A Good Girl’s Guide to Murderthe first volume in Holly Jackson’s bestselling coming-of-age series comes to life in a thrilling new drama.
The six-part series, which airs on BBC iPlayer in the UK from Monday 1 July and on Netflix in the US on Thursday 1 August, focuses on Pip Fitz-Amobi (Wednesdays Emma Myers), who lives in a seemingly idyllic small town that was shaken five years ago by the murder of schoolgirl Andie Bell (India Lillie Davies).
Andie’s boyfriend Sal Singh (Rahul Pattni) apparently confessed to the crime before taking his own life. But Pip, who has been following the case ever since she witnessed a mysterious incident, believes in his innocence and tries to find out who is really responsible as part of a student project with the help of Sal’s brother Ravi (Zain Iqbal). But as Pip gets closer and closer to the truth about the murder, she is threatened with danger…
What to Watch met with Emma Myers to learn more about A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder…
“A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder” has been a huge success with readers. Have you read the book?
Emma Myers: “I had heard of it but had never read it. But I have a lot of friends who are obsessed with it. And then after I officially signed, I bought all the books and devoured them. So I’ve read them several times now! And we tried to stay as faithful to the books as possible.”
How do you see Pip?
Emma Myers: “Pip is a girl doing a school project on a case that’s pretty important in her small town, and she knew the people involved. In this town, everyone knows everyone, so it’s pretty personal. She has a sense of justice and wants to do the right thing, and she just can’t give it up because she’s really passionate about it and wants to help Ravi and his family. She has a fiery spirit and nothing will stop her. She also feels guilty about having secrets she shouldn’t have…”
Emma Myers: “I think people are hesitant because it’s such a small town and they’re already so prejudiced against Ravi’s family. It’s hard for people to bring it all back to the surface. They don’t really want to accept what happened. And people have secrets that put them in a difficult position…”
Pip puts himself in danger, were there any action scenes?
Emma Myers: “There’s a lot of sprinting and pushing. I also had to learn to drive on the other side of the road and that was tricky! And my car was super old. So that was probably my biggest stunt!”
You’re from Florida. Was it difficult to perfect Pip’s English accent?
Emma Myers: “I had a great dialect coach who I met twice a week. We went through my scripts and practiced them. It helps to have an English cast too! They always told me if something I said was wrong or if I had a question then I could always ask. So I had a big help! Now I love the phrase ‘good reputation’. I have a friend who says that quite often and I started saying it!”
What is the difference between working with a British and a US crew?
Emma Myers: “The crew isn’t that different – but the crew in the UK like to joke around. I like them, they’re funny guys. In terms of the cast, though, it’s different because in the US, it’s not a big deal to go to drama school. If you go to drama school, you’re fancy, but in the UK that’s the default, everyone goes to drama school, so all the actors I’ve spoken to have these techniques and different processes that they bring to their roles and I just thought, ‘Wow, I hadn’t even watched the scene before this morning!'”
And how was it working with Anna Maxwell Martin, who plays Pip’s mother Leanne, Gary Beadle, who plays her stepfather Victor, and Mathew Baynton, who plays the teacher Elliot Ward, the father of her friend Cara (Asha Banks)?
Emma Myers: “They were great legends. Anna and Gary are incredibly funny together. And we had so much fun doing the scenes as a family, they have such a great sense of humor. But Mathew Baynton is such a character, he’s really funny.”
What was it like having author Holly Jackson on set as executive producer?
Emma Myers: “She was very involved, which is good for all of us because we know she’s happy and we always wanted to make her happy because it’s her baby. So she was on set quite a lot and I always had her on speed dial – if I had a question, I could ask her.”
Could the show return?
Emma Myers: “If it goes well and people really love it, I would definitely like to finish the books. You want more of the characters.”
What’s next for you?
Emma Myers: “I have a film coming out next year, MinecraftSo that will be fun. And I am currently filming Wednesday Season two, so I’ll be doing that for the rest of the year. I thought Wednesday would be popular, but I didn’t think it would be this popular, the response has been so good. And I’m delighted that people love it so much that we’re doing a second series which is even better. We’ve got a great cast this season and I can now bond with the Brits who are in it!”
A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder will air in the UK on BBC iPlayer from Monday 1 July and at a later date on BBC Three. In the US, the series will also air on Netflix on Thursday 1 August.
