Lenny Henry's 'Three Little Birds' Is a Story of the Windrush Generation

ITV has released the first trailer for its forthcoming drama Three Little Birds, a 1950s set period project that hails from Sir Lenny Henry, who based the series on the stories of his mother and those like her who traveled to the U.K. as part of the Windrush generation. Workshopped with the help of Doctor Who's Russell T. Davies, the series is described as a "triumphant celebration of immigration, community, and the strength of Black womanhood."

A segment of British history that doesn't get explored in popular media as often as it probably should, the Windrush generation refers to people from the Caribbean who traveled to and settled in the U.K. from 1945 to 1971. In 1948, the British Nationality Act gave people from colonies the right to live and work in Britain, and workers were needed to help counteract post-World War II labor shortages. Many of those who arrived became manual workers, drivers, cleaners, and nurses in the newly-established NHS.

The name comes from the name of the ship many of them traveled on in 1948, the HMT Empire Windrush, which reportedly carried over a thousand passengers, many of whom came from Jamaica, although others hailed from Trinidad, St Lucia, Grenada, and Barbados. Three Little Birds stars Rochelle Neil (Guilt), Saffron Coomber (Small Axe), and Yazmin Belo (What Just Happened) in the central roles of Leah, Chantrelle, and Hosanna, who travel from Jamaica to England in search of a new life.