Exclusive: James Graham sets a mental timer of strictly 45 minutes for a conversation that will encompass tonight’s gala opening at London’s National Theatre — en route to a run at the Garrick Theatre — of his sublime stage adaptation of Alan Bleasdale’s landmark 1982 television drama Boys from the Blackstuff; followed by updates about the BBC TV version of his Olivier Award-winning soccer play Dear England, which will see him doing on-the-ground research at next month’s Euros in Germany; plus revelations about an epic new show he’s developing with House Productions that will explore the “mood sweeping across Europe.”
The 45-minute time-frame is kinda apt because each half of a soccer game is three-quarters of an hour.
So let’s kick off with the football, and I’ll fill you in on Boys from the Blackstuff farther down the column.
The playwright’s Dear England is ostensively about...
The 45-minute time-frame is kinda apt because each half of a soccer game is three-quarters of an hour.
So let’s kick off with the football, and I’ll fill you in on Boys from the Blackstuff farther down the column.
The playwright’s Dear England is ostensively about...
- 5/29/2024
- by Baz Bamigboye
- Deadline Film + TV
With a career that spanned over five decades, Bernard Hill was an exceptional English actor who left an indisputable mark on the film industry. From his breakout role in Alan Bleasdale’s Boys from the Blackstuff to playing Captain Edward Smith in the 1997 Academy Award-winning film Titanic he gave several influential and nuanced performances throughout his career in Hollywood.
Bernard Hill as Captain Smith in Titanic [Credit: Paramount Pictures/20th Century Studios]Sadly, the actor passed away at the age of 79 as confirmed by his agent Lou Coulson on Sunday. Even though the Manchester native will be greatly missed by his fans, his artistic legacy will continue to live and entertain cinephiles. In fact, he holds a unique record that no other actor has surpassed to date and might not be broken in the years to come.
Bernard Hill made an exceptional record in Hollywood
Winning an Oscar is the highest...
Bernard Hill as Captain Smith in Titanic [Credit: Paramount Pictures/20th Century Studios]Sadly, the actor passed away at the age of 79 as confirmed by his agent Lou Coulson on Sunday. Even though the Manchester native will be greatly missed by his fans, his artistic legacy will continue to live and entertain cinephiles. In fact, he holds a unique record that no other actor has surpassed to date and might not be broken in the years to come.
Bernard Hill made an exceptional record in Hollywood
Winning an Oscar is the highest...
- 5/7/2024
- by Shikha Arya
- FandomWire
Théoden, King of Rohan, is dead. British film and television actor, Bernard Hill, best known for portraying the ruler of Rohan in Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy, passed away on Sunday, May 5, 2024 at the age of 79. No details have been provided, but it has been confirmed that he was in the company of his fiancée Alison and his son Gabriel. No official cause of death has been provided.
Bernard Hill had several memorable roles both on film and television, but younger audiences will probably best remember him for his role in The Lord of the Rings, but also for portraying Captain Edward J. Smith in James Cameron’s Titanic, which also earned him a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination.
Bernard Hill was born in Manchester in 1944. He attended the Xaverian College, and then Manchester Polytechnic School of Drama at the same time as Richard Griffiths, another...
Bernard Hill had several memorable roles both on film and television, but younger audiences will probably best remember him for his role in The Lord of the Rings, but also for portraying Captain Edward J. Smith in James Cameron’s Titanic, which also earned him a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination.
Bernard Hill was born in Manchester in 1944. He attended the Xaverian College, and then Manchester Polytechnic School of Drama at the same time as Richard Griffiths, another...
- 5/6/2024
- by Arthur S. Poe
- Fiction Horizon
Versatile actor whose role as Yosser Hughes in the BBC’s 1982 series Boys from the Blackstuff made him a television star
The actor Bernard Hill, who has died aged 79, starred in two of the only three films to have won 11 Oscars. In Titanic (1997), he was the ship’s captain, Edward Smith, while in The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (2003), he reprised the role of King Théoden from the previous instalment, The Two Towers (2002). Both parts drew on his grave, peremptory air, and his ability to be simultaneously fallible and resolute.
It was his fearsome yet pitiful performance as the jobless labourer and single father Yosser Hughes, in Alan Bleasdale’s tragicomic BBC series Boys from the Blackstuff (1982), that made him a television star. The role came to define not only Hill but an entire era. Yosser’s plaintive, hectoring catchphrase – “Gizza job” – was parroted everywhere from the Kop to the corner shop,...
The actor Bernard Hill, who has died aged 79, starred in two of the only three films to have won 11 Oscars. In Titanic (1997), he was the ship’s captain, Edward Smith, while in The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (2003), he reprised the role of King Théoden from the previous instalment, The Two Towers (2002). Both parts drew on his grave, peremptory air, and his ability to be simultaneously fallible and resolute.
It was his fearsome yet pitiful performance as the jobless labourer and single father Yosser Hughes, in Alan Bleasdale’s tragicomic BBC series Boys from the Blackstuff (1982), that made him a television star. The role came to define not only Hill but an entire era. Yosser’s plaintive, hectoring catchphrase – “Gizza job” – was parroted everywhere from the Kop to the corner shop,...
- 5/6/2024
- by Ryan Gilbey
- The Guardian - Film News
Bernard Hill, the actor whose memorable tones and rugged visage brought to life a variety of fantastic performances, has died. He was 79.
Born in Manchester in 1944, Hill quickly gravitated towards stage work before taking the chance to make the jump to film and TV. Yet his early career was marked by few standout roles, mostly relegated to brief appearances on the likes of I, Claudius and the BBC's Tom Stoppard adaptation Professional Foul.
Still, he found one of the first parts that would define his career in Alan Bleasdale's The Black Stuff, a one-off TV play in 1980 that the writer would expand into classic comedy drama Boys From The Blackstuff. Hill scored a BAFTA nomination for his performance as the tragic, yet dimly self-aware Yosser.
Other TV work included Dennis Potter adaptation Lipstick On Your Collar, a huge swathe of Shakespeare adaptations including Wolf Hall, disability drama Skallagrigg,...
Born in Manchester in 1944, Hill quickly gravitated towards stage work before taking the chance to make the jump to film and TV. Yet his early career was marked by few standout roles, mostly relegated to brief appearances on the likes of I, Claudius and the BBC's Tom Stoppard adaptation Professional Foul.
Still, he found one of the first parts that would define his career in Alan Bleasdale's The Black Stuff, a one-off TV play in 1980 that the writer would expand into classic comedy drama Boys From The Blackstuff. Hill scored a BAFTA nomination for his performance as the tragic, yet dimly self-aware Yosser.
Other TV work included Dennis Potter adaptation Lipstick On Your Collar, a huge swathe of Shakespeare adaptations including Wolf Hall, disability drama Skallagrigg,...
- 5/5/2024
- by James White
- Empire - Movies
English actor Bernard Hill, best known for his performances as Captain Edward Smith in James Cameron's "Titanic" and King Théoden in the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy, has died this morning at the age of 79. The news was confirmed to the BBC by Hill's agent, Lou Coulson. Hill had been set to appear at Comic Con Liverpool this weekend, but had to cancel at the last minute.
Born to a mining family in Blackley, Manchester, in 1944, Hill belonged to a disappearing breed of British actors from working class backgrounds. Early on in his career he became the voice of a generation through his character Yosser Hughes in Alan Bleasdale's drama series "Boys from the Blackstuff." A Liverpudlian father who becomes broken by his struggle to find work and the threat of having his children taken away, Yosser was emblematic of the sharply rising unemployment rates and brutal welfare...
