Stephen Knight to rewrite classic novel ‘Great Expectations’ for BBC

• The BBC adaptation of Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations has anti-colonial undertones.
• Magwitch says, the British Empire was based on the lies of wealthy white men.
• It will be written by Stephen Knight.

Strong anti-colonial undertones can be seen in the recent BBC rendition of Charles Dickens’ famous book Great Expectations.

The well-known tale will have a fresh twist, written by Stephen Knight, who also created the popular television series Peaky Blinders.

One of the main characters, the criminal Magwitch, is shown in a sequence saying that the British Empire was “based on the lies of wealthy white men,” according to The Telegraph.

When asked if he believed the new adaption would hurt traditionalists’ feelings, Knight responded, “It’s everyone’s right to react in the way they want to react.”

“But I would say that the book exists, it is still there. This is not an attempt to say the book is wrong or this is better.”

According to reports, Knight also wants to get rid of the stiffness that comes from Victorian Britain.

The BBC’s adaptation of the novel should make it “more approachable for younger people,” according to actor Ffion Whitehead, who plays Pip, the orphan who serves as the protagonist of the book.

“The Empire was a horrible thing which involved a lot of British people going out and enslaving, pillaging and destroying a lot of cultures around the world,” He said.

“It was powered by greed. If there’s anyone walking around believing that the Empire was a great thing they are kidding themselves.”

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