Sex Education and House of the Dragon stars join powerful BBC prison drama

Leading the cast will be The Responder and Black Mirror's Josh Finan, who plays Dan, a philosopher who begins teaching a class of men in prison.

The synopsis for the series says: "Each week, Dan leads discussions about dominance, freedom, luck and other topics that have troubled philosophers for thousands of years – topics that gain a new meaning when seen through the prisoners’ eyes - both igniting passions and creating tension."

Joining Finan in the cast will be Gerard Kearns (The Day of the Jackal), who plays Dan's violent father in flashbacks, while Stephen Wight (Bergerac) plays his brother Lee and Phil Daniels (House of the Dragon) plays his uncle Frank, all of whom ended up in prison.

The synopsis continues: "Dan took a different path [from those of his family members], but his time working in a prison begins to make him worry, obsessively, that he belongs behind bars just like his father.

"As Dan’s personal crisis deepens, his actions begin to threaten both his own future and his family’s."

Read more:

• Baby Reindeer creator and star Richard Gadd says new series is proudly Scottish
• Line of Duty star Martin Compston gives 'unfortunate' update on season 7

Also starring in the series alongside Finan, Kearns, Daniels and Wight are Samantha Spiro (Sex Education), Ronkẹ Adékoluẹjo (Doctor Who), Neal Barry (Rain Dogs), Alex Ferns (Andor), Francis Lovehall (A Thousand Blows) and Steven Meo (Gavin & Stacey).

Rounding out the cast will be Ric Renton (One Off), Tom Moutchi (Gladiator II), Nima Taleghani (Heartstopper), Sule Rimi (Grace), Charlie Rix (Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power) and Jude Mack (Such Brave Girls).

Kelly said in a statement: "It’s not at all unusual for the men in Andy West’s family to end up in prison - but Andy is the only one that chose to be there.

"His book is funny, insightful, beautiful, genuinely heartbreaking and nothing like what you’d expect it to be - we’ve tried to take that into the series. God alone knows if we’ve succeeded, but we’ve tried…"

Meanwhile, West, the author of The Life Inside and an executive producer, added: "I’m so thankful to the writers, directors, producers and everyone involved in adapting The Life Inside.

"They have brought extraordinary creative and moral imagination to the stories in the book. We all hope to make a series that goes beyond the cliches about prisons and the families inside them and that touches people either side of the wall."

Finan said of starring in the series: "Having the chance to work with writing of this quality, inspired by such a rich real-life story, alongside such talented creatives is a genuine gift. A real pinch me moment.

"Every stage of the process so far has been both a joy and a welcome creative challenge. I’m itching to get filming and can’t wait for people to get the chance to watch this hugely sensitive, empathic, hilarious and at times deeply emotional story."

Waiting for the Out (w/t) will air on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.

Check out more of our Drama coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.