Lord of the Flies review: Jack Thorne’s BBC adaptation is a glorious reminder of the novel’s power

by

A star rating of 4 out of 5.

If I say Lord of the Flies, most of you will think of school. I certainly do.

This book is commonly studied by students preparing for their English Literature GCSEs, so it’s often the first time people encounter the story.

I actually performed in a school production of this play. I played one of the twins, Eric, even though I don’t have a twin myself. The director said I had a very average look, so they figured it would be easy to find someone who could play my twin.

While I probably need to think about that issue separately, it’s easy to see why this story is so popular in schools and often performed. However, that familiarity might make some people reluctant to watch a TV adaptation. Sometimes, overanalyzing a book can ruin the simple pleasure of reading it, even if it’s a good approach for studying it.

We hope viewers will give this four-part drama a chance – it’s the first ever television adaptation of William Golding’s famous novel. If they do, they’ll find a captivating story and rediscover what made the book so impactful in the first place.

Lord of the Flies is set in the 1950s, during a made-up war that reflects the global conflicts and the lingering impact of World War II. If you’re unfamiliar with the story, this historical context is important.

A plane carrying a diverse group of British schoolchildren crashes on a mysterious tropical island, killing the pilot and leaving the children stranded.

Once they’re on their own, the boys agree they need someone in charge and quickly choose Ralph, a confident and kind boy who comes from a family with military experience. He gets help from a smart boy named Piggy, who reveals he was bullied before. Unfortunately, the nickname ‘Piggy’ sticks with the group, much to his dismay.

Ralph tries his best to lead, but Jack, who leads a group of singers, constantly challenges him. Ralph initially manages to make Jack head of hunting to provide food. Later, Ralph wants Jack to focus on maintaining a signal fire, hoping it will attract the attention of ships and lead to their rescue.

While some boys become frustrated with Ralph’s focus on rules, Jack gains more and more influence, ultimately leading to disorder and disaster.

It’s somewhat surprising that there haven’t been many movie or TV versions of Lord of the Flies – just one from America, one from the Philippines, one from Britain, and now this new series. But when you think about it, it’s not really that surprising at all.

Filming with a cast of mostly children is already challenging, but shooting in a tropical island location adds a whole new level of complexity.

This production is technically outstanding, and director Marc Munden deserves a lot of credit for that.

The film is impressive not only for being successfully made in a beautiful Malaysian setting, but also for its unique visual style. The striking use of color, carefully chosen camera angles, and fast-paced editing create a mesmerizing effect, giving the film a surreal and slightly unsettling quality.

The project feels genuinely innovative, especially with its incredible soundtrack by Cristobal Tapia de Veer and a memorable, atmospheric theme composed by Hans Zimmer and Kara Talve.

Then, we’ve got the bringing together of this cast – again, no mean feat.

The team worked hard to find the perfect actors for the show, traveling across the country, and they’ve definitely discovered some rising stars.

David McKenna, who plays Piggy, and Lox Pratt, as Jack, are particularly strong in their roles. McKenna delivers a remarkably natural and funny performance, showing a maturity beyond his age. Pratt brings a lot of energy to Jack, but also reveals a surprising depth of character.

The character Jack possesses a compelling mix of confidence and charisma, making him a believable leader, but he’s also prone to childish outbursts and anger, which can be unsettling. Beneath the surface, he’s deeply lonely and feels an emptiness he doesn’t quite understand. It’s impressive that Chris Pratt, at his age, can portray such a complex character.

The supporting actors all deliver solid performances. Winston Sawyers portrays the somewhat intense Ralph with nuance, Ike Talbut brings depth to the often-teased Simon, and Thomas Connor is convincingly cruel as Roger.

Thorne has repeatedly emphasized that this adaptation stays true to Golding’s original novel, and for the most part, it really does.

The story has a few minor changes, especially in episodes two and four, but overall it stays very true to the original work, both in terms of plot and its underlying message.

This approach feels right. While some stories benefit from loose adaptations, we’ve seen many recent projects simply inspired by Golding’s work. If we’re going to revisit the original story, we should truly commit to a faithful adaptation.

The novel remains powerfully relevant today. Since it was published in 1954, Golding’s work hasn’t lost any of its impact, and in many ways feels surprisingly modern. Its exploration of conflicting ideas about how society should work, the dangers of mob rule, savagery, and distrust of intelligence all seem particularly insightful and unsettlingly relevant to current events.

Thorne’s choice to narrate each part of the story through the eyes of a different main character – starting with Piggy, then Jack, Simon, and finally Ralph – is a brilliant storytelling technique.

The writing style is subtle and effective, adding a unique feel to each chapter and allowing for a deeper understanding of the main characters than would typically be possible.

While generally good, the finale isn’t flawless. Surprisingly, it slows down in places even when things are supposed to be most exciting, and some of the scariest moments don’t quite land with the impact they should.

The story deliberately draws a connection between the wild, chaotic behavior of the boys and the quiet moments needed to process what’s happening, especially after significant events.

The series concludes strongly, particularly with a final scene that closely and effectively mirrors the source material, striking the perfect emotional tone. Earlier episodes occasionally stumble, either rushing through or dwelling too long on the difficult events that came before.

This is undoubtedly an amazing accomplishment, and both new and returning fans will truly enjoy it.

Okay, let me tell you, this movie stirred up some unexpectedly strong memories for me – not in a good way, honestly. But setting that aside, whenever I wasn’t completely captivated by how stunning it looked and all the clever filmmaking, I was powerfully reminded of just how resonant the core story really is. It’s a film that gets under your skin, visually and emotionally.

The characters feel realistic, the story is straightforward, and the quick way things fall apart feels genuine.

I’ve been thinking a lot about growing up these days, especially how different it is for kids now, and this story really hit home – it reminded me of Thorne’s work on adolescence and how complex it all is. But it also got me pondering bigger questions, the kind that stick with you after the credits roll. Like, what actually causes societies to fall apart? How do we live with people who are just obsessed with having control? And is there something fundamentally dark inside all of us? It’s heavy stuff, but really good stuff.

There you go, GCSE students – you can have those ones for free.

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Lord of the Flies will air on BBC One and BBC iPlayer from Sunday 8th February 2026.

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Authors

James HibbsDrama Writer

James Hibbs writes about TV dramas for TopMob, covering shows on streaming services and traditional channels. Before becoming a writer, he worked in public relations, first at a business-to-business agency and then at the international production company Fremantle. He has a bachelor’s degree in English and Theatre Studies, as well as a journalism diploma.

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2026-02-06 03:36