Based on Eleanor Catton’s 2013 novel The Luminaries and directed by Claire McCarthy, “The Luminaries” is a British-New Zealand drama television miniseries that centres on a young adventurer named Anna Wetherell (Eve Hewson), who has travelled from the United Kingdom to start a new life on the South Island’s West Coast during the 1860s West Coast Gold Rush.
The series premiered on TVNZ 1 on 17 May 2020 and on BBC One in the UK on 21 June 2020 and on Starz in the United States on Sunday, February 14, 2021, at 9:30 P.M.
The opening scene of Starz’s “The Luminaries” takes place in the middle of the night in 1866, outside a shack — or something — on New Zealand’s South Island.
The story is powered by two relationships, the first of them, Anne’s pairing with Emery Staines (Himesh Patel), whom she meets on her passage to New Zealand. The pair are drawn to one another, with the carefree Anne tearing a button off her sleeve to repair Emery’s vest. Shortly thereafter, Anne meets the local community pillar-cum-witchy villainess Lydia Wells (Eva Green), who in very short order begins lecturing Anne on the nature of the stars and their impact on humanity.
Where can I stream “The Luminaries”?
If you wanna watch all six episodes of the show, it is available for streaming on BBC, Starz, Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime.