LONDON, April 11 (UPI) -- Actress Kerry Howard is to play the title character in a one-off, television special called Young Hyacinth.
The 1950s-set program will be a prequel to the popular 1990s sitcom Keeping Up Appearances, which starred Patricia Routledge as a snobby, overbearing housewife who always managed to find herself in mortifying situations thanks to her outrageous family.
Written by the original series' creator Roy Clarke, Young Hyacinth "tells the story of Hyacinth's early adulthood and will air this summer on BBC One as part of a landmark sitcom season," the BBC announced Monday, revealing the cast will also include Mark Addy, Tamla Kari, Katherine Pearce and Katie Redford.
"It is such a privilege to get this opportunity to play the part that turned Patricia Routledge into a comedy legend," Howard said in a statement. "I grew up watching her and never dreamed that the original writer Roy Clarke would revisit Hyacinth in her early years and explain why she is the way she is. The script is incredible and he is such a sharp writer. This is a gift of a part and I'm very humbled that the BBC have entrusted it to me. I can't wait to play her!"
"Often, even during the elder Hyacinth's reign, I would wonder what this formidable mature lady would have been like as a young woman," Clarke added. "Would the Hyacinth powers already be there? Well, to my delight, I've been given the chance to find out. I've been allowed to wander into her background and investigate, almost a piece of archaeology really, until there she was -- young Hyacinth in early blossom. I hope those who knew her in her prime will find as much pleasure in this re-creation of her as I have."
