Playing Nice is a tense ITV1 and ITVX thriller set in Cornwall where two couples discover their toddlers were somehow switched at birth, all down to a hospital mix-up. Playing the distraught and confused parents are James Norton, Niamh Algar, James McArdle and Jessica Brown Findlay.
The four-part series is based on the bestselling novel Playing Nice by JP Delaney and is adapted by Malpractice writer Grace Ofori-Attah for Studiocanal and Rabbit Track Pictures, a production company co-founded by James Norton and Katie Hewitt.
James Norton, who also serves as an executive producer, says: “Playing Nice was the first book we optioned after launching Rabbit Track and we feel immensely proud of the project it has become. To be working with ITV, Studiocanal, wonderful Grace Ofori-Attah, visionary Kate Hewitt, our unbelievable cast and the whole rest of the production team is a huge privilege. We’re thrilled and very excited.”
So here's everything you need to know about Playing Nice on ITV1 and ITVX...
Playing Nice release date
Playing Nice starts on ITV1 from Sunday January 5 2025 at 9pm on ITV and ITVX. Episodes will air every Sunday and Monday at 9pm on ITV1 and drop as a boxset on ITVX from 5 January 2025. Canal+ will distribute the drama internationally, and we will update with an international and US air date as soon as we can.
Is there a trailer for Playing Nice?
Yes a Playing Nice trailer has now been released by ITV which you can watch below...
Playing Nice plot
Playing Nice takes place in a remote part of Cornwall, south west England, as two couples discover their beloved toddlers had been switched at birth in a terrible hospital mix-up. Both face a horrifying dilemma — do they keep the sons they have raised and come to love dearly, or reclaim their biological child?
The horrifying situation is an absolute nightmare for Pete Riley (James Norton) and Maddie Wilson (Niamh Algar) as they are pulled into the world of the other couple — Miles Lambert (James McArdle) and Lucy Lambert (Jessica Brown Findlay). At first it seems all four are seemingly agreed on the best solution, but it soon becomes clear that hidden motives are at play. How far can each couple trust the real parents of their child – or even each other? As Pete and Maddie reach breaking point, they stop at nothing to keep their family together.
Playing Nice main cast
The four main stars of Playing Nice are James Norton, Niamh Algar, James McArdle and Jessica Brown Findlay. Here's the lowdown on each below.
James Norton plays Pete Riley
Playing father Pete, an ex-journalist turned full-time devoted father. He is an optimistic, (yet avoidant) people-pleaser, always wanting the best for his family. Upon discovering Theo is not his and his partner Maddie’s biological child, Pete is determined to keep the boy they have raised and not to have their family torn apart.
* James Norton is known for his role as killer Tommy Lee Royce in Happy Valley and as the vicar Sidney Chambers, alongside Robson Green, when Grantchester began. His other roles include playing Prince Andrei Bolkonsky in BBC1's epic period drama adaptation War & Peace and as Alex Godman — the son of a mobster in BBC1 thriller McMafia.
Niamh Algar plays Maddie Wilson
Playing Pete's other half and anguished mum Maddie is Niamh Algar. Maddie is a passionate and loving mother who runs a successful restaurant in Cornwall. She experienced serious postnatal depression, from which she has only just recovered, and now with news of the baby swap is forced to relive and confront her worst traumas. Maddie is fiercely protective of Theo, but unlike her partner Pete, she can’t help but long for the son that she gave birth to...
* Niamh Algar previously starred in dramas such as Malpractice and Deceit.
Jessica Brown Findlay plays Lucy Lambert
Jessica Brown Findlay is playing the other mum Lucy who is caught up in the baby swap nightmare. Once a celebrated artist, Lucy is now a full-time mother to David, and a supportive wife to Miles. She is a gentle soul and peacekeeper, and upon discovering the news of the swap, Lucy’s desperation to protect David becomes even stronger. Keeping her son safe must come above all else.
* Jessica Brown Findlay is of course world famous for playing Lady Sybil in the early series of Downton Abbey. She's also starred in Munich: The Edge of War, Jamaica Inn, Misfits, The Outcast, The Flatshare and Brave New World.
James McArdle plays Miles Lambert
The other father in the drama is Miles played by James McArdle. Miles is a charming, competitive and extremely successful architect who presents as everybody’s best friend. But preoccupied beyond all else with bloodline, legacy, and the notion of ‘the perfect family’, Miles becomes fixated with Theo… the son he feels he’s always been missing. He will let nothing get in the way of what he wants.
* James McArdle previously played Deacon Mark Burton in Mare of Easttown, alongside Kate Winslet, and is Niv Lek in Star Wars: Episode VII – the Force Awakens. He’s also starred in movies such as Mary Queen of Scots, ’71, Ammonite and Private Peaceful as well as the TV series Appropriate Adult, Love & Marriage and Life After Life. He's starring in 2024 series Sexy Beast.
Who else is starring in Playing Nice?
The remaining cast for Playing Nice includes Sunetra Sarker as Anika Chowdhury, Phil Davis as John Riley, Sam Hoare as Mr Kelly, Alban Guo as Theo Riley, Lucy Phelps as Suzy, Theo Ogundipe as Ollie, Philippe Spall as Martin Swale, Posy Sterling as Kiera Keenan, Miriam Lucia as Dr Hannah Wendle, Poppy Roe as Naomi Relph, Fraser Cornelissen as David Lambert, Jude Mack.as Tania, Amy Morgan as Jen, Witney White as Maya, Athena Roldan as Alexa, Cara Mahoney as a paediatric A&E doctor and Maxine Finch as Judge Wakefield..
