91Èȱ¬ ONE Winter/Spring 2006 Highlights
Drama
Friends and Crocodiles
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Following the triumphant success of his two-part drama The Lost
Prince, Stephen Poliakoff returns to 91Èȱ¬ ONE with an intoxicating
film charting the shifting power between a boss and his secretary
as their careers rise and fall in the rapidly changing workplace of
Eighties and Nineties Britain.
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In his inimitable style, Poliakoff combines cinematic panorama with
moments of great intimacy, as he takes an epic sweep through our
recent past and creates an unforgettable story.
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Friends And
Crocodiles stars Damian Lewis, Jodhi May and Robert Lindsay and
boasts an ensemble cast that includes Eddie Marsan and
Patrick Malahide.
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Damian Lewis plays Paul, a Gatsby-like figure and inspirational
entrepreneur. He is a host of fabulous parties, a collector of
interesting people, a visionary with dreams of new urban
landscapes and keeper of a pet crocodile.
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Jodhi May plays Lizzie,
who is persuaded by Paul to become his secretary and bring some
order to his creative chaos. Once at Paul's magnificent house,
Lizzie's world expands as she meets artists, historians and
politicians.
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It is also here that she first encounters Sneath, played
by Robert Lindsay. A social chameleon and born survivor, Sneath is
there as events unfold and is around to tell the story later.
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But Paul's Eden does not last for ever. Abruptly, Lizzie and Paul
fall out but their paths are destined to cross again and again, and
eventually they come to understand that they were born to
work together.
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Drama Publicity
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91Èȱ¬ ONE highlights Winter/Spring 2006
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Mayo
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Alistair McGowan stars as wise-cracking, brilliant detective Gil
Mayo, a master of crime-solving.
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Mayo's team includes sexy DS Alex Jones (Jessica Oyelowo), with
whom he conducts a tantalising flirtation; cocky, laddish DC Martin
Kite (Huw Rhys); and nerdy Scene of Crime Officer Harriet "Anorak"
Tate (Loo Brealey).
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With a clever and intriguing whodunit at the core
of every episode, the murky world of crime-solving has never been
so entertaining.
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Mayo is based on the books by Margery Eccles.
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91Èȱ¬ ONE highlights Winter/Spring 2006
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Gideon's Daughter
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Miranda Richardson, Bill Nighy, Emily Blunt, Ronni Ancona and
Robert Lindsay star in Gideon's Daughter, a new film for 91Èȱ¬ ONE,
written and directed by acclaimed auteur, Stephen Poliakoff.
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As the drama opens, Sneath (Lindsay) is dictating his memoirs to
a young copy typist, but breaks off to tell the extraordinary story of
a PR guru, Gideon, who vanished without trace one day at the end
of Nineties.
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It is 1997, explains Sneath, and Gideon (Nighy), an elegant,
leading PR consultant, a man constantly fêted by the rich and
famous, is being earnestly courted by the New Labour Government
to manage the festivities around the Millennium.
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Then the news breaks about the deaths of Diana, Princess of
Wales and Dodi Al Fayed. But as the British public unite to express
unprecedented levels of grief over this shocking event, Gideon
turns inward and very quietly unravels as he struggles with his
personal feelings of loss and emptiness.
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Gideon's daughter, Natasha (Blunt), is about to leave home,
perhaps as revenge for his serial infidelities, committed while her
late mother was alive.
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It seems no one can comfort him; certainly,
it becomes clear that Barbara (Ancona), his glamorous girlfriend,
cannot reach him.
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Increasingly, he finds the hollowness of high-profile public life
exposed by his relationships with Natasha and Stella (Richardson),
a woman grieving for her young son killed in a cycling accident.
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Has the time come for all of them to stop and learn to live again?
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Doctor Who
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The wait is over! David Tennant, the tenth Time
Lord to grace the TARDIS, and his feisty young
companion, Rose Tyler (Billie Piper), return in the
eagerly anticipated new series of Doctor Who.
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Together, the Doctor and Rose travel through time
and space, battling a host of new and returning
aliens and monsters, including the dreaded
Cybermen, an evil race of Cat Women, the
sinister Krillitanes and maybe even a Dalek!
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The new series, which promises to be even
scarier than the last, sees the welcome return of
two of the Doctor's favourite and most iconic
companions, Sarah Jane Smith (Elisabeth
Sladen) and his faithful robot dog, K9.
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Rose's
mum Jackie (Camille Coduri) and Rose's hapless boyfriend Mickey (Noel Clarke) also return.
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Viewers join the Doctor and Rose as they embark
upon an adventure that takes them further into
the future than ever before, to a glittering
paradise where the grass smells of apples – but
where old and new terrors lurk.
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Then it's off to
the Highlands for a Royal appointment with
Queen Victoria (Pauline Collins).
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Doctor Who is the creative vision of lead writer
Russell T Davies. The series' other writers
include Steven Moffat, Mark Gatiss, Toby
Whithouse, Tom Macrae, Matt Jones and
Matthew Graham.
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Doctor Who is the winner of three National
Television Awards.
