Amy Winehouse's life to be explored in 'poignant' 8-part drama

Virgin Radio

17 Oct 2022, 14:08

The life and career of Amy Winehouse are to be explored in a new eight-part drama called Saving Amy.

Based on Daphne Barack’s book of the same name, Saving Amy will cover the iconic singer’s legacy and personal life up to her tragic death in 2011, aged 27.

The new series is being produced by Halcyon Studios and CEO David Ellender has called the opportunity to portray Amy’s life “an honour”.

He said: “Although her career was cut far too short, Amy was the voice of a generation, and we look forward to telling her story in the most poignant way possible.”

The docuseries is also expected to explore Amy's struggles with alcohol and drug addiction as well as her complicated relationship with her ex-husband Blake Fielder-Civil and her father, Mitch Winehouse.

British screenwriter Mal young, who has previously worked on shows like Doctor Who, Casualty and Holby City, will be brought on board by Halycon Studios to write the script.

Amy Winehouse has become one of Britain’s most legendary musicians after she shot to fame in 2003 following her debut album Frank, which bagged her an Ivor Novello award. Her second and final record Back to Black was released three years later in 2006m and it shot to number one in 18 different countries.

To this day, Back to Black is the UK’S second bestselling album of the 21st century and has sold nearly four million copies reaching platinum 13 times. The only record to have beaten it is Adele's 2011 album 21, which sold nearly 6 million copies and went platinum 17 times.

It's not the first time Amy’s life has been turned into a feature for the screen either. In 2015, a documentary film titled Amy, directed by Asif Kapadia was released, which covered her life, relationships and struggles with substance abuse.

Earlier this year, it was also reported a feature-length film titled Back to Black is in the works with Sam Taylor Johnson onboard as director. It is scheduled to be released in 2024.

A release date for Saving Amy has not yet been announced.