TV Archive

11

Antony and Cleopatra

By
Editor
– 01/04/2012Posted in: CV, TV

June 2012 : The name of this show has been changed to “Last Tango in Halifax”. Read all about it in this Post.

We’ve known about this project for some time now, but refrained from logging a post about it out of respect to the production company who was supposed to make a formal announcement about recent casting for the show a couple of weeks ago. They haven’t done that, but in the meantime, Twitter and other forums have been full of speculation about the show, so we might as well make this post public.

Back in May 2011, the BBC announced the commissioning of a number of new dramas, including this show. The press release at the time stated

Anthony And Cleopatra, 6×60 series, written by Sally Wainwright and made by Red Production Company

New series for BBC One about love and second chances, set in the autumn years of two old school friends. Alan and Celia, both widowed and in their 70s, unexpectedly fall for each other when they meet again after nearly 50 years. Their relationship is a celebratory tale of the uplifting power of love at any age. But this is also a story about family, and about history. Both Alan and Celia have families, and with family comes baggage.

One cast member made Nicola’s involvement in this show public when he tweeted about this in mid December 2011. However, shortly after he tweeted this, he deleted the tweet immediately when he realized that the casting news has not yet been made official. This cast member is also appearing in another TV project in 2012 with Nicola.

On 3 January 2012, @SophieB_ noticed that Nicola’s Spotlight page has been updated to include news of Nicola’s casting as “Gillian” in this show. Thanks to others on Twitter, we now also know that Euros Lyn is the Director for this show. (You can access Euros’s own website HERE.) Both Euros Lyn and Sally Wainwright have had impressive credits in the past, so we await this show with keen interest. It is curious that Nicola’s Spotlight page has not yet been updated to include her appearance in New Tricks/Old School Ties even though we know, again, via Twitter, that she has already completed filming of her guest role back in December 2011.

There have been other tweets about a read through for a 6 part drama which started today (4th January 2012) in Manchester, from other would-be cast members (though this time not the abovementioned cast member). These actors seem to be all to happy to hint about their involvement and yet when pressed further, they clam up and give some lame excuse like, “Sorry everyone. I’m not allowed to say owt until it’s been announced to the world :(“. In that case, why tweet about the great cast, brilliant scripts and fantastic read throughs in the first place? This is most frustrating for fans. Press officers ought to know by now that Twitter leaks news faster than any other medium!

Filming of Antony and Cleopatra will take place in Yorkshire and Manchester between January and March 2012. An air date has not yet been announced. We have no idea as to why the show has the same title as the Shakespeare play, since the subject matter of the two plays bear no resemblance to each other. Perhaps those Nicola fans who are also Shakespeare scholars can hazard a guess as to why the script writer chose this particular title for her show.

You can access the production company’s website HERE. This site does not appear to have been updated since November 2011.

Why was the show named “Antony & Cleopatra?

There has been no official explanation, but perhaps this entry from On the Box’s 10 TV Shows to Look Out For in 2012 gives a clue :

A bit of gentle BBC drama which tells the story of two old school friends who meet after 50 years of family life and fall in luuurve. The two widowed 70-year-olds (not called Anthony or Cleopatra), have a whole load of baggage to bring to the relationship which promises to make this a realistic and unique approach to the usual TV love story plot. Written by Sally Wainwright, who penned the popular Unforgiven for ITV earlier this year, the drama will feature as part of the BBC’s Shakespeare season which will see several of the bard’s plays remade for your televisual viewing pleasure.

Update : 11 January 2012

We’ve found out who have been cast as the two leads of this show. Derek Jacobi will play “Antony” and Anne Reid will play “Cleopatra”. We found this information in a CV (stumbled across online) of one of the crew (not cast) members on the show. Neither the production company nor the BBC has yet made any formal announcement of the cast list, but if this new info is correct, then we think its brilliant and inspired casting. All of the supporting cast (i.e. the children and the baggage) will have to work hard to keep up with these two strong veterans of stage and screen.

Coincidentally, Shepherd Management announced today that Dean Andrews will be joining Derek Jacobi and Anne Reid in this project. Another actor known to have been cast is Tony Gardner.

@IanWylie just tweeted that Nicola has been confirmed to play Derek Jacobi’s daughter, Gillian, in this drama. Another cast member mentioned in Ian’s tweet is Sarah Lancashire. Thanks to Ian, you can read the BBC press release HERE. (Between last May and today, the BBC appeared to have decided to drop the “h” in “Antony”.)

Nicola to play the mother of a teenage son? That’s about as far away from “Ruth Evershed” as you can get. YES!

@IanWylie then tweeted

Spoke to Antony and Cleopatra writer Sally W last week. Much of it is about Nicola Walker and Sarah Lancashire’s characters

I guess that means we can expect a more detailed write-up from Ian, closer to the air date when the embargo on interviews and publicity is lifted.

Family Chart

Here’s a family chart we’ve compiled, showing you the relationships between the various characters. As we receive more casting news, we will update this chart to include additional characters. (click on the image to view a larger pic)

For more info, updates and photos, please turn to the next page.

Update : 12 January 2012

Tony Gardner has shared this pic on Twitter of the two young actors who will be playing sons on this show.

The young man on the right, Josh Bolt, 17, will be playing Nicola’s character’s son.*
See comments on this pic from Liz below. Thanks, Liz.

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5

Inside Men

By
Editor
– 01/04/2012Posted in: CV, TV

From the Whats on Stage press release for Di and Viv and Rose, which was subsequently confirmed by Nicola’s Spotlight page, we know that she has been cast in this new BBC One production. Nicola will play a character called “Kirsty Doyle”. HERE is more information from the BBC.