Born to a mining family in Blackley, Manchester, in 1944, Hill belonged to a disappearing breed of British actors from working class backgrounds. Early on in his career he became the voice of a generation through his character Yosser Hughes in Alan Bleasdale's drama series "Boys from the Blackstuff." A Liverpudlian father who becomes broken by his struggle to find work and the threat of having his children taken away, Yosser was emblematic of the sharply rising unemployment rates and brutal welfare...
- 5/5/2024
- by Hannah Shaw-Williams
- Slash Film
Bernard Hill, the actor known for playing King Théoden in the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy and Captain Edward Smith in “Titanic,” has died. He was 79.
Hill died early on Sunday morning, his agent Lou Colson confirmed to Variety. He was with his fiancée Alison and his son Gabriel. No cause of death was given.
Hill first came to prominence as Yosser Hughes in Alan Bleasdale’s 1982 miniseries “Boys From the Blackstuff”; his character was known for his “gizza job” catchphrase. That same year, he portrayed Sergeant Putnam in the Richard Attenborough-directed film “Gandhi.” Hill appeared in multiple British television series during the ’70s and ’80s, including “I, Claudius,” “Crown Court,” “Rooms,” “Fox” and “Jackanory.”
In 1997, Hill played Captain Smith in James Cameron’s “Titanic,” which won 11 Oscars. He then joined Peter Jackson’s “Lord of the Rings” franchise as King Théoden, appearing in 2002’s “The Two Towers” and...
Hill died early on Sunday morning, his agent Lou Colson confirmed to Variety. He was with his fiancée Alison and his son Gabriel. No cause of death was given.
Hill first came to prominence as Yosser Hughes in Alan Bleasdale’s 1982 miniseries “Boys From the Blackstuff”; his character was known for his “gizza job” catchphrase. That same year, he portrayed Sergeant Putnam in the Richard Attenborough-directed film “Gandhi.” Hill appeared in multiple British television series during the ’70s and ’80s, including “I, Claudius,” “Crown Court,” “Rooms,” “Fox” and “Jackanory.”
In 1997, Hill played Captain Smith in James Cameron’s “Titanic,” which won 11 Oscars. He then joined Peter Jackson’s “Lord of the Rings” franchise as King Théoden, appearing in 2002’s “The Two Towers” and...
- 5/5/2024
- by Michaela Zee
- Variety Film + TV
Bernard Hill speaking to Siobhan Synnot in 2017 Photo: Courtesy of Pako Mera/© Eiff, Edinburgh International Film Festival All Rights Reserved Boys From The Blackstuff star Bernard Hill has died at the age of 79.
The Manchester-born star who began his career in TV roles including Yosser Hughes in the Alan Bleasdale drama, went on to find fame on the big screen, playing notable characters, including Theoden in The Lord Of The Rings trilogy and Captain Edward Smith in James Cameron's Titanic.
His agent confirmed his death with the BBC.
Early shows in his career also included I, Claudius and Crown Court. He was a versatile character actor, with other films including Scottish cult favourite Restless Natives and Hollywood fare like Gothika.
His career was celebrated at an in person event at Edinburgh International Film Festival in 2017, when he was on the international jury.
Hill's latest TV drama, The Responder, is...
The Manchester-born star who began his career in TV roles including Yosser Hughes in the Alan Bleasdale drama, went on to find fame on the big screen, playing notable characters, including Theoden in The Lord Of The Rings trilogy and Captain Edward Smith in James Cameron's Titanic.
His agent confirmed his death with the BBC.
Early shows in his career also included I, Claudius and Crown Court. He was a versatile character actor, with other films including Scottish cult favourite Restless Natives and Hollywood fare like Gothika.
His career was celebrated at an in person event at Edinburgh International Film Festival in 2017, when he was on the international jury.
Hill's latest TV drama, The Responder, is...
- 5/5/2024
- by Amber Wilkinson
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
As the actor stars in a new thriller, here’s your chance to ask him about Withnail, Doctor Who and Lesbian Vampire Killers
It’s funny how life works out. Liverpool-born actor Paul McGann had left school and was working in a shoe shop when he bumped into his old schoolteacher, Joe Hartley, who had given him the lead role in a school production of Antony and Cleopatra. Feeling McGann was wasting his talents fitting shoes, Hartley suggested he apply to Rada – which lead to a part in the snooker drama Give Us a Break opposite Robert Lindsay, then the lead role in Alan Bleasdale’s controversial first world war drama The Monocled Mutineer.
The rest is history. McGann went on to star as Marwood, the eponymous I to Richard E Grant’s Withnail in 1987 and then was cast as the eighth Doctor in the 1996 TV film, Doctor Who (the...
It’s funny how life works out. Liverpool-born actor Paul McGann had left school and was working in a shoe shop when he bumped into his old schoolteacher, Joe Hartley, who had given him the lead role in a school production of Antony and Cleopatra. Feeling McGann was wasting his talents fitting shoes, Hartley suggested he apply to Rada – which lead to a part in the snooker drama Give Us a Break opposite Robert Lindsay, then the lead role in Alan Bleasdale’s controversial first world war drama The Monocled Mutineer.
The rest is history. McGann went on to star as Marwood, the eponymous I to Richard E Grant’s Withnail in 1987 and then was cast as the eighth Doctor in the 1996 TV film, Doctor Who (the...
- 10/6/2023
- by Rich Pelley
- The Guardian - Film News
This list applies to UK streaming services
When I find myself in times of trouble/Streaming channels come to me/Speaking words of wisdom/ Watch TV/Watch TV-eeee/Watch TV-eeee/There will be an answer: watch TV (repeat to fade).
Go on, do it, it’s good advice – we all need a bit of escapism now and then. All of the below are British dramas currently available on UK streaming services, some free-to-air, some subscriber-only, some short, some long, some old favourites and some new arrivals, all in pleasing alphabetical order.
We’ll keep this list updated as new series are added and taken away. If you’ve children to entertain, then here’s our list of the top kids’ shows currently available on UK streaming services, and if you’re in need of a laugh, here’s our collection of the best British comedy TV shows. Sorted.
A Discovery of Witches...
When I find myself in times of trouble/Streaming channels come to me/Speaking words of wisdom/ Watch TV/Watch TV-eeee/Watch TV-eeee/There will be an answer: watch TV (repeat to fade).
Go on, do it, it’s good advice – we all need a bit of escapism now and then. All of the below are British dramas currently available on UK streaming services, some free-to-air, some subscriber-only, some short, some long, some old favourites and some new arrivals, all in pleasing alphabetical order.
We’ll keep this list updated as new series are added and taken away. If you’ve children to entertain, then here’s our list of the top kids’ shows currently available on UK streaming services, and if you’re in need of a laugh, here’s our collection of the best British comedy TV shows. Sorted.
A Discovery of Witches...
- 2/23/2023
- by Louisa Mellor
- Den of Geek
The great city of Liverpool has been well served by the sitcom industry over the years. The Liver Birds, Boys from the Blackstuff, Bread, The Royle Family. These are all highly successful and highly watchable, if occasionally mordant. They all fell into a bit of a pattern – a recipe of sorts, like Scouse itself (originally a stew of course) – with similar essential ingredients: wit, irreverence, strong women carrying weak men, a family theme, and a certain sassy style.
