Catherine Called Birdy: release date, cast, trailer and all you need to know

Catherine Called Birdy stars Andrew Scott and Bella Ramsey
Andrew Scott and Bella Ramsey play Lord Rollo and his daughter Lady Catherine. (Image credit: Prime Video)

Catherine Called Birdy is a new Prime Video movie that is based on the novel of the same name by Karen Cushman, which follows a young woman growing up amid the pressures of medieval society.

The film is directed by Girls star Lena Dunham, who spoke about the lead character in an interview with Vanity Fair and said: "It isn’t a story about a teenage warrior. It isn’t a story about a forbidden teenage romance. She doesn’t have magical powers. 

"It doesn’t fall into [those] tropes. She really is just a complicated, tough—at times doing challenging and unlikable things—young woman."

Meanwhile, lead actress Bella Ramsay who plays Catherine aka Birdy added: "It was so wonderfully chaotic. I love the weirdness, boldness and quirkiness that Birdy embodies."

Here's everything you need to know about the upcoming movie...

Catherine Called Birdy release date

Catherine Called Birdy is streaming on Prime Video from Friday, October 7. It is also scheduled to have a limited theatre release on Friday, September 23.

A new featurette has been released ahead of the film's release, which you can take a look at below if you want to learn a little more about the filming process and to meet lead actress Bella Ramsey!

Catherine Called Birdy plot

The plot for the new Prime Video series is as follows: "In the Medieval English village of Stonebridge, Lady Catherine (known as Birdy) is the youngest child of Lord Rollo and the Lady Aislinn. Her playground is Stonebridge Manor, a house that, like the family, has seen better days. 

"Financially destitute and utterly greedy, Rollo sees his daughter as his path out of financial ruin by marrying her off to a wealthy man for money and land. But Birdy, like all the great teen heroines, is spirited, clever and adventurous – and ready to put off any suitor that comes calling in increasingly ingenious ways. Her imagination, defiance and deep belief in her own right to independence put her on a collision course with her parents. When the most vile suitor of all arrives, they are presented with the ultimate test of love for their daughter."

So we'll be seeing Catherine rebelling against her parents who only have one key objective for her: to marry her off as soon as possible. However, Catherine clearly wants to choose her own path in life!

Andrew Scott as Lord Rollo

Lord Rollo is keen to get Lady Catherine married... (Image credit: Prime Video)

Catherine Called Birdy cast

There's an all-star cast attached to Catherine Called Birdy with Bella Ramsey in the lead role. She's no stranger to playing a medieval character as she's best known for playing Lyanna Mormont in HBO's Game of Thrones.

Fleabag star Andrew Scott plays Catherine's father Lord Rollo, while I Hate Suzie's Billie Piper is her mother Lady Aislinn. Completing the family is The Favourite star Joe Alwyn as George, Catherine's uncle and 1917's Dean-Charles Chapman as Robert, Catherine's older brother.

Other cast includes The Witch star Ralph Ineson as Golden Tiger, Red Rose's Isis Hainsworth as Aelis, and Lena Dunham and Archie Renaux in unnamed roles.

Is there a trailer?

Yes, there's a trailer, and it looks like there's a lot going on! 

In it, we meet Catherine and her parents, who clearly have very different outlooks on life. She taunts those who want to marry her, including telling one man that the Catherine he's looking for has a third ear, and does everything in her power to push away any potential suitors. 

You can see more below...

Lucy Buglass
Senior Staff Writer

Lucy joined the WhatToWatch.com team in 2021, where she writes series guides for must-watch programmes, reviews and the latest TV news. Now she works for our sister site TechRadar in the same role. Originally from Northumberland, she graduated from Oxford Brookes University with a degree in Film Studies and moved to London to begin a career writing about entertainment.

She is a Rotten Tomatoes approved film critic and has a huge passion for cinema. She especially loves horror, thriller and anything crime-related. Her favourite TV programmes include Inside No 9, American Horror Story, Stranger Things and Black Mirror but she is also partial to a quiz show or a bit of Say Yes to the Dress