This Guardian article claims that the programme is scheduled for transmission in 2012. This article from Best British TV tells us that transmission is likely to be early 2012 as they have only commenced shooting in August. We have no information on how big (or small) a role Nicola will have. Given that there are four male leads and the show centers around their attempt at staging a heist, and Nicola was not mentioned in the BBC’s own press release, it is unlikely that Nicola will have that big a role.

Update : 31 December 2011

Amazon UK has listed the DVD box set for this show as being available for pre-order and listed its release date as 27 February 2012. This implies that the show will be transmitted in the UK sometime in early February, although as of this writing, no air date has been announced yet by the BBC. It seems strange that for a show so close to being aired, there is still hardly any publicity for it in the mainstream press. Then again, it is not uncommon for the BBC to push back the DVD release date once they’ve made up their minds on an actual air date.

The BBC has a rather inconsistent policy when it comes to the release of DVDs of its shows. For some shows, such as New Tricks, the DVD box sets are often released more than 6 months after the relevant series has aired. But for shows such as Being Human and more recently, Spooks and Downton Abbey, the DVD box sets have been released just a month or so after the shows have aired.

Incidentally, we’ve been told by Nicola that hers is only a small role in this show.

Update : 13 January 2011

The BBC Media Centre has released information about the first episode of this programme which you can read HERE. We understand from various sources that the show is due to be broadcast in the UK between 28 January 2012 and 4 February 2012.

HERE is the BBC press pack which includes interviews with the four lead actors. Nicola does not feature in the press pack.

Update : 19 January 2012

The first episode of this show will air on BBC One on Thursday, 2 February 2012, at 9 pm (GMT).

Update : 20 January 2012

Here is the trailer for Inside Men which the BBC has made available in which Nicola makes a brief appearance and delivers this line, “we’re happy, we’re family, that’s enough, isn’t it?”

For more updates, info, reviews and photos, please turn to the next page.

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6

New Tricks

By
Editor
– 11/17/2011Posted in: CV, TV


Nicola will guest star in UK TV series, “New Tricks”, in episode 2 titled “Old School Ties”, which will air sometime in 2012. Actor Tony Gardner (@tonygardner) just tweeted,

A whole heap of famous actors in the readthrough, but most excited to run into the wonderful Nicola Walker.

He subsequently confirmed the title of the episode.

New Tricks is a much loved UK TV dramady about a fictional cold case squad, Unsolved Crime and Open Case Squad (UCOS), which is made up of 3 retired police officers but led by a woman officer who is still on the police force. The series title is taken from the popular expression “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks”. Cast regulars include Amanda Redman, Alun Armstrong and Dennis Waterman, all household names in the UK. The show was recently renewed for both Series 9 and 10. Series 9 will air sometime in 2012. You can read all about this show on its Wikipedia page or IMDB page.

At the moment, the BBC’s official New Tricks website is only updated to Series 8.

We will update this Post as soon as we know more about the relevant episode and its air date.

Update : 20 November 2011

“Old School Ties” is written by Sarah Pinborough (@SarahPinborough on Twitter, or visit her website) and directed by Julian Simpson (@JulianSimpson1, or visit his website). This episode is starting to sound better and better.

Update : 25 November 2011

@JulianSimpson1 tweeted today, “Also penultimate day with Nicola Walker, who has already owns this episode. Together we’ve made the set fantastically sweary.”

Update : 26 July 2012

This AcornMedia webpage tells us that the Region 2 DVD for series 9 of New Tricks will be released on 3 November 2012. Given that there will be 10 episodes in series 9, we count back 10 weeks or so, which brings us to late August for a possible UK transmission date for series 9. That would bring it right round the time when Last Tango in Halifax is supposed to start airing!

Update : 16 August 2012

Tweets from both @JulianSimpson1 and @SarahPinborough indicate that Series 9 of New Tricks will begin airing in the UK as from 27 August 2012. Nicola’s guest episode will air on 3 September 2012.

Update : 17 August 2012

We have this programme summary about episode 2 from the BBC Media Centre :

The UCOS team reinvestigate the disappearance of PE teacher Jason Bowe after the remains of a body are discovered on the perimeter of the elite public boarding school where he taught.

The investigation couldn’t have come at a worse time for the school, which is preparing to welcome a former pupil, the Rt Hon Geoffrey Parkes MP, for the opening of a new computer centre.

Twenty-five year old Bowe went missing from Peregrine Manor School on the last day of term in June 2007. His disappearance didn’t greatly concern the head teacher Elizabeth Clayton, who saw it as a typical of the lack of commitment displayed by young teachers who move jobs regularly.

The team sense a certain amount of reluctance from the staff to cooperate with their enquiries until they speak to home support worker Helen Hadley, who not only sheds light on Bowe’s time at the school but is also the only person to show any compassion towards him.

Something of a loner as far as his colleagues were concerned, Bowe appears to have got on better with his students, forming close and often inappropriate relationships with several. But could his behaviour have rattled someone enough to kill him?

Amanda Redman is Detective Superintendent Sandra Pullman, Alun Armstrong is Brian Lane, Dennis Waterman is Gerry Standing, Susannah Harker is Elizabeth Clayton, Nicola Walker is Helen Hadley, Phoebe Fox is Eleanor Higgins and Brian Pettifer is Archie Milgrow.

Update : 22 August 2012

In an article in the 25 August 2012 issue of Whats on TV, Amanda Redman namechecks Nicola as a special guest star in episode of Series 9. (Click on the image to view a larger pic and to read the article.)