ITV’s latest stab at sitcom success, The Family Pile, falls uneasily into this line of succession. In this case, the mixture is: four sisters recently bereaved; three husbands-slash partners; three kids; one affair between a sister and another sister’s hubby; and one very large house. With the recent death of the siblings’ mum, following closely on from that of their dad, eldest sister Nicole (Amanda Abbington) sneakily puts their childhood home on the market,...
ITV’s latest stab at sitcom success, The Family Pile, falls uneasily into this line of succession. In this case, the mixture is: four sisters recently bereaved; three husbands-slash partners; three kids; one affair between a sister and another sister’s hubby; and one very large house. With the recent death of the siblings’ mum, following closely on from that of their dad, eldest sister Nicole (Amanda Abbington) sneakily puts their childhood home on the market,...
- 1/18/2023
- by Sean O'Grady
- The Independent - TV
The actor, who has starred in everything from sitcoms to Shakespeare, talks about his family rows over Brexit, having his phone hacked – and why he did not want to be like Laurence Olivier
Robert Lindsay was sitting on the set of The Fever Syndrome at London’s Hampstead theatre, having his photo taken. Instantly recognisable everywhere since his stupidly handsome days – playing the eponymous Marxist in the BBC’s sitcom Citizen Smith from 1977 to 1980 – his face nevertheless, at 72, has an unexpected quality. It’s craggier than you remember, and much more relaxed than you’d expect. Content, even.
The Fever Syndrome is a family drama set in New York, where the adult children of an eminent IVF scientist are congregating in his creaky brownstone to have a number of things out. It’s a powerful, moving work – “in the audience, every night, we’ve had people sobbing” – of which he...
Robert Lindsay was sitting on the set of The Fever Syndrome at London’s Hampstead theatre, having his photo taken. Instantly recognisable everywhere since his stupidly handsome days – playing the eponymous Marxist in the BBC’s sitcom Citizen Smith from 1977 to 1980 – his face nevertheless, at 72, has an unexpected quality. It’s craggier than you remember, and much more relaxed than you’d expect. Content, even.
The Fever Syndrome is a family drama set in New York, where the adult children of an eminent IVF scientist are congregating in his creaky brownstone to have a number of things out. It’s a powerful, moving work – “in the audience, every night, we’ve had people sobbing” – of which he...
- 4/19/2022
- by Zoe Williams
- The Guardian - Film News
‘When somebody decides to call a character Brock Blennerhassett,’ says Michael Smiley, ‘you think, well, that hasn’t just come off the top of your head, there must be something going on there!’ What’s going on with Blennerhassett, his lead role in new darkly comic Victorian drama Dead Still, is strange, timely and layered, says Smiley.
Dead Still, available in the UK now to stream on Acorn TV, is ‘a dark, funny, proper period drama set in Dublin in Victorian times’ Smiley explains. His character Blennerhassett is part of the Anglo-Irish landed gentry who’s broken away to work in the experimental field of memorial photography, taking pictures of posed corpses for bereaved families. ‘That was a big thing in Victorian times because of the British Empire being in mourning after Prince Albert died.’
The series blends a murder mystery with gallows humour and colonial Irish politics. ‘All of...
Dead Still, available in the UK now to stream on Acorn TV, is ‘a dark, funny, proper period drama set in Dublin in Victorian times’ Smiley explains. His character Blennerhassett is part of the Anglo-Irish landed gentry who’s broken away to work in the experimental field of memorial photography, taking pictures of posed corpses for bereaved families. ‘That was a big thing in Victorian times because of the British Empire being in mourning after Prince Albert died.’
The series blends a murder mystery with gallows humour and colonial Irish politics. ‘All of...
- 7/1/2020
- by Louisa Mellor
- Den of Geek
Elvis Costello shared a lengthy and moving tribute to John Prine that expounded on his great admiration for the late singer-songwriter and featured several memories of the time they spent together — onstage and off.
Costello opened by discussing how Prine’s music sparked a friendship between Costello and the playwright Alan Bleasdale, and used that as a jumping-off point to recall how he discovered Prine’s music in the first place — picking out a 45 rpm single of “Sam Stone” and “Illegal Smile” from the bargain bin at a music store in Liverpool.
Costello opened by discussing how Prine’s music sparked a friendship between Costello and the playwright Alan Bleasdale, and used that as a jumping-off point to recall how he discovered Prine’s music in the first place — picking out a 45 rpm single of “Sam Stone” and “Illegal Smile” from the bargain bin at a music store in Liverpool.
- 4/14/2020
- by Jon Blistein
- Rollingstone.com
Pop stars write closing credit songs all the time. But the story behind Elvis Costello’s moving song “You Shouldn’t Look at Me That Way,” about an older woman’s complicated allure, is crazy. Producer Barbara Broccoli and Peter Turner went to see his show at the London Palladium and were shocked to see a photo of Gloria Grahame on the stage. When they went backstage, they asked Costello to write a song for “Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool,” starring Annette Bening as the aging Hollywood actress who has an affair with younger actor Peter Turner (Jamie Bell).
Read More:Annette Bening Finds the Truth in the Very Strange Tale of Gloria Grahame and ‘Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool’
Costello had hung out with Alan Bleasdale, the playwright of one of the plays Turner starred in during that period. But while Costello is a film buff...
Read More:Annette Bening Finds the Truth in the Very Strange Tale of Gloria Grahame and ‘Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool’
Costello had hung out with Alan Bleasdale, the playwright of one of the plays Turner starred in during that period. But while Costello is a film buff...
- 1/12/2018
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
Pop stars write closing credit songs all the time. But the story behind Elvis Costello’s moving song “You Shouldn’t Look at Me That Way,” about an older woman’s complicated allure, is crazy. Producer Barbara Broccoli and Peter Turner went to see his show at the London Palladium and were shocked to see a photo of Gloria Grahame on the stage. When they went backstage, they asked Costello to write a song for “Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool,” starring Annette Bening as the aging Hollywood actress who has an affair with younger actor Peter Turner (Jamie Bell).
Read More:Annette Bening Finds the Truth in the Very Strange Tale of Gloria Grahame and ‘Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool’
Costello had hung out with Alan Bleasdale, the playwright of one of the plays Turner starred in during that period. But while Costello is a film buff...
Read More:Annette Bening Finds the Truth in the Very Strange Tale of Gloria Grahame and ‘Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool’
Costello had hung out with Alan Bleasdale, the playwright of one of the plays Turner starred in during that period. But while Costello is a film buff...
- 1/12/2018
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
Wearing produced Boys from the Blackstuff, Pride and Prejudice, Edge of Darkness and many more.
Michael Wearing, producer of iconic television dramas including Boys from the Blackstuff and Edge of Darkness, has died aged 78 (reports Broadcast).
Wearing (right), who held a number of senior positions across drama at the BBC, died on Friday 5 May following a stroke. Wearing is survived by his three children, Sadie, Ella and Ben.
After studying anthropology at Newcastle University and a short career in the theatre, Wearing joined the BBC’s English regions drama department as a script editor in 1976.
Reporting to David Rose, who went on to become founder of Film 4, at the BBC’s Pebble Mill base in Birmingham, Wearing worked with writers including Alan Bleasdale and Ron Hutchinson on a number of Play for Today scripts.
He also worked on series including Stephen Davis’ Trouble With Gregory, which aired as part of BBC2’s Playhouse strand, Hutchinson’s six-part...
Michael Wearing, producer of iconic television dramas including Boys from the Blackstuff and Edge of Darkness, has died aged 78 (reports Broadcast).
Wearing (right), who held a number of senior positions across drama at the BBC, died on Friday 5 May following a stroke. Wearing is survived by his three children, Sadie, Ella and Ben.
