The Forsytes is a television series adaptation of the novels by John Galsworthy. It is created and written by Debbie Horsfield. The series is led by an ensemble cast which includes Francesca Annis, Jack Davenport, Millie Gibson, Danny Griffin, Tuppence Middleton, Stephen Moyer, Joshua Orpin and Eleanor Tomlinson. It is broadcast in the United Kingdom on 5 since 20 October 2025.
The renewal for second series was announced months before the series premiered. On March 10, it was renewed for a third series.
Contents
Premise
The series is set in late-Victorian England and follows the lives of an upper middle-class family of stockbrokers across four separate generations.
Plot
The series opens in 1877 at the wedding of Jo Forsyte to Frances, who is an upper-class widow whose match with Jo propels the family into the upper-class circles of society. In marrying her, Jo also adopts her 8-year-old daughter from her first marriage, June. A time jump to 1887 re-introduces the family as they make preparations for June's 18th birthday ball, also marking her coming out into society. At the same time, Jolyon Forsyte (Jo's father) has decided to step down as chairman of the family law firm, Forsyte & Co., and name his son as successor, which angers his younger brother James and James' son Soames. Jo's world is rocked Louisa, a seamstress, is summoned to the house to make an emergency repair to June’s gown as he knew her ten years earlier on his grand tour in Venice. It is revealed to his wife first, then to him, that this relationship resulted in Louisa becoming pregnant and becoming mother to twins, Jolyon "Jos" and Holly Byrne.
While walking through the park and discussing the prospect of Soames' inheritance, he and his father pass the Heron family and Soames comes to the rescue when Professor Sidney Heron suffers from a heart attack, meeting his beautiful ballerina daughter Irene in the process. Heron dies and Soames reads the obituary in the newspaper and goes to the cemetery, where he is able to meet Irene again, offering his condolences. She is appreciative. They meet several times while in the company of her stepmother and he offers his friendship to her in the wake of her father's passing, alluding to his developing romantic feelings for her. Soames continues to court Irene, getting to know her and learning of her ambitions of becoming a ballet dancer in Paris like her mother, which puts a ticking clock on his intentions to propose, so he makes a promise to take her to Paris so that she can audition for an elite ballet troupe. These meetings charm her, though she does not love him, but she accepts his proposal under the condition that if their marriage should not be a success, she should be as free as if they had never married. Soames announces the engagement to his family at Royal Ascot, accompanied by the revelation that they intend to marry by special license and then honeymoon in Paris and they are married quickly, albeit not without a few doubts had by Irene.
Jo tries to see Louisa and the children more and though Louisa is initially hesitant and unwilling to be his "guilty secret", she eventually relents and they spend more time together, reminiscing about their time in Venice. One day, James spots Jo leaving Louisa's dress shop, alluding him to the existence of illegitimate children. Frances also discovers that her husband is sneaking out of the house to visit Louisa and puts pressure on him to cut ties, which he is unwilling to do.
Cast
Main
Francesca Annis as Ann Forsyte, the grand matriarch of the Forsyte family and owner of the family company Forsyte & Co.
Jack Davenport as James Forsyte, the younger brother of Jolyon Sr., and Emily's husband, is constantly competing with his elder brother in the family business and devotes most of his efforts to supporting his son Soames' interests.
Stephen Moyer as Jolyon Forsyte Sr., Ann’s eldest son and chairman of Forsyte & Co., values duty and family reputation above all. As a widowed father, he is determined to secure his son Jo’s future in the family business.
Joshua Orpin as Soames Forsyte, is a successful and respected businessman who is highly competitive with his cousin Jo. His life changes when he meets and falls deeply in love with Irene, whose free spirit challenges his possessive ways.
Danny Griffin as Jolyon "Jo" Forsyte, Frances’ husband and June’s stepfather, struggles to balance his family responsibilities with his passion for art. His life changes when Louisa, his former love, reappears and disrupts his world.
Tuppence Middleton as Frances Forsyte, a high-society widow who marries Jo Forsyte, joins the Forsyte family and becomes committed to preserving its reputation. Her life is shaken when Louisa returns to Jo's life and threatens both hers and her daughter's position.