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Hotel Babylon
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Max Beesley, Tamzin Outhwaite, Dexter Fletcher, Emma Pierson and Natalie Mendoza star in Hotel Babylon, a tantalising and
seductive insight into the sexy world of the luxury five-star hotel
industry, where money not only talks but can buy just about
anything you desire.
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Inspired by Imogen Edwards-Jones's searing exposé of life behind
the scenes of the luxury hotel industry in London, Hotel Babylon
takes viewers on a journey beyond the glamour and façade of the
smiling faces and glittering chandeliers and into the frenetic, non-stop
world of the staff.
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Drama Publicity
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New Street Law
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John Hannah and John Thomson head the cast in New Street Law,
a gripping, contemporary legal drama series which follows the
exploits and cases of two rival barristers' chambers in the heart
of Manchester.
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John Hannah stars as the passionate and charming Jack Roper,
who turned down a lucrative job offer from his mentor, Laurence
Scammel QC (Paul Freeman), head of Manchester's leading
prosecution chambers, in favour of more noble defence work.
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Instead, Jack set up his own firm with old friend and head clerk Al
Ware (Chris Gascoyne), lovable chancer Charlie Darling (John
Thomson), no-nonsense lawyer Annie Quick and cocky pupil Joe
Stevens (Lee Williams).
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After 18 months, Jack's chambers have earned a good
reputation but they're still struggling. With every case he wins,
Jack's confidence grows and he rapidly threatens Laurence's
status in the legal community – something that his ruthlessly
ambitious wife, Honor (Penny Downie), is determined to prevent.
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Laurence and Honor's daughter, Laura, who works for the family
chambers, shares Jack's instinctive passion for justice, but she
also poses a threat.
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New Street Law strikes at the very heart of the modern-day legal
system, providing a unique insight into the world of opposing legal
teams and the people whose lives they hold in their hands.
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As this
series progresses, the characters' pasts are unearthed through
the crises they face. It is through their professional dilemmas that
viewers gradually get to know and care about them as people.
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Life on Mars
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John Simm plays Sam Tyler, a driven and ambitious young
detective, in this new drama series.
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Sam is determined to keep the streets of 21st-century Manchester
safe. However, the hunt for a serial killer becomes a personal
vendetta when Sam suspects his girlfriend has been kidnapped by
the very man he's tracking down.
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But after a near-fatal car accident, Sam wakes up, dazed and
confused, in 1973 – struggling to understand what's real. Has he
gone back in time? Is he in a coma? Or has he simply gone
insane?
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What follows is his account of Seventies life, where he
feels like a fish out of water.
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Sam's new boss, DCI Gene Hunt (Philip Glenister), is Seventies
cop personified: arrogant, sexist, insensitive, brutal, lazy, boozy,
impatient and corrupt.
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But by trusting his gut instincts and, all too
often, sheer brute force, Gene gets results.
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Sam must come to terms with an unfamiliar environment and an
archaic CID unit, where, using his modern know-how, he becomes
integral to the investigation process and learns how to adapt
to old-fashioned technologies and etiquettes – and his new way
of life.
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The Street
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Jimmy McGovern, one of British television's most prolific and
influential writing talents, returns to 91Èȱ¬ ONE with a major new
drama series, The Street, starring Jim Broadbent, Jane Horrocks,
Sue Johnston and Timothy Spall.
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The critically-acclaimed writer of Cracker, Hillsborough, Sunday and
award-winning films Priest and Liam, is back on 91Èȱ¬ ONE for the
first time since The Lakes.
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Set in the North of England, each episode concentrates on a
different house in the street; each story is unique and individual
but all are linked by themes of community and shared experience
and an indomitable sense of humour.
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In the opening episode, Jane Horrocks plays Angela Quinn, a
mother of three, whose 15-year-old marriage to builder Arthur
(Daniel Ryan) is growing stale. An affair with her neighbour provides
much-needed excitement – until Angela's world is turned upside down
by events which leave her locked in warfare with her lover.
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In
episode two, Stan (Jim Broadbent) finds himself forced out of his
beloved job three weeks short of his 65th birthday. To the despair
of his forthright wife Brenda (Sue Johnston), he turns to
contemplate the meaning of life and decides he is surplus to
requirements – until, in a bittersweet twist, tragedy next door offers
him a glimmer of hope for the future.
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The cast includes Timothy Spall as taxi driver Eddie; Neil Dudgeon as teacher Brian; and Christine Bottomley as sparky Yvonne, who is
married to the dangerous, mercurial Sean, played by Lee Ingleby.
Shaun Dooley is Peter Harper, Angela's neighbour and lover, and Liz
White plays his unknowing wife, Eileen.
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The Family Man
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Trevor Eve stars as charismatic fertility expert Patrick Stowe in a
moving new drama that takes an engaging and thought-provoking
look at the business of making babies in the 21st century.
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Written by Bafta-winning Tony Marchant and also starring Michelle
Collins, Daniela Denby-Ashe, Claire Skinner and Lennie James, the
drama centres on the emotionally charged stories of four couples
who have all turned to Patrick for help in realising their dreams.
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In an industry in which science and ethics are always changing,
Patrick believes that every case should be judged individually.
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But
this puts him at odds with many of his colleagues. Where should
the pursuit of dreams end?
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SA/JDR
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