EXCLUSIVE: Australian bestseller The Titanic Story of Evelyn is charting a course to TV.
The Set Up, the newly minted television banner from Bruna Papandrea, Steve Hutensky and Alison Hurbert-Burns, is collaborating with Australian journalist, writer and author Lisa Wilkinson for the TV adaptation of her bestselling non-fiction book.
Published in April 2026, The Titanic Story of Evelyn went straight to number one on the Australian bestseller list across all genres.
It tells the true story of Evelyn Marsden, the only Australian-born survivor of the Titanic. Evelyn started working as a stewardess on ocean liners before meeting and falling in love with a handsome ship’s doctor, William Abel James. Fate separated the couple when Evelyn boarded the RMS Titanic alone for its maiden voyage. As events unfolded, she helped save the lives of many passengers in the face of one of the greatest maritime tragedies the world has ever known.
Evelyn and William’s love endures many of the 20th century’s most momentous events, through World War One and the Great Depression, before they settle by the sea at Sydney’s Bondi Beach.
Wilkinson said: “I’m absolutely thrilled to be teaming up with two such masterful tellers of women’s stories as Bruna and Alison.
“From Big Little Lies to Colin From Accounts, I’m a huge fan of their award-winning work, and I know that Bruna and Alison will be the very best team to bring Evelyn’s truly titanic story of adventure, heroism, tragedy and love-in-another-time, to the screen.”
Earlier this year we brought you the news that former Binge content chief Hurbert-Burns, who commissioned Colin From Accounts, had teamed with Papandrea and Hutensky’s Made Up Stories to launch a production business, The Set Up.
In a joint statement, the trio said: “The power of Lisa Wilkinson as a storyteller and a trusted voice for Australians throughout her long and celebrated career is unmatched. She has done an incredible job of bringing Evelyn’s remarkable, previously untold story to life.
“It’s the Titanic as we’ve never seen it, told through Evelyn’s eyes and those of the many extraordinary women on that ship, with a beautiful love story at its heart. We’re excited to bring it to the screen.”
Papandrea, Hurbert-Burns and Steve Hutensky will produce for The Set Up alongside Wilkinson, Nick Fordham and agent/producer Lee-Anne Higgins.
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