Millie Gibson as Irene Forsyte (née Heron), a young woman who dreamed of becoming a ballet dancer in Paris like her mother. After her father dies suddenly and she loses financial support, she is charmed by Soames Forsyte and marries him.
Eleanor Tomlinson as Louisa Byrne, a dressmaker devoted to her children, must face the return of Jo, with whom she had a relationship years ago. His return brings back old feelings and leads her to deal with the complicated Forsyte family. An original character loosely based on Helène, June’s governess and later, Jo’s mistress and second wife.
Recurring
Fiona Button as Mrs Clarissa Heron, Irene’s stepmother, who loses her fortune after her husband’s death. She wants her stepdaughter Irene to marry Soames in order to regain her social status.
Eleanor Jackson as Winifred Dartie (née Forsyte), daughter of Emily and James and wife of Monty. She tries to persuade her family to accept her husband on the board of Forsyte & Co.
Tom Durant-Pritchard as Montague "Monty" Dartie, Winifred’s husband who does not know much about business, but he believes in himself a lot and tries hard to join Forsyte & Co. in an important position.
Naomi Frederick as Emily Forsyte, wife of James and mother to Soames and Winifred.
Susan Hampshire as Lady Carteret, friend of the Forsyte family. She played Fleur Forsyte in the original 1960s adaptation, The Forsyte Saga.
Owen Igiehon as Isaac Cole, in-house lawyer at Forsyte & Co. and Jo’s best friend and confidant.
Sharon Rose as Alicia Cole, wife of Jo’s best friend Isaac.
Josette Simon as Mrs Ellen Parker Barrington, friend of the Forsyte family who is committed to standing up against injustice whenever she encounters it.
Guest
Tristan Sturrock as Professor Heron, Irene’s father (series 1)
Episodes
Production
Development
The six-part adaptation is written by Debbie Horsfield with Meenu Gaur and Annetta Laufer both directing episodes. Sheena Bucktowonsing and Debbie Horsfield, Meenu Gaur, Damien Timmer and Susanne Simpson are executive producers. It is the third television adaptation of The Forsyte Saga novels by John Galsworthy, after a version which aired in 1967 on the BBC and a second 35 years later that aired on ITV.
Cast
An ensemble cast includes Eleanor Tomlinson, Jack Davenport, Millie Gibson, Stephen Moyer, Joshua Orpin, Tuppence Middleton, Francesca Annis, Jamie Flatters and Susan Hampshire. Hampshire, who starred as Fleur Forsyte in the original 1960s series, will play dowager Lady Carteret. More casting, including Fiona Button and Naomi Frederick, was announced in June 2024. Sarah Alexander, Richard Rankin and Nia Ashi have been confirmed to appear in the second season in roles that are still unknown. Gregg Sulkin and Gabriel Antunes are included in the third season.
Filming
Filming started in Bristol in May 2024, with filming locations including Christmas Steps, Bristol. Filming was also scheduled to take place in Wales and Italy.
Filming of the second season also started in Bristol in June 2025.It wrapped filming in summer of 2025
Filming Season 3 started production in May 2026. Some scenes were film in Opatija. It wrapped filming mid-summer 2026.
Broadcast
It was broadcast in the United Kingdom on 5 on 20 October 2025. In the United States, the series premiered on 22 March 2026 on the drama anthology series Masterpiece on PBS.In Spain it can be watched on Movistar Plus+. It can also be seen on ABC (Australia), TVNZ (New Zealand), ZDF (Germany), SVT (Sweden), YLE (Finland), DR (Denmark), NRK (Norway), Tet (Latvia), HRT (Croatia), and HOT and Yes TV (Israel).
The second season will premiere on September 13, 2026, on Viasat Epic Drama.
Reception
On Rotten Tomatoes, the series received a 75% approval rating based on 12 critic reviews. Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 59 out of 100 based on 9 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".
In The Times, the critic Rod Liddle described the series as a form of "boomer escapism", while praising its nostalgic appeal, meticulous period recreation, and traditional approach to family drama. Also Carol Midgley described the series as a lavish period drama that updates John Galsworthy's novel with a greater emphasis on its female characters. However, she noted that the opening episode relied too heavily on exposition and narration before the story gained momentum.