PREMIUM SPOTLIGHT ON BBC'S NEW PERIOD SET DRAMA THE WAR OF THE WORLDS WITH RAFE SPALL, ELEANOR TOMLINSON BASED ON HG WELLS' SF NOVEL

     'THE WAR OF THE WORLDS'

MARTIANS ARRIVE THIS SUNDAY

BBC has been postponing this one for, methinks, almost two years, and now that first reports from the countries that already aired it are coming in, we kinda get the picture why. I will give it a go when it premieres this Sunday

The War of the Worlds starts this Sunday on  BBC One

on  BBC One, but I hear it is a dreary and pointless adaptation which changes the story the way it suits BBC's modern agenda, making, for example, the

The series has been shot in three hourlong episodes

female character of Amy the lead one, even though she does not appear in the novel THE WAR OF THE WORLDS by HG Wells on which the three part series is supposed to be based upon. As The Sun says in their review, they've

Rafe Spall and Eleanor Tomlinson play the lead roles in the series

turned the beloved book into a politically correct ‘woke’ drama making a mockery out of the source material. Beside Eleanor Tomlinson who plays

The series already aired in some countries, New Zealand for example

the role of Amy, the cast also includes Rafe Spall, Robert Carlyle and Rupert Graves, in the famous story of alien invasion of Earth in the Edwardian (in the book it is Victorian) England setting.

  Love In The Time Of Aliens   
Woking, 1905. George (Rafe Spall) and Amy’s (Eleanor Tomlinson) relationship is a scandal. They are a painful embarrassment to George’s brother Frederick (Rupert Graves), an upstanding servant of the British

Rafe Spall is George, passionate, stubborn and brave. He blindly follows his heart, doing everything he can to save his loved ones from the Martian invasion, even if that means putting himself in danger.

Empire, and pariahs in their own neighbourhood. Their only friend is local scientist and fellow outcast Ogilvy (Robert Carlyle). When a mysterious

Eleanor Tomlinson is Amy, in her twenties, fierce, intelligent and ahead of her time, aiming to study natural sciences at college. With the coming of the Martian invasion, she may be mankind’s last hope.

capsule lands one night on Earth at Horsell Common, George, Amy and Ogilvy are the first to examine it. However, as more people gather to study the

Rupert Graves is Frederick, George’s older brother. He works at the Admiralty in London as the Secretary to the Minister for War. He’s an upstanding servant of the British Empire and, despite his strained relationship with George, a caring brother.

unusual object it quickly becomes clear that this is no inanimate object fallen from the sky - but a transport for a living, fighting organism from outer space.

Robert Carlyle is Ogilvy, a good friend of Amy and George, and an outcast himself. He’s an astronomer and scientist in his 50s who is kind and good-humoured. His tireless experiments could be the key to driving back the Martian invasion.

As more people gather to study it, it lashes out and kills scores of people. And so begins a terrifying ordeal, as more capsules land on Earth and release a

Amy apparently takes most of the action scenes instead of George

horde of murderous Martian tripods which stalk England exterminating and consuming everything in their wake. As wave upon wave of Martian invaders

The reactions to the series so far have been singularly negative

land on Earth, mankind faces an almighty fight for survival. In amongst the chaos, George, Amy, Frederick and Ogilvy must put their personal difficulties aside as they attempt to hold onto their humanity.

EXCITING WAR OF THE WORLDS BBC FANTASY SERIES TRAILER IS HERE WITH RAFE SPALL, ELEANOR TOMLINSON! WORLD ON FIRE WW2 SERIES STARTS TONIGHT WITH SEAN BEAN, JONAH HAUER KING, LESLEY MANVILLE

  'WORLD ON FIRE' SERIES

BRINGS WW2 TO BBC TONIGHT!

World on Fire starts tonight at BBC in UK

The latest of the new period set series to premiere at the start of the new Autumn TV season is World War II epic saga WORLD ON FIRE which launches tonight at BBC! The seven episode mini series, which will also air on Masterpiece PBS later on in USA, tells the story of World War Two through the lives of ordinary people from all sides of this global conflict. Based on real lives the series takes us across the first year of the war, from ordinary life in Manchester to the beaches of Dunkirk, getting right under the skin and into the hearts and minds of those

Jonah Hauer King takes the lead role of translator Harry Chase!

living their lives during this extraordinary time as they grapple with the unthinkable: a world in flames.

