The 39 Steps (2008 film)

The 39 Steps
Title card
Genre	Conspiracy thriller
Based on	The Thirty-Nine Steps 1915 novel by John Buchan
Written by	Lizzie Mickery (screenplay)
Directed by	James Hawes
Starring	Rupert Penry-Jones Lydia Leonard David Haig Eddie Marsan Patrick Malahide
Composer	Rob Lane
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language	English
Production
Producer	Lynn Horsford
Cinematography	James Aspinall
Editor	Tania Reddin
Running time	86 minutes
Production company	BBC
Original release
Network	BBC One, BBC HD
Release	28 December 2008 (2008-12-28)
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The 39 Steps is a 2008 British television adventure thriller feature-length adaptation of the 1915 John Buchan novel The Thirty-Nine Steps produced by the BBC. It was written by Lizzie Mickery, directed by James Hawes, and filmed on location in Scotland, starring Rupert Penry-Jones, Lydia Leonard, David Haig, Eddie Marsan, and Patrick Malahide. Following three screen versions of the novel and the 1952 and 1977 television adaptations of The Three Hostages, Penry-Jones became the sixth actor to portray Hannay on screen. This adaptation is set on the eve of the First World War and sees mining engineer Richard Hannay caught up in an espionage conspiracy following the death of a British spy in his flat.^[1]

The single drama was first shown on BBC One and BBC HD on 28 December 2008 as part of BBC One's Christmas 2008 line-up, and it was the most watched programme of the day. Compared to Alfred Hitchcock's 1935 film, it received mostly negative reviews from the press. The production was criticised for its historical inaccuracies, particularly its use of anachronistic props.