We're all British this Friday, my spylings, starting with the casting news coming from the pre production of JURASSIC WORLD 2 which has just added two British thespians, our most beloved Rafe Spall, and Toby Jones, into the cast which is again going to be headlined by Bryce Dallas Howard (I hear she won't be wearing high heels in the middle of a jungle this time) and America's favourite Chris Pratt. With B.D. Wong reprising his role of Dr. Henry Wu from the previous instalment, JURASSIC WORLD 2 will also have Justice Smith coming aboard! Not much is known about the story so far, except that it won't be set in the Isla Nublar Dinosaur park and that it might have dinosaurs equipped with weapons! Yep, you read it right! Directed by J.A. Bayona it should storm cinemas summer 2018!
'THE LAST DRAGONSLAYER'
EPIC TRAILER IS HERE Last Sunday I showed you the teaser, but now British Sky One has
released a longer trailer for their new epic TV movie THE LAST
DRAGONSLAYER which will air this Christmas afternoon! An adaptation of
Jasper Fforde's book is a mix of real and fantasy world following an
orphan who discovers her destiny is to become the last Dragonslayer!
Pauline Collins, Matt Berry, little Ellise Chappell and John Bradley all star together with our beloved Andrew Buchan as the wizard.
Richard E. Grant is lending his voice to the dragon Maltcaisson!
First photos are arriving for upcoming new period set television series, among them BBC's latest adaptation of Agatha Christie! After scoring amazing success with their last year's And Then There Were None, which boasted a tremendous cast, BBC is bringing us THE WITNESS FOR THE PROSECU- TION this December within their festive programme schedule! Admittedly it does look much weaker than the last year's project and does not have such a strong cast. This one stars Kim Cattrall, Toby Jones, Andrea Riseborough and Billy Howle.
With the long terrible shadow of the Great War falling across the
rackety, feral 1920s, THE WITNESS FOR THE PROSECU- TION is a compelling
story of deceit, desire, murder, money and morality, innocence and
guilt, heartbreak and most painful and dangerous of all, love. The story
starts after the murder of glamorous and rich Emily French (Kim
Cattrall). All the evidence points to Leonard Vole (Billy Howle), a
young chancer to whom the heiress left her vast fortune and who
ruthlessly took her life. At least, this is the story that Emily’s
dedicated housekeeper Janet McIntyre (Monica Dolan) stands by in court.
Leonard however, is adamant that his partner, the enigmatic chorus girl
Romaine (Andrea Riseborough), can prove his innocence.
BBC'S 'TO WALK INVISIBLE'
BRONTE SISTERS MINI SERIES
Speaking of BBC December will also bring us their new mini series on Bronte sisters TO WALK INVISIBLE which shows them in a new light and tells the story behind these three women who, despite the obstacles they faced, came from obscurity to produce some of the greatest novels in the English language.
Jonathan Pryce plays the role of the Brontë sisters’ father, Patrick, and is joined by Chloe Pirrie as Wuthering Heights author Emily Brontë. Finn Atkins portrays ambitious older sister Charlotte who wrote Jane Eyre and Charlie Murphy plays the determined, level headed younger sister Anne the author of novelsAgnes Grey and The Tenant Of Wildfell Hall. Their reckless brother Branwell, whose destructive behaviour threatened to destroy his family, is played by always great Adam Nagaitis.
ITV'S 'HALCYON'SERIES
SET IN WW2 HOTEL Their rival ITV is, meanwhile, ready to air their eight part period
set series HALCYON set in the luxury of the Halcyon Hotel in World War
II London! Fast paced and filled with music of that era, it shines a
spotlight on the class divide between the upstairs and downstairs
inhabitants of the hotel and their enduring relationships, lives and
politics, set against the backdrop of World War II as it reaches its
ferocious peak. Olivia Williams is lady Hamilton, the owner of HALCYON,
Steven Macintosh is the hotel manager. Lord and lady Hamilton also have
two sons: Freddie (Jamie Blackley), a young Spitfire pilot, who's in
love with Emma, manager's daughter, the hotel receptionist, and younger son Toby
(Edward Bluemel), who is secretly gay.