After studying anthropology at Newcastle University and a short career in the theatre, Wearing joined the BBC’s English regions drama department as a script editor in 1976.
Reporting to David Rose, who went on to become founder of Film 4, at the BBC’s Pebble Mill base in Birmingham, Wearing worked with writers including Alan Bleasdale and Ron Hutchinson on a number of Play for Today scripts.
He also worked on series including Stephen Davis’ Trouble With Gregory, which aired as part of BBC2’s Playhouse strand, Hutchinson’s six-part...
- 5/9/2017
- ScreenDaily
Julie Walters is such a legendary actress - who's been in all sorts of beloved films and TV Shows - that it's no surprise she was awarded a BAFTA Fellowship earlier this year. And now, her career will be examined in a new TV show airing tonight (Christmas Eve).
We caught up with Julie recently to chat about her varied career, so read on to find out why she wishes she'd kept something from the Harry Potter set, why slippers with bobbles bring back bad memories, and why she wants to be a Bond villain...
Was getting the Fellowship a nice chance to look back at the highs and lows of your career?
"Yes. Well, you don't really look at the lows. To be perfectly honest, when you get it, I don't look back at anything really. There were clips, weren't there? Yes, of course there were, on the night.
We caught up with Julie recently to chat about her varied career, so read on to find out why she wishes she'd kept something from the Harry Potter set, why slippers with bobbles bring back bad memories, and why she wants to be a Bond villain...
Was getting the Fellowship a nice chance to look back at the highs and lows of your career?
"Yes. Well, you don't really look at the lows. To be perfectly honest, when you get it, I don't look back at anything really. There were clips, weren't there? Yes, of course there were, on the night.
- 12/24/2014
- Digital Spy
Netflix is in talks with Channel 4 to co-produce a television adaptation of Charles Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities.
If the deal goes ahead then it will be the streaming service's most significant partnership with a UK broadcaster to date, Broadcast reports.
It is expected that Netflix will continue to work on co-productions as it launches in more European markets, such as France and Germany.
The Channel 4 adaptation of A Tale of Two Cities will be made by independent production company Mammoth Screen, who previously worked on the BBC and HBO mini-series Parade's End.
Channel 4 is reportedly looking for a Us partner for the project, with Netflix currently the lead contender. BBC Worldwide owns the international rights to the series.
BBC and ITV have previously adapted Dicken's A Tale of Two Cities, which is set in London and Paris before and during the French Revolution.
The Channel...
If the deal goes ahead then it will be the streaming service's most significant partnership with a UK broadcaster to date, Broadcast reports.
It is expected that Netflix will continue to work on co-productions as it launches in more European markets, such as France and Germany.
The Channel 4 adaptation of A Tale of Two Cities will be made by independent production company Mammoth Screen, who previously worked on the BBC and HBO mini-series Parade's End.
Channel 4 is reportedly looking for a Us partner for the project, with Netflix currently the lead contender. BBC Worldwide owns the international rights to the series.
BBC and ITV have previously adapted Dicken's A Tale of Two Cities, which is set in London and Paris before and during the French Revolution.
The Channel...
- 8/21/2014
- Digital Spy
What can be said about Michael Palin that hasn’t been said already? Perhaps calling him a Renaissance man, or comparing him to a shark that never stops swimming. He’s something different to each generation, be it as a member of Monty Python; a unique explorer and travel presenter neither in the vein of Alan Whicker or Karl Pilkington; a filmmaker; a geographer and railway enthusiast; or as a man of letters both fictional and non-fictional. His works spans every cultural medium imaginable short of painting and sculpture, though chances are he indulges those in his spare time as well.
Palin and Python are back in the news not just for court cases, but for the shock announcement they’re reuniting for a limited amount of shows at the O2 arena next summer. It will be the first time since 1988 they’ve performed together, albeit without the late Graham Chapman.
Palin and Python are back in the news not just for court cases, but for the shock announcement they’re reuniting for a limited amount of shows at the O2 arena next summer. It will be the first time since 1988 they’ve performed together, albeit without the late Graham Chapman.
- 12/10/2013
- by Oscar Harding
- Obsessed with Film
Actor Martin Shaw talks about working with Polanski, the dumbing-down of his profession, and the death of his fellow Professional Lewis Collins
How did you become interested in acting?
It started at school. I didn't have a healthy attitude towards education: it took me a long time to work out that I was there for me, not for my teachers. There were only two teachers I could really respond to – one taught English, the other drama. When we were doing Shakespeare, it seemed crystal-clear.
What was your big breakthrough?
In 1968, I appeared at the Royal Court in the first major revival of Look Back in Anger (1). Then I starred in several other plays there. Roman Polanski saw one and offered me the role of Banquo in his film of Macbeth. Everything took off from there.
What have you sacrificed for your art?
I've grown a few grey hairs – well, a...
How did you become interested in acting?
It started at school. I didn't have a healthy attitude towards education: it took me a long time to work out that I was there for me, not for my teachers. There were only two teachers I could really respond to – one taught English, the other drama. When we were doing Shakespeare, it seemed crystal-clear.
What was your big breakthrough?
In 1968, I appeared at the Royal Court in the first major revival of Look Back in Anger (1). Then I starred in several other plays there. Roman Polanski saw one and offered me the role of Banquo in his film of Macbeth. Everything took off from there.
What have you sacrificed for your art?
I've grown a few grey hairs – well, a...
- 12/4/2013
- by Laura Barnett
- The Guardian - Film News
Creator Steven Knight and star Cillian Murphy discuss the BBC's epic new gangster drama
It represents an amazing period," says Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight, of the British post-wwi drama whose impact some have predicted will parallel that of Boardwalk Empire in the USA. "As well as the upheaval, there was a lot of drug-taking, a lot of hedonism. The start of modernity, but a false start."
The opening episode begins in a Chinatown district, its inhabitants scurrying anxiously about. As we pan back towards a muddy street, it's clear that this is the early 20th century – New York, San Francisco, London, perhaps. The source of the consternation emerges – a man on a horse, plodding down an avenue of hovels, scattering the frightened locals. Determinedly, he performs a ritual involving the blowing of coloured powder into the horse's face. Finally, he speaks, in a thick accent, and the screen's date...
It represents an amazing period," says Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight, of the British post-wwi drama whose impact some have predicted will parallel that of Boardwalk Empire in the USA. "As well as the upheaval, there was a lot of drug-taking, a lot of hedonism. The start of modernity, but a false start."
The opening episode begins in a Chinatown district, its inhabitants scurrying anxiously about. As we pan back towards a muddy street, it's clear that this is the early 20th century – New York, San Francisco, London, perhaps. The source of the consternation emerges – a man on a horse, plodding down an avenue of hovels, scattering the frightened locals. Determinedly, he performs a ritual involving the blowing of coloured powder into the horse's face. Finally, he speaks, in a thick accent, and the screen's date...
- 9/6/2013
- by David Stubbs
- The Guardian - Film News
"Where I lived when I grew up, there was a fantastic actor called Andrew Schofield.
"He was in a TV series called Scully. It was actually about a young lad who wanted to play for Liverpool and he had these fantasies and daydreams about it. It was a comedy and it was written by Alan Bleasdale.
"Drew lived across the road from where my nana's house was, so I suppose seeing him as a kid made me realise that me being an actor was tangible, it was attainable.
"I could see that there was this man who was on TV and he was a brilliant actor, he was in great stuff like Boys from the Blackstuff and he was living nearby in my neighbourhood.
