Stephen Graham and Jodie Comer have been tipped for Bafta wins following their ‘powerful’ performances in Channel 4’s film Help.
Help, written by Jack Thorne, tells the tale of Sarah, played by Comer, a newly appointed carer who strives to protect her patients in a fictional Liverpool care home throughout the 2020 lockdowns. Graham plays one of the care home’s residents who is suffering from early onset Alzheimer’s.
However, when the pandemic hits and staff members fall ill from the virus, Sarah finds herself running the care home alone during a night shift, dangerously low on PPE and desperate to save the lives of her residents, many of whom are struggling from the symptoms of Covid.
Channel 4
Since airing last night, both Comer and Graham have received acclaim among viewers for the roles they played in the story, with many hailing them as worthy of winning ‘all the awards’.
One person wrote on Twitter: “Jodie Comer & Stephen Graham are literally national treasures. Their level of acting is second to none.”
Another commented: “Yeah so Jodie Comer and Stephen Graham need to win every award going for these performances.”
Writer Jack Thorne came up with the idea for the film when he ‘saw care homes getting squashed and battered by the government’ throughout the Covid-19 pandemic.
He said, as per Metro: “Hearing the stories of those at the frontline, having people break down in tears on Zoom in front of us has been incredibly moving and galling.
“Getting the story right will be incredibly important, we are aware of the pressure upon us, this has to be written and made with anger and precision. We hope we do it justice.”
Popular BBC detective drama Shetland is returning for two new series.
The long-running crime drama will return with Ashley Jensen and Alison O’Donnell reprising their roles as Detectives Ruth Calder and Alison ‘Tosh’ McIntosh.
Filming on the next season, its ninth, will get underway later this month.
The broadcaster said Shetland was the biggest drama of the year across Scotland and all channels and streamers in 2023, after Yorkshire crime drama Happy Valley.
Last season averaged seven million viewers and was the first to see Ashley Jenson take the lead role after taking over from Douglas Henshall as Jimmy Perez – a role he played for a decade.
Ms Jenson said she was ‘thrilled’ to be coming back as Detective Calder.
She said: “The reaction to the last series was incredible and I’m excited at the prospect of unravelling more intrigue.
“The Shetland Isles are breath-taking – without a doubt one of the most memorable and unique filming locations I’ve been to.”
Ms O’Donnell also expressed that she ‘could not be happier’ about returning to film another series. She added: “Ashley and I just scratched the surface of our dynamic in Series 8 and I am delighted that we now have the opportunity to build on that.”
Fans of the programme will be delighted to know Steven Robertson (Sandy), Lewis Howden (Billy) and Anne Kidd (Cora) are also confirmed to return.
Lindsay Salt, director of BBC Drama, said the news showed the corporation was ‘further strengthening’ its commitment to the show, which first aired in 2013.
The latest series will be written by Paul Logue and Denise Paul and produced by Silverprint Pictures, with filming scheduled to take place throughout this year and next.
We can’t wait for this!
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A new true crime docuseries on Netflix is leaving viewers traumatised and ‘disturbed’ after bingeing it in a night.
The three-part show delves into the world of ‘cons, cults and kidnappings’.
And of course, it’s called The Program: Cons, Cults, and Kidnapping, and details the traumatic events a group of school kids experienced.
The true story highlights serial abuse at Ivy Ridge, a disciplinary school in rural Ogdensburg, New York.
Imagine being at school and suddenly you’re called to the principal’s office and then put in handcuffs or solitary confinement. It may sound like a horror story but this was real life for Katherine Kubler and a number of survivors of this troubled youth academy.
Kubler, who directs this docuseries, was sent to Ivy Ridge for acting out as a teenager.
At first glance, it seemed like a regular high school, but behind closed doors something a lot more sinister was going on.
It features interviews from former students who expose what happened while they were there.
The series reveals how students were prohibited from speaking to, or looking at each other. They were mostly not allowed to go outside and the school was run on a points system – which determined how long they would remain there, according to former students.
Ivy Ridge closed down in 2009, but Kubler decided to make this documentary, as she explains ‘there really was nothing out there to help explain what had happened to [her], to [her] friends and family to warn them about these places, The Times reports.
“So, now that resource exists,” she said.
A former student, Kubler found video footage and files on students lying around in the abandoned building.
On her return visit to Ogdensburg, she spoke with a former staff member who said she was just carrying out orders.
Kubler said: “These programs destroy families, and it’s very hard, so I wanted [viewers] to see what it’s done to my family.”
The Program: Cons, Cults, and Kidnapping has captivated audiences with its three episodes and many have even binged the series in just one night.
On X (formerly Twitter) one viewer said: “The Program on Netflix is crazy from the start but about 7 minutes into episode 2 the level of f**ked up psychological warfare reaches another level. No idea how so many parents bought into this s**t.”
Another said: “Twisted AF. ‘The Program’ on Netflix is one of the wildest most disturbing docs I have seen.”
After sharing her harrowing story, Kubler hopes that the troubled teen industry will be exposed and shut down.
She adds: “This industry exists because there are not many good resources out there for families in a crisis, so we need to figure out alternate solutions,” she explained.
“Ultimately the goal is to expose these places and to get this industry shut down.”
You can stream The Program: Cons, Cults, and Kidnapping on Netflix now.
Jason Manford will join the cast of Waterloo Road when the high school series returns later this year.
The actor and comedian will take on a more serious role as headteacher Steve Savage, and he says viewers can expect his character to ‘ruffle a few feathers along the way’.
Manford, 42, from Manchester said it was ‘an absolute treat’ to be joining the show ‘right here in my home city’.
The series was originally axed in 2015, but following a revival in audiences during the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, it returned to screens after an eight-year break.
After admitting to binge watching the show with his family during lockdown, Manford added: “It’s such a brilliant, iconic show, so I’m dead proud to now be part of its history.
“Growing up, I always wanted to be a teacher and now, becoming a headteacher, I know I would have been terrible!”
While fans of the show may be left wondering where the current headteacher Kim Campbell might be – played by Angela Griffin – viewers will have to wait to see how the storyline plays out, the BBC said.
Waterloo Road’s season 13 finale aired on Monday night (February 26th), with series 14 coming to BBC One and BBC iPlayer later this year.
Cameron Roach, Executive Producer of Waterloo Road and Founder of Rope Ladder Fiction, said: “We’re thrilled that Jason Manford is joining Waterloo Road, as the show returns for a fourth series since returning to BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
“Jason is a phenomenal comic actor, and has fully embraced the tone and spirit of the show, we can’t wait for the audience to meet Steve Savage and his son Billy.
“As with all of our adult cast, Jason has been an inspiring and approachable mentor to our younger cast and crew; we love that a new generation of Northern talent are able to learn their craft alongside brilliant household names.
“The legacy of Waterloo Road goes from strength to strength.”