Nicola’s guest episode will air on Monday, 3 September 2012 at 21:00 GMT on BBC One. That is also the day and time slot when episode 1 of A Mother’s Son will also be airing on ITV. As of this writing, we do not know whether Nicola will appear in episode 1 of A Mother’s Son or whether her guest role is limited to episode 2 only. If she makes an appearance in episode 1, that will be a historic first for her in that she will be seen in two different programmes on two different channels in the UK at the same day and time!!!

Update : 28 August 2012

There are two small entries about Nicola in this week’s Radio Times (scans courtesy of @born_spook)

Here are two entries we found from this week’s TV & Satellite Times

Update : 31 August 2012

Here is a short synposis of Nicola’s guest episode which appears in the 1 September 2012 issue of Whats on TV (click to view larger image). Beware of possible spoiler in the article, so don’t click to see a larger image if you don’t want to know.

Good to know that Nicola will have lots of scenes with Alun Armstrong. But it looks like Nicola is back in kooky mode for this role.

Screencaps

Screencaps of Nicola from this episode are available HERE.

Six degrees

Anthony Calf, a series regular, also appeared in Gethsemane [Stage] but he did not have any scenes with Nicola.

Dennis Lawson, a new series regular starting from Series 9, also appeared in the same episode of Pie in the Sky [TV] as Nicola, but they did not share any scenes.

Amanda Redman, a series regular, is the ex-wife of Robert Glenister who played the Home Secretary in Series 5 through to Series 9 of Spooks [TV].

Julian Simpson, the director of this episode, previously directed Nicola in episodes 409, 410 and 503 of Spooks [TV] (those were classic Nicola/Ruth episodes), as well as two radio plays, Pleasant Green and Bad Memories.

Buy from Amazon UK

The Region 2 DVD will be available from 5 November 2012.

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3

Radio Times Q & A

By
Editor
– 10/19/2011Posted in: Articles

In the issue of the Radio Times which was published in the UK on 18 October 2011, they included a most entertaining Q & A session with Nicola. A lot of regular visitors to this fansite have already accessed this article yesterday following tweets made by us on Twitter, or posts logged on one of the Spooks related forums. The scan is tucked under the Galleries=>Articles=>Spooks=>Spooks Series 10 section. Since this article is required reading for all Nicola fans, we thought we’d make it easier for you to find it by logging a separate post. Here it is :

rt2

click on the scan to view a larger image of this article

As always, the answers given by Nicola show what a warm, funny and genuine person she is in real life. She should do more interviews!

(Thanks to Lisa for providing us with this scan.)

Update : 23 October 2011

The online edition of this Radio Times Q&A is now available HERE.

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4

Spooks : End of an Era

By
Editor
– 08/11/2011Posted in: CV, TV


For more background information about the filming of Series 10, please read our companion Post.

After months of rumours and speculations on the internet (Twitter and various Spooks forums), Kudos, the production company behind Spooks, have finally made a formal announcement that Series 10 will be the last ever series for Spooks. You can read more about it in this Guardian article.

HERE is the official BBC Press Release about the end of Spooks.

HERE is Ian Wylie on the end of Spooks, with a short audio clip from Nicola on how she feels about this.

HERE is Cultbox’s report on this subject, complete with comments from Sam Vincent, writer of various episodes in Series 10. This piece also includes that BBC Drama trailer, in full, with no geographic restrictions.

HERE is another Guardian article commenting on the passing of Spooks.

Please take a moment now to observe a 30 second silence for the passing of a great TV show.

What’s going to happen to Harry and Ruth?

It is interesting to see this comment from Jane Featherstone, chief executive of Kudos and Spooks,

It was during the writing of the episodes [for Series 10] about Harry’s past and his relationship with colleague Ruth that [I] realized [I] wanted Spooks to end. … We’ve followed the arc of their personal story and I think they’ve brought us to a natural end, which you will all see played out later this year.

There is only one of three ways things can end for Harry and Ruth :

  • they finally get together (but Spooks is not known for doing happy endings)
  • they break up and go their separate ways, either voluntarily or because one of the characters get killed off (Spooks have done that too many times in the past, its getting old for its shock value)
    or
  • they leave the two characters “as is”, that is, neither moving forwards nor backwards (that would be most unsatisfying for fans).

The cast have already done interviews with various media sources in connection with Series 10. In particular, the Telly Rocket (@TheTellyRocket, the Sunday Express TV Editor’s Twitter account) have logged this tweet

Just did lovely chat with #spooks Nicola Walker. She told of audacious climax to series. Sounds brilliant. Chat to run autumn.

Spooks and Nicola fans, you can draw your own conclusions with that comment!

Old face(s) returning in Series 10?

In that Guardian article, Jane Featherstone did not rule out an old face or two “returning during flashback scenes to explain Harry’s past”. Indeed, Rupert Penry-Jones (@rpenryj) has also tweeted something to the same effect, though he said that he himself will not be returning. This Sun article went further and posted photos of two former Spooks to go with their article.

Who do you think will return? Who would you like to see come back, however briefly, to explain Harry’s past?

Transmission Date for Series 10

Although there has been no formal announcement from the BBC, through various sources, we have been told that Spooks Series 10 is likely to be transmitted in the UK during the second half of September 2011. This is further bolstered by the fact that an anonymous source has logged a post on one of the Spooks forums to the effect that the Series 10 Region 2 box set will be released in November 2011, as a two disc package.

We already know that there will only be 6 episodes for Series 10. We also know from tweets logged by Helen James Productions (@HelenJamesProd) that they are once again putting together extras for the Series 10 box set. We don’t know how will they be able to fit all 6 episodes and the Extras on two discs?!

On the brighter side

Now that Nicola is done with filming Spooks, it will free her up to accept other, possibly more interesting, projects. We would love to see her take on a comedy series next, as we all know, from Chalk [TV] and the Big Town All Stars [Audio] what a great comedic actress she can be. If we get to meet with her after a performance of Di and Viv and Rose [Stage] during its run, we will certainly grill her for more information on this subject.

