A Teenage Girl in 1901 Wrote a Novel About Wanting a Career Instead of a Husband. 125 Years Later, Netflix Is Turning It into a 6-Part Series

The story follows Sybylla Melvyn, a headstrong young woman in turn-of-the-century rural Australia who wants a writing career and a life of her own instead of a husband. Netflix’s tagline: “Sybylla doesn’t want a husband, she wants a story worth telling, and she’ll break every rule to write it.”

Philippa “Pip” Northeast plays Sybylla in the first major TV version of the 125-year-old feminist classic, arriving more than four decades after the 1979 film that launched Judy Davis opposite Sam Neill.

“My Brilliant Career” became a landmark of Australian literature, a staple of the country’s classrooms, and the namesake of the Miles Franklin Literary Award, the most prestigious book prize in Australia. Franklin wrote it as a semi-autobiographical novel about a young woman’s ambitions much like her own.

The new limited series comes from creator and showrunner Liz Doran, best known for “Please Like Me,” with Alyssa McClelland directing the first 3 episodes and Anne Renton the final 3. Alongside Philippa Northeast, the cast includes Anna Chancellor as Mrs Bossier, Genevieve O’Reilly as Helen, Kate Mulvany as Augusta, Christopher Chung as Harry, Jake Dunn as Frank, Alexander England as Julius, Sherry-Lee Watson as Nell, and Miah Madden as Betty.

It was filmed in South Australia, in the South East region near Penola and at Adelaide Studios, on a budget of around A$17 million. That makes it the largest television production in the state’s history, employing roughly 400 local cast and crew.

Netflix hasn’t set an exact date yet, only that the series lands worldwide this August.

The last time Sybylla reached the screen, in Gillian Armstrong’s acclaimed 1979 film, the role turned an unknown Judy Davis into a star.

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