BBC Sets Premiere Date for THIRTEEN

Following last night's season premiere of Orphan Black, BBC America announces its new original five-part thriller, Thirteen, will make its debut Thursday, June 23rd at 10/9c, the week following Orphan Black's season finale. Created by acclaimed newcomer Marnie Dickens (Hollyoaks) and starring breakout actress Jodie Comer (Doctor Foster), the series is directed by China Moo-Young (Call the Midwife) and Vanessa Caswill (My Mad Fat Diary), with Elizabeth Kilgarriff (Luther) executive producing. Thirteen is an emotional rollercoaster that explores how to pick up the threads of a life half-lived, while questioning who to trust when you can't even trust yourself.

"Thirteen is an inventive and highly entertaining series that, just like Orphan Black, pulls you in from the get go to a young woman's adrenaline-fueled, deeply emotional story," said Sarah Barnett, President and General Manager of BBC AMERICA. "Given our fans' exceptional passion for our award-winning original content, we're pleased to give BBC America viewers another gripping series backed by strong female talent both in front of and behind the camera."

The BBC America co-production follows Ivy Moxam (Jodie Comer, Doctor Foster) on the day she escapes from the cellar that has been her prison for the last 13 years. It's the day she'll return to her home, to her family, to her life - but that day is only the beginning... The Moxam family had given up all hope when suddenly their loved one was thrust back into their lives - now THE FAMILY struggles to piece back together the version of their lives that existed before Ivy disappeared. Mother Christina (Natasha Little, The Night Manager) insists husband Angus (Stuart Graham, The Fall) leave his girlfriend and return to THE FAMILY home - never to breathe a word to Ivy of their separation, his breakdown, and all that has passed. Their other daughter, Emma (Katherine Rose Morley, Last Tango in Halifax), isn't even consulted about this and feels disgusted by it. Once again the focus shifts from her, and her imminent wedding to Craig Watts (Joe Layton, Tatau), to her sister.

For Ivy, even after escaping her kidnapper and returning to her family, she still can't seem to find peace or a sense of safety; the police inform her that her captor evaded arrest and is on the run. Assigned to the case and tasked with protecting Ivy are Detective Inspector (DI) Elliott Carne (Richard Rankin, The Crimson Field) and Detective Sergeant (DS) Lisa Merchant (Valene Kane, The Fall). The duo is sharp-tongued and shares a close relationship that occasionally crosses over the line of friendship, which DS Merchant enjoys far more than DI Carne. Their relationship is tested as DI Carne becomes consumed with protecting Ivy.

Ivy is the only one who knows her kidnapper, who understands him and who can help DI Carne and DS Merchant snare him. As leads run cold, the police begin to suspect Ivy isn't telling them the whole truth. As she fights to retain her sanity, the doubts about her begin to form - the anomalies of her statement, the errors, and her outright lies. What happened in that cellar? Where is her kidnapper? Can Ivy really be trusted? Everyone wants to untangle the mystery that is Ivy Moxam, but where narrators are unreliable, truths are withheld, and when everyone has an agenda, it is no easy task.

Thirteen is a BBC America co-production, produced by BBC In-House Drama Production England and Executive Produced by Elizabeth Kilgarriff for BBC THREE and BBC AMERICA.

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