The Story Of The Series 
Summer 1939. Translator Harry (Jonah Hauer-King) is working at the British Embassy in Warsaw, falling in love with Polish waitress Kasia

Sean Bean and Lesley Manville are Harry's mother and the father of Tom and Lois

(Zofia Wichłacz). When German tanks roll into Poland and Britain declares war on Germany, Harry and Kasia are faced with terrible choices. With her life

Julia Brown is Mancunian factory worker Lois Bennett, Hary's girlfriend

in grave danger, the only way for Kasia to be safe is to escape. Can Harry help her - and if he does, how will he ever explain himself to factory worker and

Brian J. Smith is gay war surgeon Webster O'Connor fighting for his lover and his patients in Paris

singer Lois Bennett (Julia Brown), the girl he left behind in Manchester? As the Nazi threat spreads across Europe, Kasia must choose between love and

Ewan Mitchell is Tom Bennett who joins the army!

fighting for her country, Harry must find his place in the world, and Lois seizes new opportunities the war throws up. The conflict overturns everything for Harry's snobbish mother Robina (Lesley Manville) and for Douglas

Zofia Wichlacz is Polish waitress Kasia who joins Polish resistance

(Sean Bean), Lois' pacifist father, and her firecracker younger brother Tom (Ewan Mitchell), who joins the navy and finds himself under fire in one of the first major battles of the war. In Berlin, outspoken American journalist

Helen Hunt is American journalist Nancy Campbell

Nancy (Helen Hunt) risks her life trying to help her neighbours the Rosslers from the attentions of the ruling Nazi regime‎, while in Paris Nancy's nephew, medic Webster (Brian J. Smith) refuses to leave the city and the man he loves.

  'THE WAR OF THE WORLDS'

BRINGS ALIENS TO EARTH

BBC has also launched earlier today the first exciting trailer for their long delayed series THE WAR OF THE WORLDS which will also air sometime

The War of the Worlds will air this Autumn on BBC

this Autumn as the small screen adaptation of H.G. Wells' famous sf classic! Rafe Spall, Eleanor Tomlinson, Rupert Graves and Robert Carlyle star

Rafe Spall takes the lead role in the new sf series

in the story set in London during the Edwardian era, where George and Amy's attempt to start a life together as a young couple is interrupted by a Martian invasion of Earth!

ULTIMATE GUIDE THROUGH AUTUMN 2019 EPIC AND PERIOD SET TV SERIES: CATHERINE THE GREAT, MEDICI POWER AND BEAUTY, WORLD ON FIRE, HIS DARK MATERIALS, SEE, WITCHER, BRITANNIA, WAR OF THE WORLDS!

  AUTUMN 2019 EPIC TV SERIES

 Medici: The Power And The Beauty

A guide through all the epic dramas you need to see this autumn today from your spy! The first season Masters of Florence was out standing, the

Stay tuned for the first trailer and spotlight!

second season The Magni- ficent was a disapp- ointment filled with lazy writing and some really bad acting and casting, so the third season MEDICI: THE POWER AND THE BEAUTY will be the final one, ending the Italian series for good. We don't know the exact date, but we know it will air on RAI really soon bringing the story of the final end of the famous Italian noble family. Beside Daniel Sharman in the lead role, the final season will bring Rose Williams to the cast too. Spy more here.

 Catherine The Great
October 3rd is the date when Sky Atlantic is bringing us their four part epic saga on CATHERINE THE GREAT in which Helen Mirren is playing the most famous of all Russian tzarinas in her late years, with Jason Clarke as her lover Potemkin. The series which also stars Joseph Quinn, Gina McKee, Rory Kinnear, and Richard Roxburgh, will also start airing on HBO from October 21st! Spy more here.

World On Fire

BBC has scheduled September 29th as the start date for their World War II series WORLD ON FIRE . The seven episode saga will also air on Masterpiece in USA later on starring Jonah Hauer King, Sean Bean, Lesley Manville, Blake Harrison, Arthur Darvill, Brian J. Smith, Max Riemelt, and Helen Hunt. From the siege of Warsaw, to Dunkirk, the fall of Paris and the battle of Britain, the series will be covering the first year of the war spanning four different nations. Spy more here.

 His Dark Materials
BBC has, on the other hand, set the airing date for their epic adaptation of HIS DARK MATERIALS: 3. November in UK, and then 4. November in USA at HBO. Based on the books by Philip Pullman and starring Dafne Keen and James McAvoy, the series follows little Lyra who embarks on a magical adventure through parallel universes. You can spy more about the eight part drama here.

