Eagle-eyed Charlie Mackesy fans will have caught the first glimpses of the author and illustrator’s hotly anticipated adaptation of his best-selling book, The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse.
The heartwarming story follows an unlikely friendship between a boy, a mole, a fox and a horse as they travel together in the boy’s search for home.
It has been adapted for the small screen and will debut on BBC One, iPlayer and Apple TV+ worldwide this Christmas.
Followers of Charlie’s social media accounts have been treated to an early taste of what they can expect from the film.
The soundless short clips show beautiful snapshots, including the moment the boy, the mole and the fox first meet the horse.
They also feature a clip of the four galloping across the snowy landscape, the horse gently lifting the boy out of water and carefully placing him on the snow, and the fox saving the mole as they cross a fast-flowing river.
A new hardback book, featuring Charlie’s illustrations alongside a hand-written script that celebrates the work of more than 100 animators involved across the two years of production, will be released on 22 November and is available to pre-order.
On the announcement of the adaptation, Charlie, who co-directed the film with Peter Baynton, said it is “so moving to think the story will be watched at Christmas”.
“I really hope it brings a bit of joy, laughter and comfort,” he added.
Although the short clips Charlie has shared have no sound, the finished film will. Tom Hollander is confirmed as the voice of the mole, Idris Elba the fox, Gabriel Byrne the horse and Jude Coward the boy. Isobel Waller-Bridge has composed an original score, which is performed by the BBC Concert Orchestra and conducted by Geoff Alexander.
The Matthew Freud production is produced by Cara Speller, of Nonemore Productions, and J.J. Abrams and Hannah Minghella of Bad Robot Productions. It has been adapted from the book in collaboration with Jon Croker.
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