"That gave me the faith and the hope and belief that one day maybe I could be an actor. He was my hero as a kid.
"He was in a TV series called Scully. It was actually about a young lad who wanted to play for Liverpool and he had these fantasies and daydreams about it. It was a comedy and it was written by Alan Bleasdale.
"Drew lived across the road from where my nana's house was, so I suppose seeing him as a kid made me realise that me being an actor was tangible, it was attainable.
"I could see that there was this man who was on TV and he was a brilliant actor, he was in great stuff like Boys from the Blackstuff and he was living nearby in my neighbourhood.
"That gave me the faith and the hope and belief that one day maybe I could be an actor. He was my hero as a kid.
- 8/6/2013
- Digital Spy
The creator of E4's hit sitcom Phoneshop Phil Bowker has spoken to Digital Spy about the secret of his show's success, his contempt for Twitter critics and why he feels sorry for Ben Elton.
Have you got any free phones off the back of Phoneshop?
"I haven't actually. I should complain. I'm like everybody else. I just want a simple phone. I've got an iPhone, but I don't even know if I want one with text on. Do you know what I mean?
"People can get hold of you all the time with texts, emails and photos. I'm fed up with it. I just want a phone to be a phone. I don't need to be able to play f**king Angry Birds on the way into work.
"You get the train in to London on a morning and it's full of grown men playing video games. Mate, read a book!
Have you got any free phones off the back of Phoneshop?
"I haven't actually. I should complain. I'm like everybody else. I just want a simple phone. I've got an iPhone, but I don't even know if I want one with text on. Do you know what I mean?
"People can get hold of you all the time with texts, emails and photos. I'm fed up with it. I just want a phone to be a phone. I don't need to be able to play f**king Angry Birds on the way into work.
"You get the train in to London on a morning and it's full of grown men playing video games. Mate, read a book!
- 7/25/2013
- Digital Spy
We have to pay our TV license fees or go to jail. And I happen to think that the license fee is a tiresome bother to pay, especially as I rarely watch BBC 1 or BBC 2 (I do watch BBC 3 and BBC 4 and listen to Radio 2 and Radio 4 so I suppose I can’t really bitch about it). For our hard earned money, we deserve some mighty good entertainment and thankfully, the BBC has delivered the goods over the years.
The series that I discuss in this article were mainly created before the boom in satellite television channels and our options were limited to watching hours of Pages From Ceefax (Rip) and the test card girl or watching what was going on Auntie Beeb in the evenings. Classic drama was produced in this fashion and the BBC earned their worth.
I’m not sure if the BBC still produce quality drama.
The series that I discuss in this article were mainly created before the boom in satellite television channels and our options were limited to watching hours of Pages From Ceefax (Rip) and the test card girl or watching what was going on Auntie Beeb in the evenings. Classic drama was produced in this fashion and the BBC earned their worth.
I’m not sure if the BBC still produce quality drama.
- 7/15/2013
- by Clare Simpson
- Obsessed with Film
As producer of Alan Bleasdale's The Black Stuff, I was immensely impressed by Jim Goddard's direction. Although it was transmitted as a BBC Play for Today, it was in fact a feature-length film. I recall Jim working in west London with the team of actors led by Bernard Hill playing Yosser Hughes, walking back and forth in a rehearsal room, to measure out a long tracking shot which was to be filmed on the roads of the north-east. With the actors in mind, Jim took full advantage by combining old-style television rehearsal with the economic need to keep the film camera turning.
This valuable preparation gave the team of actors the freedom of spirit which subsequently Michael Wearing and Philip Saville inherited when producing and directing, with newly introduced lightweight cameras, Bleasdale's compelling series The Boys from the Blackstuff.
DramaDrama
guardian.co.uk © 2013 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies.
This valuable preparation gave the team of actors the freedom of spirit which subsequently Michael Wearing and Philip Saville inherited when producing and directing, with newly introduced lightweight cameras, Bleasdale's compelling series The Boys from the Blackstuff.
DramaDrama
guardian.co.uk © 2013 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies.
- 7/4/2013
- The Guardian - Film News
Prolific television and film director whose output included the internationally successful 1983 drama Kennedy
Jim Goddard, who has died aged 77, was among the most prolific and distinguished television drama directors of his generation. Bleak and violent atmosphere and vivid characterisation were the hallmarks of his more than 200 distinctive works over the course of four decades. His Kennedy (1983) was shown simultaneously on Us network television, in the UK and Germany, and achieved the highest recorded viewing figures to that date for a televised drama.
Goddard's work included the 13-part drama Fox (1980), Reilly: Ace of Spies (1983) and The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby (1982), the early Channel 4 version of the RSC production. The power and visual immediacy of his directorial style owed as much to arthouse film as it did to his abilities as a painter. Indeed, he never forsook painting, which he studied at the Slade in London, or his love of set design,...
Jim Goddard, who has died aged 77, was among the most prolific and distinguished television drama directors of his generation. Bleak and violent atmosphere and vivid characterisation were the hallmarks of his more than 200 distinctive works over the course of four decades. His Kennedy (1983) was shown simultaneously on Us network television, in the UK and Germany, and achieved the highest recorded viewing figures to that date for a televised drama.
Goddard's work included the 13-part drama Fox (1980), Reilly: Ace of Spies (1983) and The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby (1982), the early Channel 4 version of the RSC production. The power and visual immediacy of his directorial style owed as much to arthouse film as it did to his abilities as a painter. Indeed, he never forsook painting, which he studied at the Slade in London, or his love of set design,...
- 6/27/2013
- by Reg Gadney
- The Guardian - Film News
From Meryl Streep's Iron Lady to Spitting Image and the Spice Girls, Observer writers and critics pick the films, books, art, music and TV that show Thatcher's lasting influence
Art, chosen by Laura Cumming
Treatment Room (1983)
In Richard Hamilton's installation, Thatcher administered her own harsh medicine from a video above the operating table with the viewer as helpless patient: a case of kill or cure.
Taking Stock (1984)
Hans Haacke portrayed Thatcher enthroned, nose in the air like a gun-dog, surrounded by images of Queen Victoria, the Saatchi brothers and, ominously, Pandora. Caused national furore.
In the Sleep of Reason (1982)
Mark Wallinger edited Thatcher's 1982 Falklands speech from blink to blink, fading to black in between, emphasising her solipsistic tendency to close her eyes when speaking as if nobody else existed.
The Battle of Orgreave (2001)
Jeremy Deller's restaged the worst conflict of the miners' strike from multiple viewpoints, uniting...
Art, chosen by Laura Cumming
Treatment Room (1983)
In Richard Hamilton's installation, Thatcher administered her own harsh medicine from a video above the operating table with the viewer as helpless patient: a case of kill or cure.
Taking Stock (1984)
Hans Haacke portrayed Thatcher enthroned, nose in the air like a gun-dog, surrounded by images of Queen Victoria, the Saatchi brothers and, ominously, Pandora. Caused national furore.
In the Sleep of Reason (1982)
Mark Wallinger edited Thatcher's 1982 Falklands speech from blink to blink, fading to black in between, emphasising her solipsistic tendency to close her eyes when speaking as if nobody else existed.
The Battle of Orgreave (2001)
Jeremy Deller's restaged the worst conflict of the miners' strike from multiple viewpoints, uniting...
- 4/13/2013
- by Robert McCrum, Kitty Empire, Philip French, Andrew Rawnsley, Euan Ferguson
- The Guardian - Film News
He has unparalleled creative freedom within the BBC. But, as Stephen Poliakoff's latest lavish drama reaches our screens, what does he make of his reputation for being a control freak?
