The Magic Faraway Tree trailer teases Paddington 2 writer’s starry take on an Enid Blyton classic
Long and winding has been the road to Ben Gregor’s upcoming adaptation of Enid Blyton’s The Magic Faraway Tree. Eleven years ago, Sam Mendes and Pippa Harris announced plans to enter Blyton’s beloved fantasy world and produce a cinematic take on the material. Then, in 2017, Simon Farnaby was tapped to write the movie after the phenomenal success of Paddington 2. And now, almost a decade later, Andrew Garfield, Claire Foy, Nicola Coughlan, and a whole host of stars have aligned to finally bring The Magic Faraway Tree — and its many weird and wondrous denizens — to life on the big screen. And you can check out the first trailer for the movie below;
Well that looks thoroughly charming, doesn’t it? When Empire spoke to director Gregor as part of our 2026 Preview issue, the filmmaker described his movie as “Waitrose meets Star Wars,” adding comparisons to Paddington and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang in terms of its quality of being “warm and affable and modest, while still having a craziness.” And based on this first trailer for The Magic Faraway Tree — which introduces Tim (Garfield), Polly (Foy), and their brood as they stumble into the sun-dappled wonderland within the titular enchanted oak — it sounds like Gregor’s own description is bang on the money. Quaint yet quirky, loaded with Farnaby’s signature daffy jokes (the wifey/wi-fi bit’s a doozy), and beautifully shot and designed, it certainly looks the part so far.
The official synopsis for Gregor’s adaptation — whose impressive ensemble also includes Lenny Henry, Michael Palin, Simon Russell Beale, Jennifer Saunders, and Rebecca Ferguson — reads: “The Magic Faraway Tree follows Polly (Claire Foy), Tim (Andrew Garfield) and their three children — a modern family forced to relocate to the remote English countryside. As they adapt to their new lives, the children discover a magical tree and its extraordinary and eccentric residents including treasured characters Moonface (Nonso Anozie), Silky (Nicola Coughlan), Dame Washalot (Jessica Gunning) and Saucepan Man (Dustin Demri-Burns). At the top of the tree, they are transported to spectacular and fantastical lands and, through the joys and challenges of their adventures, the family learn to reconnect and value each other for the first time in years.
Armed with a stacked ensemble, the (co-)writer of one of the best movies ever made, and source material that’s already beloved by millions, the early signs are promising for Ben Gregor’s long-awaited adaptation of Enid Blyton’s classic. We’ll find out whether The Magic Faraway Tree has been worth the wait when it hits cinemas on 27 March, 2026.