In the meantime, got a comment (which you can leave below) about the passing of Spooks and/or what will happen to Harry and Ruth?

Update : 11 August 2011

By now, over 55 news outlets are carrying the press release about the end of Spooks. However, many of their reports are inaccurate. The BBC did not axe or cancel the show. Kudos made that decision alone, even though the BBC asked it to reconsider. There is a difference.

Then there is this pic from the Sun report. This photo is not available in the online version of the Sun article and comes to you courtesy of @crazycazzz.

Here is another version of that pic

What do you think? Hope for all the Harry and Ruth fans out there, or disinformation intended to soften the blow when the episodes actually air and we do not get the ending that we want?

Update : 12 August 2011

Jane Featherstone of Kudos was interviewed on BBC Breakfast this morning. For those of us who missed this programme, and for the non-UK based fans who may not have access to this show, the great Ian Wylie has prepared a transcript, complete with audio clip, and you can access it HERE.

As for the return of some likely old faces, the Sun was a little coy and simply included pics of Matthew MacFadyen (Tom) and Keeley Hawes (Zoe) in their article with a brief indication that some old faces might return. The Daily Mail is more open and came right out with “Hawes and MacFadyen are believed to have been invited back to reprise their roles in the final six episodes of the MI5 drama”. Meanwhile, the Telegraph seems to be labouring under some misapprehension that Lucas North (Richard Armitage) is still alive out there, somewhere.

Digital Spy has summed up fans’ reaction perfectly about the end of Spooks!

Update : 23 August 2011

@ianwylie posted the following tweets today :

Spooks 10 ep 1 is an assured return as Sir Harry’s final secrets begin to unfold. Thrilling opener ahead of The End.

For those asking, Spooks returns to BBC1 next month but exact date still under wraps and never certain until schedules are finalised.

Spoke to Peter Firth in April about the Spooks 10 revelations. Good to see Harry given some cracking script lines in ep 1.

Update : 24 August 2011

Cultbox has posted 10 lines of dialogue from the first episode of Series 10 of Spooks. They do not contain spoilers, and you may have a fun time guessing which Spooks characters delivered the lines in question. Don’t click on the link if you do not wish to know about these lines.

Update : 1 September 2011

taken from the Prime Focus World website

The BBC Programme Information page for week 38 announces that Series 10 will premiere sometime during the week from 17 – 23 September 2011, with the exact date and time to be announced. HERE is more information about the first episode – the description is a little spoilery so don’t click on that link if you do not wish to know what happens in episode 1.

Cultbox has previously tweeted that all official publicity photos for Series 10 are embargoed until 13 September 2011. Go to the Cultbox website NOW to vote for Nicola as UK cult TV’s sexiest female!

Update : 5 September 2011

Culbox has an exclusive interview with Sam Vincent and Jonathan Brackley, the main scriptwriters for Series 10 of Spooks. Part 1 can be found HERE. The interview is relatively spoiler-free. Part 2 will be online on Friday, 9 September 2011.

We still don’t have an official airdate for episode 1 though the Cultbox website has a clip of the brief preview promo which ran on BBC TV as from Sunday.

Update : 7 September 2011

Finally, we have an official air date for episode 1 of Series 10, the last ever Spooks series. In their inimitable wisdom, the BBC is scheduling Spooks on Sunday nights, at 9 pm (starting from 18 September 2011), which puts it squarely against Series 2 of Downton Abbey airing on iTV at the same time. HERE is the Guardian article on this subject. The Press Association has something similar to say.

What do you think? Inspired scheduling, or the BBC not giving a damn that the last ever Spooks series might get killed in the ratings war between the two programmes?

Update : 9 September 2011

The second part of Cultbox’s exclusive interview with Sam Vincent and Jonathan Brackley can be found HERE.

HERE is the Radio Times’s thoughts on the scheduling of Spooks against Downton Abbey.

The Huffington Post UK is conducting a poll to see which show UK viewers will be watching come Sunday night, 18 September 2011. You can vote HERE.

Update : 10 September 2011

Thanks to ramblingscribe/HarryFan, here are :

the first teaser trailer for Spooks Series 10

and the first full trailer for Spooks S10

Getting proper excited about Series 10? I know that we are!

We shall now close this Post and start the proper Spooks Series 10 page, which you can access HERE.

If you wish to leave a comment but cannot see the comment box (maybe because you are viewing this Post as part of our archives), just click on the comment balloon to the far right of title of the Post and you will be taken back to the comment box.

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16

Spooks : There will be a Series 10

By
Editor
– 07/02/2011Posted in: CV, TV

Scroll down the page for more updates on this matter.

We have stopped updating this Post now that it is clear that Series 10 will be transmitted in the UK in the week commencing 19 September 2011 and that this will be the last ever series of Spooks to be produced. Please read our companion Post for further updates on Spooks Series 10.

There will be a series 10 for Spooks.

We first became aware that this was a distinct possibility when Ian Wylie mentioned this in one of his tweets or blog posts on Spooks. The BBC held a press event in October at which they showcased to members of the press their new shows for the autumn and winter season. Ben Stephenson, head of BBC Drama, indicated at that function that Series 10 of Spooks will be commissioned.

The strongest confirmation that there will be a Series 10 of Spooks came at the end of episode 908 (which aired on BBC One on 8.11.2010) when this appeared on screen at the very end :

We believe that Series 10 is now in pre-production, and principal photography will take place between March and July 2011, followed by post production work, and the actual series will air sometime between September and November 2011.

