Padgate actor in BBC show says it's one of the hardest jobs

Warren Brown, who has appeared in Shameless, Hollyoaks, and Luther, will co-star with Michelle Keegan in Ten Pound Poms.

The new drama will shine a light on British immigrants who took the chance to sail to Australia after the Second World War, in the hope of making a new life for themselves - aided by a government scheme that allowed them to immigrate for just £10.

The show will follow the lives of the migrants as they make their way in Australia (Image: BBC)

Ten Pound Poms is a six-part drama that closely follows the Roberts family, with Warren Brown taking on the role of Terry, the head of the family, alongside his on-screen wife Annie (Faye Marsay).

The drama has been produced by the award-winning team behind Netflix's smash hit series Sex Education, too.

Ten Pound Poms will see the Roberts family up sticks and leave Britain, chasing the promise of a better life in Australia - though everything is not as rosy as the dream they were first sold.

Setting sail on a ship taking six weeks to reach Oz, the family is soon thrust into a world of moving from hostel to hostel as they adapt to a completely new world.

Michelle Keegan co-stars as Kate, a nurse who has also moved down under as she attempts to hide from her past.

Michelle Keegan plays Kate, a young nurse who also moves out to Australia (Image: BBC)

Warrington's own Warren Brown spoke about his role in the series, saying: "We meet Terry and his family in Manchester in 1956, more than a decade after the end of World War II.

"We learn that Terry is still suffering, badly affected by those experiences and using alcohol to numb the pain. This has led to a tumultuous home life.

"When Annie sees an advert for the Assisted Migration scheme they decide to move to Australia in the hope of a better life."

Explaining that not all is as it seems, the Padgate-born actor said: "The reality is that when they arrive there they found themselves living in hostels and the job opportunities weren’t necessarily what they’d been led to believe.

"One of the brilliant things about playing this character is that Terry goes on such a rollercoaster of emotions, from start to finish."

Although he's known as a Warrington actor, Warren could just have easily grown up as the product of the Assisted Migration scheme: "I have a family link to the real £10 Poms.

"Back in the sixties my mother’s family were living in Manchester and were all set to move out to Australia; they’d packed up and sold everything, but at the very last minute my grandmother panicked and bottled out."

Warren plays the head of the Roberts family, Terry (Image: BBC)

In terms of the challenges of filming somewhere like Australia, the actor said: "The Roberts family have come to Australia in the heat of the summer, it’s baking hot - but it was actually [pouring] it down. There was snow on a couple of the days that we were filming.

"I was wearing very little in freezing temperatures and it was pretty hard.

"So it’s been one of the hardest jobs, but also one of the most rewarding and enjoyable, to be on the other side of the world doing the job that you love, it’s all about the experience, the people you meet and the connections that you make and we’re all in this weird and wonderful circus, so many people away from home."

Coronation Street alum Michelle Keegan has known Warren for a while, saying: "‘Wazza’ Brown, I’ve known him for years. I first met him when I was about 19.

"We’d often bump into each other at events and know lots of similar people, but we’ve never actually got to work with each other until now.

"He is really talented and I just wish I had more scenes with him."

The former soap star says she has known the Padgate actor for a number of years (Image: BBC)

The Assisted Migration scheme was an incredibly popular one, which saw the likes of former Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard migrate from Wales at the age of four in 1966.

Kylie and Dannii Minogue - both born in Melbourne - are the children of £10 Poms; their parents Ronald and Carole Ann moved to Australia in 1958, making the celebrity siblings of English and Welsh descent.

The slang 'Pom' for a British person comes from a shortening of the word 'pomegranate,' referring to Britons' ruddy complexions.

Ten Pound Poms will be broadcast on BBC One on Sunday, May 14.