Joe Cole has joined the cast of the ITV drama series ‘Unsaid Stories’.
The 31-year-old actor – who has starred in ‘Peaky Blinders’ and ‘Gangs of London’ – is to appear alongside Adelayo Adedayo in ‘I Don’t Want To Talk About This’.
The drama short will tell the story of Thea, a black middle-class woman who bumps into her ex-boyfriend at a party.
The duo end up reassessing their relationship, and the production will explore how racism impacts their love and friendship.
Elsewhere, Nicholas Pinnock and Yasmin Monet Prince assume the lead roles in ‘Generational’, which focuses on a dad who catches his teenage daughter sneaking out of the house to attend a Black Lives Matter march.
In another of ITV’s drama shorts, Nicole Lecky plays a new mother who has recently had a baby with a black man.
‘Lavender’ – which Nicole has also written – focuses on an uncomfortable conversation between a mother and her daughter about the issue of race.
Meanwhile, Lynette Linton’s ‘Look At Me’ stars Paapa Essiedu and Pippa Bennett-Warner.
The production centres on the plight of a young professional couple who are looking forward to going on a date.
However, they are stopped by the police en route to the restaurant, and the drama explores the impact the incident has on them individually and as a couple.
The upcoming dramas are being executive produced by Nadine Marsh-Edwards and Amanda Jenks, and they are "thrilled to be working with such talented teams and with ITV to bring these films to screen".
The series has been inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement, and Nadine and Amanda previously revealed they hope it will cast a light on "some of the things that go unsaid".
They explained: "We relish the opportunity to cast a light on some of the things that go unsaid and bring the complexities and nuance of black experiences in the UK today to the screen."