Update : 9 December 2010

Nicola is expected to start work on Spooks Series 10 on 14 March 2011, i.e. the day after she finishes at the National Theatre in Season’s Greetings.

A French fan asked Nicola recently whether she would like her character, Ruth Evershed, to be Section Chief in Series 10. Nicola said, “oh yes, of course Ruth should be section chief, she doesn’t want Harry’s love … she wants to be out in the field …” She was only half joking (we think)!

Update : 7 February 2011

From Twitter, we hear that after recent a cast and crew screening of South Riding, an upcoming TV mini series in which Peter Firth has a small but important role, Peter told Ian Wylie that no firm decision has been made as to whether or not Series 10 will be the last series for Spooks, but he also added that one can never be sure with a show like Spooks. A few minutes later, Ian tweeted that “Spooks series 10 starts filming in March. My instinct (with NO inside info) is that it will be the last. But could be wrong.”

Update : 10 March 2011

From Twitter, we learn from exchanges of tweets between Sam Vincent (@smavincent), one of the Spooks scriptwriters, and other fans :

First read through of a Series 10 script took place today and it went OK
Nicola was in great form, very nice and funny as ever.

(In plain English, for those not familiar with production lingo – cast and crew will sit down to do a read through of a script before filming commences, they will work out which bits will work and which bits will not, the script writer then produces one or more (usually more) redrafts before shooting takes place. Frequently on Spooks, scripts will continue to be amended during the filming process.)

Update : 13 March 2011

From Twitter, we learn from an actor (@RussellBalogh) that he started filming a small part on Spooks Series 10 on Sunday, 13 March 2011.

Update : 1 April 2011

Ian Wylie has blogged about some casting changes for Series 10 which you can read HERE. Don’t read if you don’t want to be spoiled for what lies ahead in Series 10.

There has been more sightings of location filming reported via Twitter at the following places :

  • Canton Arms and Albert Square
  • City Hall
  • a street in Bermondsey
  • a street somewhere made to look like 80s Germany, said the tweeter
  • Drury Lane / Covent Garden
  • New Wimbledon Theatre
  • Albert Embankment
  • outside an office block somewhere, Peter Firth was spotted

And this is all in addition to the indoor scenes being filmed at the Grid set at Bermondsey!

Update : 26 April 2011

From the Spooks Fan Blog comes a report of more location filming, this time over a few days at the Chelsea Harbour Hotel in Peckham. Apparently all the signs near the entrance to the hotel were changed to German signs, thus suggesting that the hotel was masquerading as a hotel in Germany. Spooks fans have been speculating that this might have something to do with a look into Harry’s past dealings in Germany.

From the Spooks Information Central Forum, we know that the crew has also been filming recently around Peckham/East Dulwich for 5 days.

Update : 2 May 2011

Some casting spoilers from @ruther2 via Twitter :
You will see the names of some actors who have been cast in various roles in Spooks Series 10 on THIS PAGE. Most of these are for minor roles except for one person who is described as playing the younger version of THIS CHARACTER. (Click on the “Television” tab.) Don’t click on these links if you do not want to be spoiled.

In addition, the IMDb Spooks page has been updated to show the names of directors for each of the 6 episodes that will make up Series 10.  The Director for episodes 5 and 6 for Series 10 is interesting. He directed the very first two episodes of Series 1 and Series 2 and has been credited with creating the distinctive look and feel of Spooks.

Update : 5 May 2011

Over the past few months, there have been frequent sightings of Spooks filming in and around London which are reported on Twitter. Often, these tweets would be accompanied by photos of the crewing setting up a shot etc. We have not posted any of these photos, until now. Today, courtesy of @abby1412 on Twitter comes the first sighting of a Harry and Ruth bench scene being filmed. The location is somewhere along the Mall in London. Abby was told by the crew that this scene is for episode 3 of Series 10, which they think will screen sometime in either September or October 2011. See these pics for yourself. THANKS @abby1412 for letting us put these photos on this fansite.

Spooks crew setting up a shot at the Mall

Looks like Harry and Ruth on a bench along the Mall.

Update : 19 May 2011

Per @Quaiacom via Twitter, another Harry and Ruth sighting. This picture was taken by @Quaiacom this morning. They were filming by the side of the Thames. @Quaiacom said that it looked like Harry, Ruth and some other guy having an intense conversation, and then the other guy walked off, but Ruth and Harry stayed. According to Lady J on the Spooks Forum, the location is directly outside the National Theatre (on the South Bank) on the beach at low tide.

©Craig Holton (@Quaiacom)

Nicola appears to have shorter hair and for once, not in a black coat which goes below the knee. She looks good!

Here are two more pics obtained via @Terribly_Mauled on Twitter

©David Mather (@Terribly_Mauled)

©David Mather (@Terribly_Mauled)

Here’s a pic of the same scene but taken from another angle. Thanks to Shiv11 for letting us use this pic.

Update : 19 May 2011(2)

Helen James Productions (@HelenJamesProd) announced via Twitter that they will be doing the Extras for the Series 10 DVD box set. Helen James Productions were also responsible for the two extra features which were included in the Series 9 DVD box set.

Update 8 June 2011

A Spooks fan flew all the way from Boston to London, specifically to see if she could find the Spooks team on location shooting. She was not disappointed. Here is an album of her photos and two short videos.

bharat-nalluri-getting-out-of-back-seat
clapperboard-guy
lara-pulver-practicing-shooting-her-gun-out-the-window
nw-and-clapperboard-guy
nw-and-pf-walking-towards-me
nw-and-pf
nw-and-pf2
nw-and-pf3
nw-and-pf4
nw-looking-at-a-take-again
nw-looking-at-a-take
pf-is-in-the-front-seat
spooks-car-mounted-camera


 
 

 
 

 
 
Many thanks to @kraysler for letting us put these on this fansite.

