The first promotional photo for Jimmy McGovern’s epic new BBC Two drama Banished has been released.

From the makers of Top Of The Lake, the seven-part series stars Myanna Buring (Ripper Street), Russell Tovey (Being Human) and Julian Rhind-Tutt (The Hour).

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Opening in New South Wales, Australia in 1788, Banished is loosely inspired by events in the 18th century when Britain established a penal colony on the other side of the world, charting the lives, loves, relationships and battle for survival of a group of convicts, the soldiers who guard them and the men who govern them in the early days of this settlement.

Accused writer Jimmy McGovern commented: “How the first convicts survived is the best story I’ve come across in over 30 years as a dramatist. When you’ve got something like that, you don’t worry about the narrative; you just concentrate on the characters. That is what we did. Consequently, I don’t think I’ve ever written anything so character-driven.”

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The cast also includes David Wenham (Top Of The Lake), Joseph Millson (Holby City), Ewen Bremner (Accused), Genevieve O’Reilly (The Honourable Woman), Orla Brady (Strike Back) and Joanna Vanderham (The Paradise).

Banished is due to begin on BBC Two this Spring.

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