James Norton on playing Pete Riley in Playing Nice...
Do reveal your take on starring in Playing Nice...
James Norton says: "Playing Nice is about two couples who find out that their young boys aged two and a half were accidentally swapped at birth and the chaos, trauma and complications that follow. It asks the question; what would you do? How would you react if you discover that your two-and-a-half-year-old child is not your own and your real child has been brought up by another family? We then discover that these two families are very different in many ways and so adds to the complications set to unfold."
Can you tell us more about who your character, Pete Riley, is?
James says: "Pete Riley is a young, Cornish born and bred man who’s popular amongst his peers and his family. Pete is a good time guy, gentle, sensitive, family-minded, loves Cornwall, loves Theo, loves his partner Maddie and doesn't like confrontation, doesn't love conflict so lives a relatively small contained, but very happy life. He's someone who's prioritized his family and he’s never been particularly career-minded. He’s been in a band or two, travelled a bit and tried his hand at journalism but then decided to give that up in order to bring up Theo and that is the point in which we meet Pete in our story. He’s taken on a gardening job but his real life's work, his ‘raison d'être’ is his son."
Could you tell us about the relationship Pete has with his partner Maddie, and son Theo?
James says: "This is an adaptation from the original book so though our version is close to the novel, it differs slightly and isn’t defined by the book. In our version, Pete and Maddie met relatively recently before the story starts and had their son, Theo, quite quickly after meeting. There’s a question mark over whether the Theo was intended or not, but they have very loving relationship. Maddie is career-minded, focused, ambitious and runs a restaurant whereas Pete's happiest in a slightly slower lane looking after Theo. He’s very happy to be a stay-at-home dad, and both Pete and Maddie navigate the strange societal implications that come with that, supporting each other and their choices. Sometimes they rub each other up the wrong way and challenge each other in good ways and bad, but generally they have a loving supportive relationship. Pete and Maddie recognize that they parent in slightly different ways but those two ways complement each other. It's a family of love and time spent with one another."
How does Maddie and Pete’s relationship differ from Miles and Lucy’s?
James says: "Pete and Maddie are not particularly wealthy, if anything they have money problems which is one of their strains and stresses, but they are a happy, modern, inclusive open family. Miles and Lucy are not any of those things. They are not inclusive and they're not particularly open. They have a more traditional family set up in that Miles is much more of a patriarchal figure. Miles thinks of himself as the provider, an alpha male who works to provide and Lucy's there to bring up his children. He plays lip service to the fact that he would like Lucy to take up her career again but really, Miles is keen on having a stay-at-home wife and a set up where children are seen but not heard. Miles and Lucy’s set up is colder and more clinical whereas Pete and Maddie are warm and Bohemian."
Playing Nice episode guide
Here's our brief guide to all four episodes of Playing Nice. If you don't want spoilers then do look away...
Episode 1: Sunday January 5, ITV1, 9pm
Pete and Maddie find out that their son, Theo, was swapped at birth with another boy. When both couples admit they want to keep the child they’ve been raising, it seems a solution - and they each agree to allow the other parents the chance to get to know their biological offspring properly. However, Miles’s pushy nature starts to wear on Pete and Maddie - and it becomes clear he has a hidden agenda… Will Theo’s real parents want him back? Or will the couples be able to ‘play nice’?
Episode 2: Monday January 6, ITV1, 9pm
Pete and Maddie begin the fight to keep Theo. It’s expensive and painful. The constant dredging up of their past starts to damage their relationship. Can they survive?
Episode 3: Sunday January 5, ITV1, 9pm
Pete is questioned by police, Miles leaks Pete’s private email to the press, and Pete is subsequently fired. Pete realises to save his family, he has to dig into Miles’ murky past.
Episode 4: Monday January 13, ITV1, 9pm
Now separated from Theo and only allowed to see him for painful supervised visits, Pete and Maddie must attend the final hearing to decide their family’s fate.
Behind the scenes, locations and more on Playing Nice
Playing Nice is being filmed in Cornwall, south west England, in early 2024. Writer Grace Ofori-Attah, who has adapted the novel for this thriller, says: “It has been an absolute privilege to adapt JP Delaney’s gripping novel for the screen. I am thrilled to be working with Rabbit Track and Studiocanal, as well as our incredible cast and production team. I’m also excited to be partnering with ITV again on my second drama series, and can’t wait for Playing Nice to hit TV screens.”
Studiocanal’s Joe Naftalin and Isobel Carter say: “We are hugely excited to be launching this production. We are delighted to be working with our wonderful cast and crew, working from a brilliant script by Grace Ofori-Attah, and with powerful direction from Kate Hewitt. We are grateful to our partners at ITV, CANAL+, Rabbit Track - and to JP Delaney for allowing us the opportunity to adapt his gripping novel. We can’t wait to share this captivating series with audiences around the world next year.”
ITV Drama Commissioner Helen Perry says: “Playing Nice is an enthralling thriller with a knotty moral dilemma at its heart. Not only will viewers be hooked, they'll be left questioning 'what would I do...?' As Grace Ofori-Attah's superb script raises questions about the nature of parenting and how far we'll go for those we love.”
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