We subsequently found out that Nicola was not actually required for any scenes on that Sunday (5 June 2011) though she turned up to do interviews with Helen James Productions for the Series 10 DVD Extras! So that scene of Nicola walking away with Peter Firth is not actually a scene from Series 10.

Update 11 June 2011

Here’s more video from @kaysler
 

 

 

 

Update 12 June 2011

You can read a detailed report of @kraysler’s close encounters with the Spooks crew HERE.

Update 15 June 2011

Another great video taken by @kraysler during her recent trip to London, this time featuring the wonderful Nicola and one of the Spooks crew
 

 

Update 18 June 2011

Another video from @kraysler, this time with Nicola viewing some rushes with Chris Fry, the producer.
 

 

Update 11 August 2011

Please also read our companion Post on this subject.

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Pie in the Sky S5 R1 DVD released

By
Editor
– 05/23/2011Posted in: CV, Past Work, TV

At long last, Series 5 of Pie in the Sky will be released on Region 1 DVD. Amazon US has listed the release date as 2 August 2011 and is currently taking pre-orders. For a long time, all of the first four series of this beloved 90s UK sitcom has been available on Region 1 DVD. Some unknown problem has held up the release of Series 5 on Region 1 DVD, until now.

There is still no news on when Pie in the Sky will be available again on Region 2 DVD. At the moment, a small quantity of the original 5 series box set, and copies of the individual series, are available from Amazon UK, though at ridiculously high prices as they are being sold as collector’s items.

Nicola guest starred in the penultimate episode of Series 5. See our write up of this programme in the Pie in the Sky Guide page.

Buy from Amazon US

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Nicola Guest Stars in Law & Order : UK

By
Editor
– 03/19/2011Posted in: CV, TV

This article deals with Nicola’s guest appearance on Law & Order : UK, which was aired first in Canada in November 2010, then in the US on 4 March 2011 before it is aired in the UK on 21 March 2011.

When we accessed Nicola’s actor’s page on the National Theatre website in September 2010, in search of more information relating to Season’s Greetings [Stage], we saw that Law & Order : UK was included as one of her TV credits. So we dug around further and was able to obtain confirmation from a very reliable source in mid September that indeed, Nicola has filmed a guest appearance on Law & Order : UK though it was unclear at that time when the relevant episode was going to be aired in the UK. At that time, Series 3 of Law & Order : UK had just started transmission in the UK and Nicola’s name was not amongst the guest stars announced when publicity for the show kicked into gear.

Towards the end of October 2010, we were given new information about Nicola’s episode by a group of dedicated fans of Law & Order : UK. Quite surprisingly, Nicola’s guest episode was going to be aired on Canadian TV in November 2010, months before it was going to be shown on UK TV. Apparently, this also happened in 2009 with a previous series of Law & Order : UK. Nicola’s guest episode is titled “ID”  and is based on the episode titled “Promises to Keep” from the US version of Law & Order (episode 304 which originally aired in the US on 10 February 1993).

Nicola’s guest episode was shown on CityTV in Canada on 4th November 2010. At about the same time, the following tweets were exchanged between ourselves and Emilia di Girolamo, the lead writer of Law & Order : UK (we also included a Tweet from Ben Daniels, one of the lead actors on the show) :

EmiliaDG
@BonkersButBrill FYI Nicola Walker appears in tonight’s episode of Law & Order UK, I.D. at 10pm on CityTV. #LOUK
4 Nov 2010

bendanielsss
@EmiliaDG @TVBrittanyF Totally one of my faces too. Nicola is on FIRE! Script’s pretty ace too 😉
4 Nov 2010

BonkersButBrill
@EmiliaDG Thanx for the heads up. Nicola is the most magnificent actress in the world, no question! Can’t wait to see this episode.
4 Nov 2010

EmiliaDG
@BonkersButBrill In which case you will LOVE it! She really is awesome
4 Nov 2010

BonkersButBrill
@EmiliaDG Just watched it. V powerful writing n brilliant acting from all. 4 some1 who said she can’t cry on cue, that tear looked real! 😀
6 Nov 2010

EmiliaDG
@BonkersButBrill It was real, she was incredible. So glad you enjoyed it.
6 Nov 2010

So there you have it folks, Nicola has apparently overcome her inability to cry on cue for the camera. There is now no limit to her range as an actress!!!

Update : 26 February 2011

Emilia di Girolamo tweeted today that Nicola’s guest episode, ‘ID’, will be the third (not first) episode to air on ITV when the show returns for a 4th series on 7 March 2011. So UK fans, mark your diaries for 21 March 2011!

Update : 27 February 2011

Law & Order : UK ‘ID’ will be shown in the US on 4 March 2011 on BBC America. US fans, mark your diaries!

Update 28 February 2011

There is a brilliant interview on the CultBoxTV website with Emilia di Girolamo about her experiences as a writer for Law & Order : UK. She also talks a little about Nicola’s guest episode, “ID”.

Six degrees

Bradley Walsh, who plays Detective Sergeant Ronnie Brooks, last appeared with Nicola in Torn [TV]. He played the husband to Nicola’s character, Joanna. The two shared many scenes together.

Ben Daniels, who plays Senior Crown Prosecutor James Steel, appeared in episode 408 of Spooks [TV] when he played Oleg Korsakov. He did not have any scenes with Nicola in that episode.

Harriet Walter, who plays Detective Inspector Natalie Chandler, appeared in episode 303 of Spooks [TV] when she appeared as Deep Throat. She did not have any scenes with Nicola in that episode.

