Sally Hawkins searches for The Lost King in the new first look image

Pathé today released the first image from The Lost King, starring Oscar nominee and Golden Globe winning actress Sally Hawkins (The Shape of Water, Blue Jasmine, Happy-Go-Lucky) in the lead role of Philippa Langley.

Joining Sally Hawkins are Steve Coogan (Stan & Ollie, Philomena) in the role of Philippa’s husband, John Langley; and Harry Lloyd in the role of Richard III.

The film reunites the Oscar-nominated and BAFTA-winning creative team behind box office and critical hit, Philomena – director Stephen Frears and writers Steve Coogan and Jeff Pope.

THE LOST KING tells the remarkable true story of how one ‘ordinary’ woman discovered the long-lost remains of King Richard III. The film recently finished shooting in Edinburgh and Leicester and will be released in cinemas nationwide next year, the 10th anniversary of the discovery.

In 2012, having been lost for over 500 years, the remains of King Richard III were discovered beneath a carpark in Leicester. The search had been orchestrated by an amateur historian, Philippa Langley, whose unrelenting research had been met with incomprehension by her friends and family and with scepticism by experts and academics. THE LOST KING is the life-affirming true story of a woman who refused to be ignored and who took on the country’s most eminent historians, forcing them to think again about one of the most infamous kings in England’s history.

The film is produced by Steve Coogan, Christine Langan (The Queen) and Dan Winch (A Very English Scandal) and is a Baby Cow production for Pathé, BBC Film, Ingenious Media and Screen Scotland. Executive Producers are Cameron McCracken and Jenny Borgars for Pathé; Rose Garnett for BBC Film; Andrea Scarso for Ingenious; Jeff Pope and Philippa Langley. The film was Co-produced by Wendy Griffin.

Pathé will distribute the film in the UK, France and Switzerland and will handle sales throughout the rest of the world.