'I'm quite sure," Stephen Poliakoff giggles, "there are people within the BBC who run down the corridors blocking their ears when they see me coming." His reputation certainly precedes him – a great galloping colossus of media folklore, variously casting the writer as a genius, control freak, force of nature or diva, sometimes all at the same time. Descriptions of his appearance err towards cartoonish caricature – dishevelled, wild-haired, fidgety, like a mad professor who has accidentally electrocuted himself – only adding to the mythology of a wild man of letters. But to everyone about to fall in love with his latest drama, Poliakoff may well soon be at real risk of becoming a national treasure.
Dancing on the Edge is set...
'I'm quite sure," Stephen Poliakoff giggles, "there are people within the BBC who run down the corridors blocking their ears when they see me coming." His reputation certainly precedes him – a great galloping colossus of media folklore, variously casting the writer as a genius, control freak, force of nature or diva, sometimes all at the same time. Descriptions of his appearance err towards cartoonish caricature – dishevelled, wild-haired, fidgety, like a mad professor who has accidentally electrocuted himself – only adding to the mythology of a wild man of letters. But to everyone about to fall in love with his latest drama, Poliakoff may well soon be at real risk of becoming a national treasure.
Dancing on the Edge is set...
- 1/28/2013
- by Decca Aitkenhead
- The Guardian - Film News
The Sinking of the Laconia
Kieran Kinsella
August will be an exciting month for fans of British TV as Acorn Media are set to release the critically acclaimed BBC Two production of The Sinking of the Laconia. The drama is based upon real events that occurred during World War II when a German U-boat torpedoed a British ship that was transporting civilians and Italian POWs off the coast of Africa. Having initially mistaken the Laconia for a military vessel, the commander of the U-boat was mortified to discover that he had in fact sunk a civilian boat. Breaking with orders from high command, the German commander began orchestrating a massive rescue operation designed to get the survivors to the relative safety of the West African shoreline. The real-life drama doesn’t end there but I don’t want to give the whole plot away so you’ll just have to...
Kieran Kinsella
August will be an exciting month for fans of British TV as Acorn Media are set to release the critically acclaimed BBC Two production of The Sinking of the Laconia. The drama is based upon real events that occurred during World War II when a German U-boat torpedoed a British ship that was transporting civilians and Italian POWs off the coast of Africa. Having initially mistaken the Laconia for a military vessel, the commander of the U-boat was mortified to discover that he had in fact sunk a civilian boat. Breaking with orders from high command, the German commander began orchestrating a massive rescue operation designed to get the survivors to the relative safety of the West African shoreline. The real-life drama doesn’t end there but I don’t want to give the whole plot away so you’ll just have to...
- 8/4/2012
- by Edited by K Kinsella
She's won more Baftas than any other actress. Here, Julie Walters tells Euan Ferguson about her hippy years, life in the country and why it's never been a better time to be a woman on TV
Other multiple Bafta- and Emmy-winning actresses might have flung toys from the pram, or at least raised a manicured eyebrow. The restaurant at the photo studio had courteously but undeniably told her they'd run out of basically everything she might have wanted. Julie Walters smiled and forgave, and smiled again, and pretended to enjoy choosing the remaining dreadful rabbit-food option. Then, out of the waiter's sight, laughed like a drain when I suggested she'd have had better luck choosing from the other (blank) side of the menu; then turned down my offer of a cup of coffee instead because, "No, I'd talk you to death if I had a cup of coffee."
Without caffeine,...
Other multiple Bafta- and Emmy-winning actresses might have flung toys from the pram, or at least raised a manicured eyebrow. The restaurant at the photo studio had courteously but undeniably told her they'd run out of basically everything she might have wanted. Julie Walters smiled and forgave, and smiled again, and pretended to enjoy choosing the remaining dreadful rabbit-food option. Then, out of the waiter's sight, laughed like a drain when I suggested she'd have had better luck choosing from the other (blank) side of the menu; then turned down my offer of a cup of coffee instead because, "No, I'd talk you to death if I had a cup of coffee."
Without caffeine,...
- 5/19/2012
- by Euan Ferguson
- The Guardian - Film News
This November, a series of events are planned to celebrate its 100 year history
The Liverpool Playhouse Theatre, home to one of the oldest repertory companies, will celebrate its centenary later this year with a special gala performance of The Ladykillers.
A new book on the Williamson Square landmark and a series of events will also mark the 100th anniversary on November 11.
The gala evening will include a pre-show champagne reception and a chance to join the cast – which includes Peter Capaldi, James Fleet and Ben Miller – after the show to toast the theatre as a special birthday cake is cut.
The Ladykillers adapted for stage by Graham Linehan is on from November 3-19, but is sold out already.
Meanwhile, the cast of Roger McGough's adaptation of Moliere's play, Tartuffe, have been entertaining audiences at the Playhouse. Tartuffe runs until Saturday.
The Playhouse is also launching a book to...
The Liverpool Playhouse Theatre, home to one of the oldest repertory companies, will celebrate its centenary later this year with a special gala performance of The Ladykillers.
A new book on the Williamson Square landmark and a series of events will also mark the 100th anniversary on November 11.
The gala evening will include a pre-show champagne reception and a chance to join the cast – which includes Peter Capaldi, James Fleet and Ben Miller – after the show to toast the theatre as a special birthday cake is cut.
The Ladykillers adapted for stage by Graham Linehan is on from November 3-19, but is sold out already.
Meanwhile, the cast of Roger McGough's adaptation of Moliere's play, Tartuffe, have been entertaining audiences at the Playhouse. Tartuffe runs until Saturday.
The Playhouse is also launching a book to...
- 9/13/2011
- by Helen Carter
- The Guardian - Film News
We love sharing movies with our readers by way of news, reviews, trailers, and more, but even better than that are the times we get to literally send someone a free movie on DVD or Blu. For all the contests we’ve held over the years though the one common element has been the obvious restriction that our prizes be Us releases. Well borders be damned, we’re about to give away a DVD that has only been released across the pond! Playwright and BAFTA Award winning writer Alan Bleasdale recently returned to British television with a two-part miniseries about the true WWII story of a British cruise liner in the wrong place at the wrong time. The Sinking Of The Laconia dramatizes the sadly ironic tale of a luxury liner turned troop ship targeted and torpedoed by a German U-boat. Upon realizing the people on board included civilians, children, and...
- 3/17/2011
- by Rob Hunter
- FilmSchoolRejects.com
The following press release from the British Film Institute indicates some exciting events going on at the BFI Southbank Theatre in London:
In 2011 BFI Southbank will present some of the most influential artists of British and world cinema throughout the year, igniting the public’s imagination for film in new and surprising ways and offering unique film experiences. The New Year kicks off with a definitive two month Howard Hawks season, accompanied by an Extended Run of The Big Sleep (1946), an enduringly popular Audrey Hepburn retrospective, including a national release of the classic Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961) for the film’s 50th anniversary, the continuation of the TV Variety season and new season The Long Goodbye: A Cinematic Memento Mori will explore a taboo subject in surprising and thought provoking ways.
BFI Southbank will also continue to offer the most exciting and exclusive previews and events, such as this...