Benjamin Wong, who guest starred in this episode as Barrister Eli Smart, appeared in episode 904 of Spooks [TV] when he played Kai. He did not have any scenes with Nicola in that episode.

Out of respect to UK fans who have not yet seen this episode, screencaps will not be posted until this episode has aired in the UK.

If you have already seen the episode and wish to leave a comment, please refrain from posting any spoilers about this episode 🙂

Availabliity on DVD

The Region 2 DVD box set of Law & Order : UK Series 4 will be out on 4 July 2011. Click on the link provided below to pre-order your copy.


There is no news yet, as to when the Region 1 DVD box set for this episode will be released. For the US market, the episodes from two seasons are combined for the purposes of putting out one box set. For example, Law & Order : UK Season One in the US market is actually an aggregate of all 13 episodes which formed Series 1 and 2 of the programme which was aired in the UK. We will update this portion of this Post as soon as we hear further in this respect.

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3

Spooks S9 DVD Competition

By
Editor
– 03/02/2011Posted in: CV, TV

We have a winner!!!

The competition closed on 17 March 2011. A massive THANK YOU to everyone who submitted an entry. We received many entries from the US, UK, South Africa, France, Germany, Slovenia, Spain, Netherlands, Australia, Finland and the Czech Republic. Spooks and Nicola fans are truly an international crowd!

The Answers

The answer to Question 1 was episode 907. Nicola provided audio commentary to only one episode for the Series 9 box set. This was mentioned in this Post.

The answer to Question 2 was TWO featurettes only. Again, this was mentioned in this Post.

We were a little disappointed to see a fairly large number of incorrect entries, mostly wrong answers to Question 2. For the Series 9 box set, there were two featurettes plus audio commentaries for two episodes (901 & 907). In order to avoid confusion over whether the audio commentaries should be considered a featurette, we specifically started question 2 by saying, “apart from the audio commentaries …”. On 11 March 2011, we gave you a chance to correct your entries, by posting an update on this page, as well as posting a Tweet about it. Sadly, no one took up our offer for you to amend your answer.

So, after all that’s been said and done, we put all of the entries into a hat and came up with a winner and it is :

Kerry D of the UK

We have emailed Kerry to congratulate her.

THANK YOU once again for your support of Spooks, Nicola and this fan site.
Read more about the competition on page 2.

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Spooks Region 2 DVD box sets re-issued

By
Editor
– 02/24/2011Posted in: TV

Spooks Region 2 DVD box sets

On 28 February 2011, the entire Series 1 to 8 Region 2 DVD box sets for Spooks will be re-issued.

The company which used to produce the Spooks DVD box sets for Kudos was Contender Home Entertainment Group. Contender was taken over by E1 Entertainment Group (“E1”) in July 2007. Since existing stock of the old Spooks DVD box sets was getting low, we assume that E1 took this opportunity to re-issue the Series 1 to 8 box sets which now shows the new name of the Group which produced the box sets. We believe this is why in recent months, fans were unable to order old DVD box sets from vendors such as Amazon.

The good news is that the box sets are once again available to fans. The bad news is that most of the box sets will be re-issued at a new price of between £25.99 to £29.99. The lone exception being Series 1, which will be re-issued at a very reasonable £12.99. This is unfortunate since up until late 2010, one could still purchase Series 1 to 7 DVD box sets for Spooks at the very reasonable price of £11.99.

It would appear that no new artwork will be used for the re-issued DVD box sets. It is unlikely that the re-issued  box sets will contain new or additional Extras. Features such as the episode commentaries would have been done at the time the show was filming and if an Extra isn’t already there, then it would be difficult to come up with it now, so many years after the fact. In addition, to request an actor to participate in an Extra, it would have been written into his contract. So again, if the requirement was not previously there, it would be highly unlikely for Kudos to renegotiate an old contract just so that an actor/actress is asked to come back and do more Extras.

One would hope that with the re-issued Series 1 to 8 box sets, they will take the trouble to re-do the navigation menus in the earlier series, which were not only clunky (remember that stupid spy having to break into the grid and no one knowing quite where to click in order to access a particular feature?) but looks very outdated by now. If you have trouble navigating the clunky menus or locating the Extras in the earlier series, checkout HERE.

The Spooks Series 9 DVD box set will be released by Universal Playback. You can read about that release HERE.

Update 27 February 2011

As of today, Series 1, 2, 3, 5 & 7 are selling on Amazon UK at £12.50, that is, more or less the same price before the re-issue. Better grab these whilst you ca, because the prices on Amazon go up and down like a yo-yo on a daily basis. £12.50 per series is a very reasonable price for 6 to 10 episodes of top quality writing and acting. Remember, the low prices only apply once you’ve checked out your shopping cart, not whilst the item remains in your shopping cart/wishlist.

Availability on Amazon UK

Here are the links to the re-issued box sets which are available on Amazon. If you click on these links and complete the purchase within a specified time, this fansite will earn a small commission which will be donated towards charity. Read about the Shop for Charity feature HERE.

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2

Nicola Guest Stars in Being Human 305

By
Editor
– 01/06/2011Posted in: CV, TV

Nicola has filmed a guest appearance for Series 3 of Being Human, which will be aired sometime in January on 20 February 2011 in the UK (see our latest update below). She plays a health inspector / social worker called Wendy.

We first became aware of her involvement with the show in August 2010 when the BBC released this promotion clip featuring Philip John, one of the Directors of Being Human. “[There is] a lot of comedy [in] this series,” he said. “We’ve got fantastic comic guest performers – Nicola Walker, who plays Wendy, [is] just staggering.”

