first scripts were not to his liking.

He said: “I was a fan of the books, but the initial scripts I read veered far from the novel. I felt that this was a mistake and I wanted to preserve what everyone loved about the book.

“When I first met with the writer, Katy Brand, I was convinced that she not only understood what made the novel so incredibly popular with readers around the world.

“But she also had the vision to write a film that was faithful to the source material. Katy’s draft was wonderful.

“And it was because of that draft that we were able to get so many British acting legends to commit to our film.”

The film also stars Naomi Ackie as PC Donna De Freitas, Daniel Mays as DCI Chris Hudson, Tom Ellis as Jason Ritchie, Jonathan Pryce as Stephen Best and David Tennant as Ian Ventham.

The Thursday Murder Club airs on Netflix on August 28