In 2011 BFI Southbank will present some of the most influential artists of British and world cinema throughout the year, igniting the public’s imagination for film in new and surprising ways and offering unique film experiences. The New Year kicks off with a definitive two month Howard Hawks season, accompanied by an Extended Run of The Big Sleep (1946), an enduringly popular Audrey Hepburn retrospective, including a national release of the classic Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961) for the film’s 50th anniversary, the continuation of the TV Variety season and new season The Long Goodbye: A Cinematic Memento Mori will explore a taboo subject in surprising and thought provoking ways.
BFI Southbank will also continue to offer the most exciting and exclusive previews and events, such as this...
- 1/12/2011
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
Obituaries of the character actor Peter Postlethwaite reveal the role played by the Everyman Theatre in his success
Talent can look like a fluke. An actor with eyes that draw you in, a voice that rings in the memory – these things seem to be good luck, a gift. But this is only part of the story, as obituaries of Pete Postlethwaite prove.
The Warrington-born actor became one of our most successful character stars after appearing, fairly late in his career, in The Usual Suspects and Brassed Off, before being adopted as a favourite Hollywood turn, gracing films such as the Jurassic Park sequel and last year's Inception. It was back in the 1970s, though, that Postlethwaite's acting had really got going, as one of a gang of performers and writers working at Liverpool's Everyman Theatre.
The venue in Hope Street on the site of a former chapel was the seedbed...
Talent can look like a fluke. An actor with eyes that draw you in, a voice that rings in the memory – these things seem to be good luck, a gift. But this is only part of the story, as obituaries of Pete Postlethwaite prove.
The Warrington-born actor became one of our most successful character stars after appearing, fairly late in his career, in The Usual Suspects and Brassed Off, before being adopted as a favourite Hollywood turn, gracing films such as the Jurassic Park sequel and last year's Inception. It was back in the 1970s, though, that Postlethwaite's acting had really got going, as one of a gang of performers and writers working at Liverpool's Everyman Theatre.
The venue in Hope Street on the site of a former chapel was the seedbed...
- 1/10/2011
- by Vanessa Thorpe
- The Guardian - Film News
Oscar-nominated British actor with a vast range who could move between comedy and tragedy with ease
The actor Pete Postlethwaite had a face that elicited many similes, among them "a stone archway" and "a bag of spanners". These unflattering descriptions, plus his tongue-twisting surname, would suggest an actor with a career limited to minor supporting roles. But Postlethwaite, who has died of cancer aged 64, played a vast range of characters, often leading roles, on stage, television and film.
He was at ease in switching the masks of tragedy and comedy. The working-class martinet father he played in Terence Davies's film Distant Voices, Still Lives (1988), which Postlethwaite credited as his big break, can be seen as paradigmatic of his career. Postlethwaite powerfully conveyed the father's double-sided nature: at one moment he is tenderly kissing his children goodnight, the next he is ripping the tablecloth off in a rage.
Postlethwaite was...
The actor Pete Postlethwaite had a face that elicited many similes, among them "a stone archway" and "a bag of spanners". These unflattering descriptions, plus his tongue-twisting surname, would suggest an actor with a career limited to minor supporting roles. But Postlethwaite, who has died of cancer aged 64, played a vast range of characters, often leading roles, on stage, television and film.
He was at ease in switching the masks of tragedy and comedy. The working-class martinet father he played in Terence Davies's film Distant Voices, Still Lives (1988), which Postlethwaite credited as his big break, can be seen as paradigmatic of his career. Postlethwaite powerfully conveyed the father's double-sided nature: at one moment he is tenderly kissing his children goodnight, the next he is ripping the tablecloth off in a rage.
Postlethwaite was...
- 1/4/2011
- by Ronald Bergan
- The Guardian - Film News
Colleagues of the late actor recall their memories of working with him
Sue Johnston, actor
His family and mine have been friends for a long time through a church club in Warrington. I loved him very much, as everyone who has worked with him and knows him does, because he was a great friend for everybody, a sort of leader of the company. He'd wrap his arms around everyone. He was an incredibly talented guy. He was also a Liverpool supporter, which endeared him to me even more.
I worked with him on Brassed Off and that was the start of a great friendship. We all had such a great time on that movie. We partied a lot, we laughed a lot, we worked hard. My lasting memory of him will be on top of the open-topped bus when he was conducting the band as they go around town because...
Sue Johnston, actor
His family and mine have been friends for a long time through a church club in Warrington. I loved him very much, as everyone who has worked with him and knows him does, because he was a great friend for everybody, a sort of leader of the company. He'd wrap his arms around everyone. He was an incredibly talented guy. He was also a Liverpool supporter, which endeared him to me even more.
I worked with him on Brassed Off and that was the start of a great friendship. We all had such a great time on that movie. We partied a lot, we laughed a lot, we worked hard. My lasting memory of him will be on top of the open-topped bus when he was conducting the band as they go around town because...
- 1/4/2011
- by Tim Lusher
- The Guardian - Film News
The actor Pete Postlethwaite died yesterday at the age of 64. We look back over his career in clips
It's difficult to know which is the more telling statement about Pete Postlethwaite, who died yesterday. That Steven Spielberg called him "the best actor in the world", after working with him on Jurassic Park sequel The Lost World. Or that Postlethwaite reacted to the praise with such dry deprecation: "I'm sure what Spielberg actually said was, 'The thing about Pete is that he thinks he's the best actor in the world.'"
A man with a face just made for immortalising on Mount Rushmore, Postlethwaite was an ensemble actor to his core; transparently decent and generous, hardly a limelight hogger. The role that first brought him to the attention of most people was Giuseppe Conlon, inmate dad to Daniel Day-Lewis's falsely imprisoned Guildford Four suspect Gerry in 1993's In the Name of the Father.
It's difficult to know which is the more telling statement about Pete Postlethwaite, who died yesterday. That Steven Spielberg called him "the best actor in the world", after working with him on Jurassic Park sequel The Lost World. Or that Postlethwaite reacted to the praise with such dry deprecation: "I'm sure what Spielberg actually said was, 'The thing about Pete is that he thinks he's the best actor in the world.'"
A man with a face just made for immortalising on Mount Rushmore, Postlethwaite was an ensemble actor to his core; transparently decent and generous, hardly a limelight hogger. The role that first brought him to the attention of most people was Giuseppe Conlon, inmate dad to Daniel Day-Lewis's falsely imprisoned Guildford Four suspect Gerry in 1993's In the Name of the Father.
- 1/3/2011
- by Catherine Shoard
- The Guardian - Film News
Oscar-nominated actor Pete Postlethwaite has died aged 64, it was confirmed today.
Journalist and friend Andrew Richardson said Postlethwaite passed away peacefully in hospital in Shropshire on Sunday following a lengthy illness.
The actor had continued to work until recent months despite receiving treatment for cancer. He was seen in the 2010 films The Town, Inception and Clash of the Titans.
In Clash of the Titans, he played Greek fisherman Spyros, who raised Sam Worthington's title character Perseus after finding him adrift at sea as a baby. In Inception he played Maurice Fischer, the dying father of dream manipulation target Robert Fischer, an heir to a business empire portrayed by Cillian Murphy.
Postlethwaite, who was made an OBE in the 2004 New Year Honours List, was previously described by Hollywood director Steven Spielberg as "the best actor in the world". They worked together on The Lost World: Jurassic Park and Amistad.
In response to the praise,...
Journalist and friend Andrew Richardson said Postlethwaite passed away peacefully in hospital in Shropshire on Sunday following a lengthy illness.
The actor had continued to work until recent months despite receiving treatment for cancer. He was seen in the 2010 films The Town, Inception and Clash of the Titans.