See With Jason Momoa

Apple's new streaming service is starting November 1st and its tentpole series is epic fantasy adventure SEE starring Jason Momoa as Baba Voss, the father of twins born centuries later with the mythic ability to see, and he must protect his tribe against a powerful yet desperate queen who believes it’s witchcraft and wants them destroyed. You can spy more about the ten episode series here.

The Witcher
Rival Netflix also has its epic fantasy series, probably the most anticipated series of the whole season. THE WITCHER starts December 12th (not confirmed) starring Henry Cavill as Geralt of Rivia, a solitary monster hunter, who struggles to find his place in a world where people often prove more wicked than beasts. Spy more on the eight part small screen adaptation of Andrzej Sapkowski's classic epic novels here.

Britannia Season Two

After Catherine the Great, Sky Atlantic will launch the second season of their Roman series BRITANNIA from November 7th! Let us hope that the second season of the series which follows Roman invasion of ancient Britain under David Morrissey’s General Aulus, will prove more watchable than the monotonous first one. Eleanor Worthington Cox returns as Cait – the young woman prophesied to be the saviour of Britannia from the invaders! Spy more here.

War Of The Worlds
BBC has first announced this one for Autumn and now we don't see it in their schedule, so I cannot give you the exact date, but it is the most postponed series we've ever seen on BBC (which does not bode good). WAR OF THE WORLDS stars Rafe Spall, Greg Kinnear and Eleanor Tomlinson in a story set in London during the Edwardian era, where George and Amy's attempt to start a life together is interrupted by a Martian invasion of Earth!

CANAL + TO ALSO ADAPT WAR OF THE WORLDS INTO SF MINI SERIES WITH GABRIEL BYRNE, ELIZABETH MCGOVERN, GUILLAUME GOUIX

WAR OF THE WORLDS

NEW MINI SERIES FROM CANAL+

I'm not exactly sure why they've chosen this particular moment when BBC is ready to air their version of H.G. Wells' classic WAR OF THE WORLDS with Rafe Spall and Eleanor Tomlinson, but for some reason Canal + and

Guillaume Gouix, Gabriel Byrne, Elizabeth McGovern will lead the cast

Fox Networks will shoot their own 8 episode series on it and they have the cast as well: Gabriel Byrne, Elizabeth McGovern, Léa Drucker, Natasha Little, Daisy Edgar Jones, Stéphane Caillard, Adel Bencherif and Guillaume Gouix will star in the version set in contemporary Europe

Natasha Little, Adel Bencherif, Stephane Caillard will also star!

following the pockets of humanity left on earth after an apocalyptic extra-terrestrial strike. The series will air later this year on Canal + in France and on all Fox cable channels around Europe and Africa. Richard Clarke who directed Versailles will helm half of the season.

CLASSIC SF REMAKES: RAFE SPALL, ELEANOR TOMLINSON, RUPERT GRAVES LEAD BBC'S 'WAR OF THE WORLDS' MINI SERIES! FAHRENHEIT 451' TRAILER WITH MICHAEL B. JORDAN, MICHAEL SHANNON

  'THE WAR OF THE WORLDS'

 ELEANOR TOMLINSON AND RAFE SPALL  TO LEAD BBC MINI SERIES

Brilliant first photo and cast announcement come from Mammoth Screen and BBC's new three part series adaptation of H.G. Wells' sf classic WAR OF THE WORLDS! Rafe Spall and Eleanor Tomlinson are joined by Rupert Graves and Robert Carlyle in the cast!

ALIEN INVASION IS HERE!
Set in Edwardian England, the first alien invasion story in literature follows George (Rafe Spall) and his partner Amy (Eleanor Tomlinson) as they attempt to defy society and start a life together. Rupert Graves is Frederick, George's elder brother, and Robert Carlyle plays Ogilvy, an astronomer. THE WAR OF THE WORLDS tells their story as they face the escalating terror of an alien invasion, fighting for their lives against an enemy beyond their comprehension.

  'FAHRENHEIT 451' TRAILER

MICHAEL B. JORDAN REMAKE

Meanwhile, HBO has released full trailer for their television movie FAHRENHEIT 451 which airs May 19th, starring Michael B. Jordan as Guy Montag, a fireman in a dystopian future society in which books are

The remake will hit HBO next Month!

banned and his job is to burn them. But he soon begins questioning the process and his mentor, Captain Beatty, played by Michael Shannon.

