''An Awfully Big Adventure'' is a novel written by

Beryl Bainbridge Dame Beryl Margaret Bainbridge (21 November 1932 – 2 July 2010) was an English writer. She was primarily known for her works of psychological fiction, often macabre tales set among the English working class. She won the Whitbread Awards priz ...

. It was shortlisted for the

Booker Prize The Booker Prize, formerly the Booker Prize for Fiction (1969–2001) and the Man Booker Prize (2002–2019), is a prestigious literary award conferred each year for the best single work of sustained fiction written in the English language, wh ...

in 1990 and adapted as a

movie A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

in 1995. The story was inspired by Bainbridge's own experiences working at the

Liverpool Playhouse The Liverpool Playhouse is a theatre in Williamson Square in the city of Liverpool, England. It originated in 1866 as a music hall, and in 1911 developed into a repertory theatre. As such it nurtured the early careers of many actors and actre ...

in her youth. The title is an ironic reference to the original

Peter Pan Peter Pan is a fictional character created by Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie. A free-spirited and mischievous young boy who can fly and never grows up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending childhood having adventures on the mythical ...

story, in which Peter says "To die will be an awfully big adventure."

Storyline

Set in working-class England in 1950,People who love people who love somebody else
Retrieved 19/6/21. the story observes sexual politics among a troupe of actors working at a shabby regional playhouse. During a Christmas production of ''

'', the play turns into a dark metaphor for youth when Stella Bradshaw, an ambitious teenage girl from the slums of

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

, joins the company and gets entangled in the backstage intrigue.

Film adaptation

In 1995,

Fine Line Features Fine Line Features was the specialty films division of New Line Cinema. From 1991 to 2005, under founder and president Ira Deutchman, Fine Line acquired, distributed and marketed independent films. In 2005, New Line teamed up with fellow Time W ...

released a motion picture adaptation starring

Alan Rickman Alan Sidney Patrick Rickman (21 February 1946 – 14 January 2016) was an English actor and director. Known for his distinctive deep, wikt:languid#Etymology 1, languid voice, he trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London and b ...

Hugh Grant Hugh John Mungo Grant (born 9 September 1960) is an English actor. He established himself early in his career as a charming and vulnerable romantic leading man, and has since transitioned into a character actor. He has received List of awards ...

and then-unknown actress

Georgina Cates Georgina Elaine Cates (born Clare Elaine Woodgate; 4 April 1975) is an English film and television actress. Life and career Born Clare Elaine Woodgate in Colchester, Cates attended Colchester County High School for Girls and broke into televi ...

in the central role. The film was directed by Mike Newell and is one of the few film versions of Bainbridge's works.

References

1989 British novels Novels set in Liverpool Novels by Beryl Bainbridge Fiction set in 1950 Theatre-fiction Gerald Duckworth and Company books British novels adapted into films {{1980s-novel-stub