The Stolen Girl: Plot, cast, and start date of 'gripping original thriller' starring Holliday Grainger as it lands on ITV
A child is abducted but who is the hero and who is the villain?
The Stolen Girl is an above-average TV thriller, with a fantastic cast, compelling plot, and solid team behind it. This week it lands on ITV, having previously streamed on Disney+.
The upcoming series promises to be a “gripping original thriller” from the producers of Fool Me Once and Missing You.
Even better, the cast gets an easy 10/10 star rating. Here’s everything you need to know about the new psychological drama, which sees a seemingly ordinary decision turn the world of Elisa, mum to two young kids, upside down…
So when’s the start date of The Stolen Girl on ITV, who’s in the cast, what’s the plot, and is it based on a book? Read on to find out.
What’s the plot of The Stolen Girl on ITV?
The Stolen Girl on ITV tells the story of “fascinating, relatable and complex women in an unimaginable situation”.
A series synopsis from the streaming service says: “When her 9-year-old daughter Lucia excitedly asks to go on an overnight playdate with her new best friend Josie, Elisa agrees.
“After meeting Josie’s mother, Rebecca, she’s put at ease by her charming nature and their impressive house. But, when she says goodnight to her daughter, she has no idea that she is about to be thrust into every parent’s worst nightmare.”
Horrifyingly, when Elisa goes to pick up Lucia the next day, she discovers that the beautiful house was a holiday rental. Lucia is missing, and Rebecca and Josie have vanished. What started out as her daughter’s first sleepover has turned into an abduction.
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An urgent manhunt unfolds across Europe, with Elisa and her husband Fred the object of police and public scrutiny. And it son transpires that Rebecca took Lucia for a reason…
Is The Stolen Girl the same story as All Her Fault?
This is NOT to be mistaken with the Sky Atlantic mini-series All Her Fault. Although the premise is similar. In the Sarah Snook mini-series All Her Fault, Marissa Irvine goes to pick up her young son Milo from his first playdate with a boy at his new school. However, the woman who answers the door has never seen or heard of either Marissa or her son – beginning every parent’s worst nightmare. Yes, it is exactly the same. But the rest of the series is very different. With The Stolen Girl by far the better of the two thrillers.
All Her Fault is based on the 2021 bestselling novel of the same name by author Andrea Mara. While the series is a fictional drama, it was inspired by a real-life incident when the author went to pick up her daughter from a playdate at an old address.
When she found herself at an empty house, the real-life panic served as the catalyst for the fictional story.
Is it based on a book?
The Stolen Girl on ITV is adapted by Catherine Moulton (Baptiste) from Alex Dahl’s bestselling novel Playdate.
The novel, published in 2020, sees author Alex Dahl “put a microscope on a seemingly average, seemingly happy family plunged into a life-altering situation”.
How many episodes is it? How can I watch it?
The Stolen Girl is a five-part psychological drama. Each episode is roughly just under one hour long.
The series originally streamed as a boxset on Disney+ from Wednesday, April 16, 2025. But now it lands on ITV1 and ITVX.
Who’s in the cast of The Stolen Girl on ITV?
The cast of The Stolen Girl looks as dependable as it gets on TV these days. Irish actress Denise Gough leads the cast as Elisa Blix, who unwittingly hands her child over to an abductor. She’s known for playing Lena Campbell in Who Is Erin Carter?, and Dedra Meero in Andor.
Strike actress Holliday Grainger plays abductor Rebecca, while Home Before Dark actor Jim Sturgess portrays Elisa’s husband Fred Blix.
The brilliant Ambika Mod portrays Selma, a journalist who becomes deeply invested in investigating the disappearance of a young girl, Lucia. Of course, Ambika played the heartbreaking role of Shruti in This Is Going to Hurt, and Emma in One Day.
Former Hollyoaks actress Bronagh Waugh also appears, as does Michael Workeye, who appeared in This Is Going to Hurt opposite co-star Ambika.
When is The Stolen Girl release date?
New thriller The Stolen Girl streamed exclusively on Disney+ from Wednesday, April 16, 2025. All five episodes landed as a boxset on that day.
It is now arriving on free-to-air for the first time. It will now stream on ITVX with episodes airing on ITV1 from Wednesday, February 25, 2026 at 9pm.
