Malorie Blackman says Noughts + Crosses TV series "made a difference" to writing the last book

Blackman, who has so far written five novels and two novellas in the series, also confessed that the next instalment would "definitely" be the final one.

Speaking to RadioTimes.com and other media at a Q&A screening of Noughts + Crosses episode 1, Blackman said, "This really is the last one. It’s called Endgame and I think, actually, [the TV series] has made a difference to it, but this is going to definitely be the last one."

Blackman joked that she'd previously said she was going to end the series before she went on to write three more novels, but reiterated that this would definitely be the last one ever.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xTEJ4KJh4Ug&feature=emb_logo

The TV series, which debuts on BBC One this Thursday, is based on the first book of the Noughts + Crosses series – which was first published in 2001.

Set in an alternative reality in which Africans had enslaved Europeans rather than vice versa, it tells the story of Callum (played by Peaky Blinders' Jack Rowan) and Sephy (Masali Baduza), whose romantic relationship puts them in danger amidst a powerful revolution.

Blackman, who has been consulted about the TV show at every stage of its development, said that she thought the production team had done "an amazing job, an absolutely amazing job."

And as well as influencing the book she is currently writing, she quipped that reading the scripts and watching the show had made her wish she could go back and edit her original novels.

She said, "I feel I’ve been totally included in that process, and there were so many times where I thought, ‘I wish I put that in my book, can I go back and put that in my book?"

Noughts and Crosses episode 1 will air on BBC One at 9pm on Thursday 5th March with all 6 episodes made available on BBC iPlayer following broadcast of the first episode.

Buy the Noughts + Crosses book series on Amazon.