The actor and comedian on why he wanted to make a TV version of Kit de Waal's novel My Name Is Leon.
When Sir Lenny Henry was narrating the audiobook version of Kit de Waal's novel My Name Is Leon, he had decided by lunchtime on the first day of recording that he wanted to make a TV version happen.
"I just found myself swept up in this kid's world. And I found myself really moved by his predicament, being a mixed race kid who's got a younger brother who's white with blue eyes, and the threat of being separated from his brother causing him to take certain actions."Before she became an author, de Waal had worked in family law, served on adoption panels and was a magistrate.
She gave her approval for his production company to make the TV adaptation, and he was determined that it should be shot in Birmingham. Sir Lenny grew up 15 years before the fictional Leon but could relate to some parts of his story. He often faced daily racism at school, but says he wishes he had found similar strong male mentors.
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