Being Human is what American TV writers call a “dramedy”. i.e. part drama, party comedy. The first two series have been rating successes in the UK. The three leads, Aiden Turner, Russell Tovey and Lenora Crichlow are all very capable actors in their own right. Remake rights of this show have been sold to the US and we understand that a US version is currently being filmed.

Read what Nicola had to say about her guest appearance in the 2010 Ian Wylie interview.

After the gloom and doom in Series 9 of Spooks, we cannot wait to Nicola in a comedic role!

Cannot view the video?

For the benefit of fans who gets the dreaded “video not available in your area” notice when they try to play this video :

The only reference to Nicola comes at around the 0.59 mark when director Philip John said, “[There is] a lot of comedy [in] this series … We’ve got fantastic comic guest performers – Nicola Walker, who plays Wendy, [is] just staggering.” For the rest of the video, it was just Philip John talking about his experiences in directing 3 episodes of Series 3 of Being Human. Wonder if this means that Nicola’s guest starring role will appear in more than one episode? One can only hope.

Update 14 December 2010

Being Human Series 3 will commence broadcast in the UK in January 2011. UK fans, please keep a look out for programme transmission dates.

Update 18 December 2010

Philip John directed episodes 303, 305 and 306 of Series 3 of Being Human. Nicola could appear in one or more of these three episodes.

Update 7 January 2011

The Being Human Series 3 Press Pack is out and you can access it HERE. Nicola will appear in episode 305, to be aired towards the end of February 2011.

In an interview which is available as part of the BBC Press Pack, Sinaed Keenan (who plays Nina in Being Human) has this to say about Nicola :

Nicola Walker – episode five playing Wendy the social worker, incredible – I think she should come back and social work elsewhere in the show.

I think we would all second that!

Update 12 January 2011

Being Human Series 3 will begin transmission on BBC3 on Sunday, 23 January 2011 at 9pm. At this rate and if Nicola is scheduled to appear in episode 5, we should all mark 20 FEBRUARY 2011 as the date to tune into the show, unless, of course, you’re also a fan of Being Human in which case start watching as from 23rd January 2011! 😀

Update 13 January 2011

Sinead Keenan, a cast regular in Being Human Series 3, had this to say when she gave an online tour of the new set. “This is episode 5, where things get hectic.” That would be Nicola’s guest episode. In the 2010 Ian Wylie Interview, these comments were made

[Nicola]  plays health visitor Wendy who stumbles into the house occupied by the comedy drama’s resident werewolf, vampire and ghost.

“She thinks she’s having a bad day. But because she doesn’t know anything about the people in the house, she doesn’t realise just how bad a day she could be having.”

Can. Not. Wait!

Watch the on-set tour via this YouTube video and get to know the set where Nicola will spend her episode in.

Wonder if Nicola cut her hair short for this role? She looked like she had a shorter hair cut when she was photographed for the Season’s Greetings promotional still, and that might have been around the time she filmed her guest episode for Being Human, after filming on Spooks Series 9 wrapped in August 2010.

Update 18 January 2011

In an interview with Digital Spy, Sinead Keenan continued to be very complimentary about Nicola’s guest appearance in episode 5 of Series 3 of Being Human and described her as “amazing”. You can read the interview HERE.

Update 19 January 2011

According to the official BBC blog for Being Human 3, Nicola’s guest episode is titled “The Longest Day”. It must be referring to the kind of day which her character, Wendy the social worker/house inspector, is having when she has to inspect “Honolulu Heights”, the new home for the three main characters.

Episode 305 is written by Sarah Phelps. She also wrote the 2007 version of Oliver Twist in which Nicola had a small guest role.

Update 23 January 2011

Ian Wylie interviewed the cast of Being Human for his blog, which you can read HERE. Here’s what Russell Tovey has to say about Nicola’s forthcoming guest appearance :

Nicola was amazing and very funny. She’s involved in the rediscovery of Herrick storyline as a social worker who ends up being assigned to Herrick’s case. So we all become linked and she’s unaware of the fact that we’re all supernatural beings.

For those not familiar with Being Human, Herrick is a recurring character who is a vampire.

Update 25 January 2011

From Twitter (original tweet from anglophenia which was retweeted by flip18)

Being Human 3 will be shown in the US on BBC America starting from 19 February 2011, which means Nicola’s guest appearance in episode 305 will be shown on 19 March 2011. US fans, mark your diairies!

Update 3 February 2011

The BBC has released a little more information about episode 305 of Being Human and you can read about it HERE. This article reveals a little more about how Herrick the vampire reappears in the lives of the three lead characters, but not much about the character played by Nicola.

Update 13 February 2011

Screencaps from the trailer for episode 305 of Being Human, to air at 9:00 pm on BBC Three on Sunday, 20 February 2011

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Update 22 February 2011

Fans with access to the BBC iPlayer have until 27 February 2011 to watch Being Human 305. US fans, please remember to mark your diaries for 19 March 2011, which is the date when BBC America will air Being Human 305 in the US.

Check out our Being Human page for more info on this programme, and a look at the photo of Nicola as Wendy which has been released by the BBC. As the programme has now aired, we will close the Comments section here, but you can continue to leave comments on the Being Human page.

Availability on DVD

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0

TV Schedule

By
Editor
– 11/19/2010Posted in: Housekeeping, TV

One of the features from the old fansite which we are strongly inclined to discontinue is the TV Schedule which lists current and repeat showings of shows in which Nicola has made an appearance. That schedule only set out TV listings for the UK and is of not much use to Nicola fans who do not live in the UK.

What do you think? Do you want it back? If we are to bring it back, we would like to include TV listings from around the world. To do that, we will need your help. If you do not live in the UK, would you be prepared to keep an eye out for Nicola shows in you local TV listings and send us this information on a regular basis? Let us know, leave a comment below.

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