BBC ORDERS MAGNIFICENT SLATE OF NEW TV SERIES: PERIOD SET 'BLACK NARCISSUS' & 'LITTLE WOMEN', INDIAN SET 'A SUITABLE BOY', SF' WAR OF THE WORLDS'! 1ST 'HOWARDS END' PHOTO WITH MATTHEW MACFADYEN

 NEW BBC TV SERIES

 NEPAL SET 'BLACK NARCISSUS'

Rejoice, royal subjects! BBC has just ordered tons of amazing new TV series. I'm probably most excited about the three part adaptation of BLACK NARCISSUS since I remember how exotic the classic film with Deborah Kerr was! Rumer Godden's story is set in the 1930s following Sister Clodagh who travels to Nepal to set up a nun order in the remote palace of Mopu. In the unfettered sensuality of the so-called House of Women, Sister Clodagh finds herself increasingly attracted to the handsome and damaged land agent, Mr Dean. But as the repressed memories of Clodagh’s past become entangled with the tragic history of Princess Srimati, the Nepalese princess driven to madness and suicide in the palace after her own tragic love story, history seems doomed to repeat itself.

INDIA SET 'A SUITABLE BOY'!
If you loved Jewel in the Crown and Indian Summers, Indian settings will be seen in the eight part adaptation of Vikram Seth's A SUITABLE BOY with an entirely non-white cast! Set in the 1950's it follows a young woman’s search for love and identity in a newly independent India. Lata is growing up in northern India. Her mother is determined to find her a husband, but after her sister’s arranged marriage, Lata is not convinced she wants the same path. Torn between duty to her family and the excitement of romance, Lata embarks on an epic journey of love, desire and heartache as three very different suitors vie for her hand. Her choice will play out against the tumultuous political backdrop of India at a crossroads, looking towards its first independent general election and carving out its own destiny. Almost 1400 pages long saga will be helmed by War and Peace Andrew Davies.

 BBC IS ALSO PREPARING 'TROY: FALL OF THE CITY' EPIC TV SERIES - 17TH CENTURY 'MINIATURIST' SERIES - 'SHIBDEN HALL' 19TH CENTURY SERIES - 'GUNPOWDER' 17TH CENTURY SERIES

NEW VERSION OF 'LITTLE WOMEN'

In coproduction with PBS they will also make a new three part series adaptation of Louisa May Alcott classic novel LITTLE WOMEN! The three part series will be produced by Cranford and Call the Midwife creator. It is a truly universal coming of age story, as relevant and engaging today as it was on its original publication in 1868. Set against the backdrop of a country divided, the story follows the four sisters Jo, Meg, Beth and Amy March on their journey from childhood to adulthood. With the help of their mother Marmee, while their father is away at the civil war, the girls navigate what it means to be a young woman: from gender roles to sibling rivalry, first love, loss and marriage.

SF 'THE WAR OF THE WORLDS'
For the lovers of sf there will be a three part adaptation of H.G. Wells' novel WAR OF THE WORLDS from Poldark and Victoria's Mammoth Screen!  At the dawn of the 20th century, Horsell Common in Surrey is struck by a huge meteor, and the inhabitants of Earth slowly fall victim to a vicious invasion. The three-part drama follows one man’s attempt to escape the ruthless Martians - but they are determined to destroy all human life as they attempt to conquer the earth…

FIRST 'HOWARDS END' PHOTO

BBC and Starz have also revealed the 1st photo from their 4 part HOWARD'S END the story of two sisters and the men in their lives. Hayley Atwell’s Schlegel is an idealistic young woman who is courted by the older Henry Wilcox (Matthew Macfadyen), a self-made businessman, after his wife Ruth Wilcox (Julia Ormond) dies unexpectedly and he becomes owner of HOWARDS END. Meanwhile Margaret’s capricious younger sister Helen Schlegel (Philippa Coulthard) takes up the cause of Leonard Bast (Joseph Quinn) a young bank clerk who falls on hard times at work. In the absence of their late parents, the sisters’ loving but interfering Aunt Juley (Tracey Ullman) tries to keep the young ladies and their brother Tibby (Alex Lawther) on the straight and narrow.

BBC IS ALSO PREPARING 'THE WOMAN IN WHITE' VICTORIAN SERIES - 'LUMINARIES' 19TH CENTURY GOLD RUSH SERIES - SEVEN NEW AGATHA CHRISTIE SERIES - NEW 'LES MISERABLES' SERIES!