'THE LAST DRAGON SLAYER'
SKY'S CHRISTMAS TV MOVIE
Meanwhile, Sky One's Christmas festive programme will include a new television adaptation of THE LAST DRAGON SLAYER based on the first in the series of popular fantasy novels written by Jasper Fforde. Little Ellise Chappell plays an orphan Jennifer Strange, a young inhabitant of the Ununited Kingdoms, who discovers that her destiny is to become the last Dragonslayer. This magical series also stars Ricky Tomlinson, Pauline Collins and John Bradley.
We're going fully British today, my spylovers, because I know you like it when we do so, and Dezzy is always here to please! It seems that British Sky Channel is planning on joining ITV, BBC and Channel 4 in the circle of best stations at the isle, at least judging by the latest info on the projects they ordered for production! They did gather some really interesting names for them, and probably the biggest one will be JAMESTOWN! Sky and Carnival Films (creators of Downton Abbey) are making this eight part historical drama about the first British settlers embarking on their lives in America. And, my oh my, did they gather a stellar cast which will include some of Britain's beloved TV faces including Matt Stokoe (oh, how we fell in sweet love with him in BBC's VILLAGE!), Max Beesley, Jason Flemyng, Dean Lennox Kelly, Stuart Martin, Steven Waddington with the spirited ladies landing on shore with them played by Naomi Battrick, Sophie Rundle and gorgeous Niamh Walsh.
THE FIRST SETTLERS
The story begins in 1619, with the settlers seeking to establish a
community in America. Among those reaching the shores of the New World
are a group of women destined to be married to Jamestown men and
becoming the female pioneers of an exciting new western outpost.
THE LAST DRAGON SLAYER
Meanwhile, Sky is, as I informed you before, also preparing a TV movie, a small screen adaptation of Jasper Fforde's popular epic adventure THE LAST DRAGON SLAYER and they've set a cast for it to be lead by Ellise Chappell as orphan Jennifer Strange who discovers that her destiny is to become the last Dragonslayer. Ricky Tomlinson and GAME OF THRONES John Bradley will also star in the movie set to air in the festive season.
DAWN FRENCH TO LEAD
'DELICIOUS' NEW TV SERIES
And if you love British female comedians as much as we do you will be
delighted to hear that comedy icon Dawn French is returning to the
small screens as she will lead Sky's new four part series DELICIOUS
about family, food and infidelity! A surprising and compelling story of
love, heartbreak, food and female friendship set in the Cornish
countryside, will see DawnFrench playing Gina - a cook who was once married to entrepreneur, chef
and hotel owner Leo Vincent.
Leo is hiding something - and when his secret comes out, the resulting
scandal has the surprising effect of binding Gina and Leo's new wife Sam
together.
An avalanche of TV news today, lead by the main info that Netflix will officially do a final season of GILMORE GIRLS in the form of four 90 minute TV movies (each set in a different season of the year) with almost all of the original cast returning (lead by Lauren Graham, Scott Patterson and Alexis Bledel)!
NEW CW PILOTS
EPIC 'TRAN SYLVANIA'
CW has ordered two high concept TV series pilots. The first one is one
I mentioned before TRANSYLVANIA. Set in the 1880, it centres on a
headstrong young woman in search of her missing father who ventures from
NYC to Transylvania where she teams up with a wrongfully disgraced
Scotland Yard Detective, and together they witness the births of the
most famous monsters and villains in history. SF MARS SERIES They have
also ordered an untitled MARS sf series pilot written by REIGN's Doris
Egan, following a team of explorers who arrive on Mars to join the first
human colony on the planet, only to discover that their predecessors
have vanished. Led by a woman whose husband is among the missing, the
colonists are forced to change their mission from exploration and
settlement to investigation and survival, while navigating the hostile
planet and their own personal demons!
CBS ORDERS 'THE GREAT INDOORS' TV COMEDY PILOT
CBS has meanwhile ordered a pilot for new multi camera sitcom THE GREAT INDOORS about an adventure reporter who must adapt to the times when he becomes the boss to a group of millennials in the digital department of the magazine
SKY 1 ORDERS 'THE LAST DRAGON SLAYER' EPIC TV MOVIE
Meanwhile, across the sea, British Sky 1 will turn Jasper Fforde's epic fantasy novel THELAST DRAGONSLAYER into a TV movie set in a world where magic exists in a weakened form, and has been replaced with modern technology - for instance magic carpets are used to deliver pizzas. Better than drones. The story focuses on 15-year-old Jennifer Strange, who runs an employment agency for magicians and finds out that the last dragon is being hunted.