As the nights draw in and the temperature plummets, it’s time to start planning our autumn viewing – and there’s nothing better than a sweeping, romantic period drama to keep you glued to your sofa under a warm blanket.

Thankfully, Netflix is breathing new life into the literary classic The Age of Innocence, bringing a fresh serving of high society scandal and 19th-century romance to our screens.

© Chris Baker/Netflix

The eight-episode series takes viewers to 1870s New York, where a forbidden romance threatens to disrupt the strict rules of high society. Adapted from Edith Wharton’s classic 1920 novel, the story follows a wealthy gentleman who becomes increasingly drawn to his fiancée’s unconventional cousin, who has returned from Europe after escaping a failed marriage.

Screenwriter Emma Frost brings plenty of experience adapting sweeping historical stories for television. Her previous credits include the Emmy-nominated drama The White Queen and its acclaimed follow-up, The White Princess. With Frost leading the adaptation, the series brings a celebrated literary classic to the screen.

With the show set to premiere on Netflix in February next year, here’s everything to know about the upcoming drama.

What Is The Age of Innocence About?

Adapted from the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, which was the first work by a female author to receive the award, the series explores a complicated romance caught between personal desire and social expectations. According to the synopsis, it follows a “passionate and heartrending will they, won’t they love triangle while exploring themes of freedom, duty, identity, and love in all its forms.”

© Chris Baker/Netflix

“The new adaptation aims to remain faithful to Wharton’s novel while connecting with a new generation. As the story moves between the ballrooms and bedrooms of its young characters, it explores the difference between love and lust, and raises the question of whether people should ultimately follow their heads or their hearts.”

Who Stars in The Age of Innocence?

Kristine Froseth (The Buccaneers) takes the lead as May Welland, described as a “kind and genuine” woman who believes in maintaining the status quo. She is newly engaged to Newland Archer, a handsome and wealthy gentleman portrayed by Ben Radcliffe (Masters of the Air, Anatomy of a Scandal).

© Chris Baker/Netflix

Camila Morrone (Daisy Jones & the Six, The Night Manager) plays Ellen Olenska, May’s intelligent and independent cousin, who returns to New York following the breakdown of her marriage to a Polish nobleman.

The supporting cast includes Margo Martindale (The Americans, Justified) as Mrs. Manson Mingott, the grandmother of May and Ellen; Fiona Glascott (Julia, Brooklyn) as May’s mother, Augusta Welland; and Belinda Bromilow (The Great, The Roses) as Newland’s mother, Adeline Archer.

Emma Shipp (Rivals, What It Feels Like for a Girl) appears as Newland’s sister, Janey Archer, while Hayley Mills (Trap, Arthur’s Whiskey) and Michael Cochrane (Downton Abbey, Sharpe) portray Adeline’s cousins, Louisa van der Luyden and Henry van der Luyden.

© Chris Baker/Netflix

Additional cast members include Ryan Morgan (Mix Tape, The Mongoose), Kel Matsena (Mad Heidi, Mix Tape), Lucia Balordi (A testa alta), Steven Pacey (MobLand, Nuremberg), Will Tudor (Industry, Wolf Hall), Elly Roberts (Sex Education, Black Cake), Jack Cutmore-Scott (Buffy the Vampire Slayer: New Sunnydale, Frasier), Anna Madeley (All Creatures Great and Small) and John Light (Around the World in 80 Days, Showtrial).

The Age of Innocence premieres on Netflix on February 18.

Source: Various