Category Archives: Television

BBC documentary celebrates 150 years of the Tube

BBC viewers are set to get a fresh insight into the fascinating history of the Tube this week with a documentary charting the development of the world’s first underground railway.

The Tube: An Underground History will screen on BBC2 at 9pm on Thursday 16 May and explores the development of London Underground from its conception to its construction, from the first ‘cut and cover’ excavations on the Metropolitan line to today’s vast and vital network.

The documentary, made by Blast! Productions for the BBC, follows the extremely popular series The Tube, which screened on BBC 2 last year and features some of the staff members who appeared in the original series, using their words and thoughts to explore the past and present of the iconic network.

The Tube has always played an important role in the success of London – from the growth of the early network which led to the expansion of the suburbs in the last century, to the development of Canary Wharf’s financial powerhouse in the ’80s, and on to today’s system which is carrying record numbers of customers with the highest levels of reliability and performance in the network’s history.

London Underground continues to be a vital part of the city – supporting the London and UK economy. Over the next decade London’s population is expected to grow by around a million people, underlining the crucial importance of continuing to improve and develop the Tube network.

London Underground Managing Director Mike Brown said: “This
documentary reminds us of what an amazing feat of engineering the building of an underground railway was more than 150 years ago. Our job now is to build on that rich history and ensure the continued growth and development of this vital part of London so that it can continue to transport millions of passengers every day, and support London as the engine-room of the UK economy, for the next 150 years.”

Director James House said: “We took an unusual approach to making this history film – instead of asking experts to tell the Tube’s story, we asked the staff. I hoped that by doing this we would feel closer to the people who first built it and worked on it. The wealth of knowledge the staff have is amazing and revealing – the Tube is quite special among British institutions in the pride of place it gives to its own history.”

Iain Macpherson, a Station Supervisor at Farringdon, who features in the documentary, said: “It was very exciting to be part of this documentary and part of London Underground during this significant year. Farringdon is where it all started. It was one of the first ever underground stations. Over the years it has seemed to languish in the background while the other bigger stations got most of the attention. This year the spotlight has finally landed on us here at Farringdon Station with the 150th celebrations and the visit by Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall and staff at the station have been quite excited by it all. 150 years is a really unique achievement which we’re all very proud of.”

A huge range of events and activities are being held this year to explore London Underground’s fascinating history and the vital role it continues to play – both in the lives of Londoners and to the economic life of London and the UK. A series of trips on a newly restored Metropolitan line will take place between Amersham and Harrow on the Hill between Saturday 25 and Monday 27 May, transporting passengers back to the age of steam.

TwentyTwelve spin-off in the pipeline reuniting hapless Olympics planning team

BBC comedy chiefs are plotting a spin-off of Bafta-nominated Olympic mockumentary TwentyTwelve.

twentytwelve_group

They hope to reunite the core team of hapless PRs including Jessica Hynes as Siobhan Sharpe, Hugh Bonneville as Ian Fletcher, Olivia Colman as his PA Sally and Amelia Bulmore as Kay Hope.

A BBC insider said: “There is a real desire for this to happen.

“The show was such a fantastic success and writer John Morton is a genius, such a massive talent.

“It would be so great to get the team together again.”

Plans are in their early stages, with the spin-off likely to see dithering Fletcher taking on another major national project and hiring back his Olympic colleagues to help him out.

In the show, made in the style of a fly-on-the-wall documentary, Ian headed up the fictional Olympic Deliverance Commission while Siobhan, who has her own PR company Perfect Curve, was head of brand.

One of the highlights was the development of a travel strategy – called Way to Go – in which pedestrians were banned from pavements.

Morton has indicated that a follow-up comedy could be possible, given the right circumstances. He said: “There’s been some talk about whether there can be a life post-Olympics and it’s tempting because I’d love to work with those actors again.”

The BBC2 series received widespread critical acclaim when it was shown in the run-up to the Olympics last year.

Viewers loved that many of the comedy’s ideas – such as problems with the countdown clock, complaints from animal rights organisations and a bell-ringing competition to mark the start of the Games – were echoed in real life.

Tomorrow Bonneville, Hynes and Colman will find out if they have won a Bafta for their individual performances, while the show is also nominated in the sitcom category.

TwentyTwelve has already been named best comedy by the Royal Television Society and won best sitcom at the Comedy Awards.

STAR WARS FEATURE FILM PRODUCTION RETURNS TO THE U.K.

May 10, 2013

Lucasfilm announced today that production of Star Wars: Episode VII will take place in the United Kingdom. All of the six previous live-action Star Wars movies have included UK production in such famed studios as Elstree, Shepperton, Leavesden, Ealing and Pinewood Studios.

“We’ve devoted serious time and attention to revisiting the origins of Star Wars as inspiration for our process on the new movie, and I’m thrilled that returning to the UK for production and utilizing the incredible talent there can be a part of that,” said Kathleen Kennedy, President of Lucasfilm. “Speaking from my own longstanding connection to the UK with films like Raiders of the Lost ArkEmpire of the Sun and recently War Horse, it’s very exciting to be heading back.”

Earlier this year, representatives from Lucasfilm met with the Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne, in London to establish an agreement to produce Star Wars in the U.K. “I am delighted that Star Wars is coming back to Britain. Today’s announcement that the next Star Wars film will be shot and produced in the UK is great news for fans and our creative industries,” Osborne said today.

Star Wars: Episode VII will be directed by J.J. Abrams from a screenplay by Michael Arndt and is scheduled for a 2015 release.