What is Lord of the Flies and where can I watch the new series?

So many of the fascinating books we read at school have and continue to reach new generations and audiences through on-screen adaptations, the latest being Lord of the Flies. It’s been over 70 years since it was first published, but in 2026, we will see the first television adaptation of the dystopian novel.

But what is Lord of the Flies about? And how has it influenced and inspired other works in popular culture through time?

Here, BBC Bitesize takes a closer look at the famous book and how it is coming back to our screens. You can find out more below.

If you haven’t read Lord of the Flies or heard much about the storyline, there's no need to worry – BBC Bitesize has you covered. There is much to discuss, from the plot and characters to its key theme, but the story basically follows a group of schoolboys stranded on a remote island following a deadly plane crash.

With no adults around to protect them or create order, the boys attempt to create an organised civilisation themselves, but it descends into chaos. What first seems like an adventure in paradise results in a power struggle in an unknown territory, leading to violence and tragedy among the characters.

A literary phenomenon, Lord of the Flies was first published in 1954 and written by British author William Golding. Born in Cornwall in 1911, Golding's debut novel was originally called Strangers from Within - however, publishers Faber provided alternative suggestions and Lord of the Flies was later chosen as the title.

Published post the Second World War, Golding had seen the cruelty mankind can conflict while serving in the Royal Navy during the conflict. Before and after his navy career, he was also a schoolmaster, and it could be argued that this gave him a greater understanding of the nature, personalities and traits of young boys when writing the characters for Lord of the Flies.

Golding also wrote numerous other acclaimed works, such as The Inheritors and Rites of Passage. In his lifetime, he won the Booker Prize, the James Tait Black Memorial Prize and the Nobel Prize for Literature, as well as being knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1988.

Golding died in 1993, but over three decades after his death, his works continue to be read by new generations. For decades, Lord of the Flies has been a popular book on the English curriculum, being read and studied by so many students.

Studied through the generations, Lord of the Flies has several key themes and symbolism throughout. Here, BBC Bitesize references just a few of them.

At the centre of the famous book is civilisation, human nature and the capacity for evil. The events that take place in their new environment lead to the schoolboys becoming violent hunters and savagely killing others. The young characters experience a loss of innocence, and the story raises questions surrounding evil and whether it innate.

Another key theme is power and leadership, as when the boys become stranded on a deserted island, there is no order or systems of control in place. As they try to navigate their surroundings and organise their society, chaos emerges.

The island itself is also a theme and very ambiguous. At different points in the novel, it is both a paradise and a threatening place for the characters.

Other famous works published in 1954 include J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers. But when it comes to Lord of the Flies, common themes of savagery in young characters and a breakdown of civilisation can also be found in more modern and dystopian literature, such as Suzanne Collins’ Hunger Games series and Alex Garland’s novel The Beach.

BBC’s 2026 adaptation of Lord of the Flies will see the book come to life for the first time in television – but it is not the first time Golding’s famous work has been on our screens. Through the years, we’ve seen a number of film adaptations, all varying in how close they are and how they differ from the original text.

In 1963, the first film adaptation of Lord of the Flies was released. Directed by Peter Brook, it starred James Aubrey as one of the lead characters, Ralph.

Fast-forward a few decades, the second film adaptation was released in 1990. The American Columbia Pictures film was directed by Harry Hook.

Golding’s 1954 novel was also adapted into a Filipino film in 1975. Titled Alkitrang Dugo, the film was directed by Lupita A. Concio but featured both male and female characters, as opposed to an all-male cast.

Since its publication, Lord of the Flies has influenced and inspired many works in film, television and music. There are numerous to mention, but the official William Golding website references several that you may or may not know about that celebrate Golding’s legacy in popular culture or have similarities to his work.

When it comes to music, Lord of the Flies inspired an Iron Maiden song of the same name, featured in their 1995 album The X Factor. Other famous bands to refer or cite aspects of the novel in their music include U2 and Panic! At The Disco.

When it comes to animated television series,’ fans of The Simpsons may recall a re-telling of the Lord of the Flies in a 1998 episode, which sees a school trip for the young Simpson family members go wrong and children assuming similar roles to Golding’s famous characters. This is a similar case with other tributes to the book found in a series three episode of Spongebob Squarepants and an episode of South Park.

Lord of the Flies is often cited as an influence on Stephen King’s fictional town Castle Rock, first mentioned in his 1979 novel The Dead Zone and later the name of its supernatural television adaptation. In Golding’s book, Castle Rock is the name of the fictional mountain camp.

A similar survival narrative can also be found in various productions, like in American television series Lost or reality TV shows such as Survivor and The Island with Bear Grylls.

The new 2026 television series was directed by Marc Munden and written by Jack Thorne, who is known for writing screenplays for Adolescence, Enola Holmes and His Dark Materials. Filmed on location in Malaysia and the UK, the adaptation delves further into the book’s themes and was made with the support of author William Golding’s family.

All four episodes of Lord of the Flies will be on BBC iPlayer from 6am on Sunday 8 February. BBC One will also air the series weekly from 9pm that night.

The new BBC series stars an ensemble cast of over 30 boys – seeing many make their professional acting debuts. In Lord of the Flies, Winston Sawyers stars as Ralph, Lox Pratt as Jack, David McKenna as Piggy and Ike Talbut as Simon.

Each of the four episodes is titled after one of these four characters. Fellow castaways in the series include Thomas Connor as Roger, Noah and Cassius Flemyng as twins Sam and Eric, Cornelius Brandreth as Maurice and Tom Page-Turner as Bill.

This article was written in February 2026

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