In Clash of the Titans, he played Greek fisherman Spyros, who raised Sam Worthington's title character Perseus after finding him adrift at sea as a baby. In Inception he played Maurice Fischer, the dying father of dream manipulation target Robert Fischer, an heir to a business empire portrayed by Cillian Murphy.
Postlethwaite, who was made an OBE in the 2004 New Year Honours List, was previously described by Hollywood director Steven Spielberg as "the best actor in the world". They worked together on The Lost World: Jurassic Park and Amistad.
In response to the praise,...
- 1/3/2011
- by David Bentley
- The Geek Files
Our Friends In The North writer Peter Flannery recalls the difficult birth of his three-decade-spanning 'posh soap opera'
Long before he became Bond, Daniel Craig gave a raw, emotional performance as Geordie, a young man falling apart in Our Friends In The North. In an early scene set in 1964 he's so distressed by his alcoholic father that he headbutts him, cries his heart out and then hitchhikes to London to become Malcolm McDowell's dapper henchman. By the late-60s he looks bizarrely like a member of Slade, and by the time Thatcher has her hold on Britain in the 1980s, his world has fallen apart.
A desperately dramatic storyline in its own right, it's only one strand of a series of epic, multilayered stories in Our Friends. The 623-minute drama, which follows the lives of four friends from Newcastle between 1964 and 1995, is as moving now as it was when...
Long before he became Bond, Daniel Craig gave a raw, emotional performance as Geordie, a young man falling apart in Our Friends In The North. In an early scene set in 1964 he's so distressed by his alcoholic father that he headbutts him, cries his heart out and then hitchhikes to London to become Malcolm McDowell's dapper henchman. By the late-60s he looks bizarrely like a member of Slade, and by the time Thatcher has her hold on Britain in the 1980s, his world has fallen apart.
A desperately dramatic storyline in its own right, it's only one strand of a series of epic, multilayered stories in Our Friends. The 623-minute drama, which follows the lives of four friends from Newcastle between 1964 and 1995, is as moving now as it was when...
- 9/17/2010
- by Amy Raphael
- The Guardian - Film News
The weekend’s here. You’ve just been paid, and it’s burning a hole in your pocket. What’s a pop culture geek to do? In hopes of steering you in the right direction to blow some of that hard-earned cash, it’s time for the Fred Weekend Shopping Guide - your spotlight on the things you didn’t even know you wanted…
(Please support Fred by using the links below to make any impulse purchases - it helps to keep us going…)
The long drought of last year is but a distant memory as the new Cinematic Titanic releases roll out with great speed this new year, the latest being The Alien Factor (Cinema Titan, $14.99), a horrid 70’s cheapie shot in the wilds of Baltimore, that manages to be a sci-fi version of Manos’s low-rent, interminable filmmaking - making it glorious fodder for the fine folks at Ct.
(Please support Fred by using the links below to make any impulse purchases - it helps to keep us going…)
The long drought of last year is but a distant memory as the new Cinematic Titanic releases roll out with great speed this new year, the latest being The Alien Factor (Cinema Titan, $14.99), a horrid 70’s cheapie shot in the wilds of Baltimore, that manages to be a sci-fi version of Manos’s low-rent, interminable filmmaking - making it glorious fodder for the fine folks at Ct.
- 2/26/2010
- by UncaScroogeMcD
DVD Playhouse—January 2010
By
Allen Gardner
The Hurt Locker (Summit Entertainment) Absorbing character study follows the leader (Jeremy Renner) of a bomb squad unit in Iraq and his growing addiction to the adrenaline-fueled life and death edge that he and his men must walk on a daily basis. Director Kathryn Bigelow, an unheralded great filmmaker for nearly two decades, has finally hit paydirt with this gut-wrenching examination of war as drug, as opposed to hell. That said, The Hurt Locker is 2/3 of a great movie that takes a wild left turn in a subplot involving Renner’s character and that of a local boy to whom he takes a shine, and never quite recovers its momentum. In spite of that hiccup, it remains one of the best films of 2009 and, thus far, the finest cinematic exploration of America’s war in the Middle East. Also available on Blu-ray disc, in...
By
Allen Gardner
The Hurt Locker (Summit Entertainment) Absorbing character study follows the leader (Jeremy Renner) of a bomb squad unit in Iraq and his growing addiction to the adrenaline-fueled life and death edge that he and his men must walk on a daily basis. Director Kathryn Bigelow, an unheralded great filmmaker for nearly two decades, has finally hit paydirt with this gut-wrenching examination of war as drug, as opposed to hell. That said, The Hurt Locker is 2/3 of a great movie that takes a wild left turn in a subplot involving Renner’s character and that of a local boy to whom he takes a shine, and never quite recovers its momentum. In spite of that hiccup, it remains one of the best films of 2009 and, thus far, the finest cinematic exploration of America’s war in the Middle East. Also available on Blu-ray disc, in...
- 1/19/2010
- by The Hollywood Interview.com
- The Hollywood Interview
London -- BBC drama boss Ben Stephenson on Wednesday announced a slew of big-name drama commissions but said the broadcaster would have to ax several long-running series to free up slots for a new generation of creative and adventurous fare.
Though he didn't give immediate details of which long-running shows could face cancellation, Stephenson said the pubcaster was refocusing its drama output to reflect "Britain's most creative and exciting author-driven drama," rather than purely commercial fare that would bring in audiences.
"(The BBC) is the place where new and established writers can realize their most imaginative work," he said.
"Across our four channels, there are bold, modern new series and serials alongside unique and challenging single pieces," said Stephenson, highlighting forthcoming new pieces including a new BBC4 biopic "Lennon Naked" which stars Christopher Eccleston as the former Beatle and a new BBC1 police drama "Luther," starring Idris Elba ("The Wire...
Though he didn't give immediate details of which long-running shows could face cancellation, Stephenson said the pubcaster was refocusing its drama output to reflect "Britain's most creative and exciting author-driven drama," rather than purely commercial fare that would bring in audiences.
"(The BBC) is the place where new and established writers can realize their most imaginative work," he said.
"Across our four channels, there are bold, modern new series and serials alongside unique and challenging single pieces," said Stephenson, highlighting forthcoming new pieces including a new BBC4 biopic "Lennon Naked" which stars Christopher Eccleston as the former Beatle and a new BBC1 police drama "Luther," starring Idris Elba ("The Wire...
- 1/13/2010
- by By Mimi Turner
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Anna Friel has claimed that she still regards working in the TV industry as a novelty. The 27-year-old actress, who first found fame in Alan Bleasdale's G.B.H. and Channel 4 soap Brookside, insisted that she will never forget her roots in spite of her recent achievements in the Us. "I would never take success for granted - I feel very lucky to be working at all," Friel told The Daily Telegraph. "I often think: 'Don't you dare for a second moan about your lot! You should feel humbled and grateful for all you've got!' "I want to appreciate what's going on as I'm doing it. If we keep (more)...
- 7/24/2009
- by By Daniel Kilkelly
- Digital Spy
Acclaimed writer Alan Bleasdale has penned a drama for BBC Two based on the tragic sinking of the Rms Laconia during the Second World War. Two 90-minute instalments by the Boys From The Blackstuff writer will tell the true story of what became known as The Laconia Incident. The British vessel was sunk by a German U-Boat in September 1942, only for the commander of the submarine to realise that the Laconia was carrying thousands of civilians and Italian prisoners of war. Defying Nazi orders, Lt Commander Werner Hartenstein attempted to rescue the (more)...
- 7/17/2008
- by By Dave West
- Digital Spy
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