Charles Edwards - current and upcoming TV projects

Henry IX

Charles plays a fictional, contemporary king in this three part series from UKTV Gold. The final episode will be broadcast next Wednesday.

In an interview with the Radio Times, he praised writers Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais:

"They’re very clever guys and lovely people to work with. And there’s no bulls**t. They know exactly what they want and when you get the sense you’re giving it to them, it’s very pleasing."

Likewise, in an Clement and La Frenais had very positive things to say about Charles in this interview from the British Comedy Guide:

What was the most crucial element in the pre-production of Henry IX?
Dick: Casting was key. The moment we saw Charles Edwards audition, we were all knocked out by him. We stuck in our heels and said, "Look no further. This guy is absolutely perfect." He persuaded everyone with that audition. At the read-through, he didn't miss a trick, and actually added a lot of stuff of his own. Suddenly, it had life.

What are Charles's strongest characteristics as an actor?
Dick: He is exactly the right age to play Henry. He is handsome and has great charm and likeability. Also, you feel sympathy for him. The poor guy is trapped, and Charles conveys that brilliantly.
Ian: He's such a gifted actor. We were still a bit insecure about this project. When we sat down for the read through. But as soon as Charles started reading the part, suddenly it just came alive. Dick and I said to each other, "That really worked." Charles is so superb. He brings an enormous amount of subtlety to the role. He does so much with so little. We came away from the read through, feeling elated and thinking, "It works!"

The following videos are the teaser trailer and two clips:


Media round up

• The Spectator "In the role of Henry, Charles Edwards does a fine job of making the king’s predicament a sympathetic one... Clement and La Frenais keep the jokes coming at a good rate"
• The Guardian "With an elegant cast – including Charles Edwards, Colin Salmon and Sally Phillips – exchanging dry lines in echoey state rooms, it feels like an eccentric UK cousin to The Young Pope."
• The RTS (Royal Television Society) selected the show as a top pick for the week commencing 3rd April
• The Arts Desk "Charles Edwards is excellent as Henry, and there's an equally starry cast around him – among them Annette Crosbie's dotty ancient mother and his equerries (Colin Salmon and Gina Bellman)"
• hellyescharlesedwards has a scans of a promo image of Henry looking like he can't be bothered to be on the throne and various articles from TV magazines such as Total TV Guide, TV & Satellite Week, TV Times and Inside Soap

The Terror

This is an AMC series adapted from Dan Simmons' novel - a fictional account of Captain Sir John Franklin's lost expedition to the Arctic (The Chronicle). Charles plays Alexander McDonald, assistant surgeon on HMS Terror. According to IMDB he will feature in one episode. Other cast members include Jared Harris, Ciaran Hinds and Tobias Menzies.

Artists Against TTIP and Act for Change

I decided to put Artists Against TTIP and Act for Change in a blog post because I noticed that there are some people who are associated with both campaigns: David Morrissey, Juliet Stevenson, Samuel West and Ruth Wilson.



Screencaps of Tobias Menzies, Juliet Stevenson, Andrew Scott and Ruth Wilson from the Artists Against TTIP launch video.
Artists Against TTIP launched in July. TTIP is the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, a treaty aimed at aligning trade laws between the EU and US. In The Stage, Samuel West commented on cosmetic regulations and Carrie Cracknell suggested possible issues with subsidy and copyright.

Click the pictures above to view a selection of videos on the Act for Change Youtube channel.
(Row 1 - Chipo Chung, Indira Varma, Gemma Chan
Row 2 - Ruth Wilson & Danny Lee Wynter, Juliet Stevenson, David Harewood & David Morrissey)

Danny Lee Wynter established Act for Change in 2014, after seeing an ITV trailer which did not feature a single BAME or disabled artist. The organisation aims to improve diversity in UK performing arts, both in performance and behind the scenes.
In June, Shami Chakrabarti (head of civil rights group Liberty), chaired an Act for Change event at the National Theatre. The event had a variety of panellists: actor Adrian Lester, actor/writer Cush Jumbo, director Phyllida Lloyd, critic Mark Lawson, shadow culture secretary Chris Bryant and artistic director Jenny Sealey (BBC News and Samuel West's Twitter, @exitthelemming). Actors Sophia Sinclair, Ayesha Casely-Hayford and Mitesh Soni shared their thoughts on the debate; all have stressed the importance of improving opportunities for people from diverse backgrounds.

Samuel West - The Iliad, Suffragette, An Oak Tree

On Friday, Sam and several other actors such as Bertie Carvel, Rory Kinnear, Tobias Menzies, Hattie Morahan, Simon Russell Beale, John Simm and Ben Whishaw, performed in a reading of The Iliad at the British Museum and at the Almeida. The performance was live streamed. A series of podcasts and a making-of film are forthcoming.

Suffragette will open this year's London Film Festival (Prolific North). Sam has described his role in the film as "small and cross" (his Twitter, @exitthelemming). Click below for screencaps of him in the trailer.

He will feature in series 3 of Great Canal Journeys (his Twitter, @exitthelemming). Meanwhile, series 1 is being repeated on Channel 4 from 15 August (Radio Times).

Sam narrates a series of videos on The Road to Agincourt website. He plays the chronicler who wrote Gesta Henrici Quinti, a work about the deeds of Henry V (via the Daily Echo).

In July, he played the Father in An Oak Tree at the National Theatre. The play is a two-hander by Tim Crouch, who plays the Hypnotist. The Father is played by a different guest actor at each performance; at the National, guest actors included John Heffernan, Samuel Barnett and Trystan Gravelle.
Sam tweeted that the play was "Beautiful, useful and never to be forgotten" and Tim tweeted that the performance was "a very special evening." Here is a selection of tweets about the performance:

@exitthelemming Saw you perform in An Oak Tree tonight, absolutely amazing! Undoubtedly one of the best shows I've seen in London congrats!

— Lydia-Rachel (@Lydia_Actor) July 15, 2015

Great work tonight @exitthelemming & @timcrouch1964 with #AnOakTree Imagine it & you are it. Even we as the audience. Nod if you understand.

— Jack Tarlton (@jacktarlton) July 15, 2015

Congrats to @timcrouch1964 & @exitthelemming for a glorious #AnOakTree.....Friar Lawrence was v v proud of his Romeo #howtimeflies xx

— Hugh Sachs (@HughSachs) July 15, 2015

In May, Sam narrated Morning Heroes by Bliss with the BBC Symphony Orchestra. Here is a review round up of the performance.

Music OMH
"Samuel West brought just the right level of philosophical pathos to the words..."

The Guardian

"The speaker (here, the excellent Samuel West) delivers the long opening passage from Homer over quietly unfolding orchestral themes, and Owen’s Spring Offensive, accompanied only by timpani and drums, to begin the finale."

Seen and Heard
"Samuel West struck just the right balance of eloquence and dignity of delivery..."

The Arts Desk
"Most personal and affecting were the work’s prologue and epilogue, calling upon Sam West with subtly scored orations of Hector’s Farewell to Andromache and Owen’s Spring Offensive."

**********

A few days ago, We Love Hackney tweeted a picture of Sam at a campaign launch - the local council is planning to restrict opening hours of clubs and music venues.

In July, Sam received an honorary degree from the University of East Anglia (BBC). The audio from his speech is here. He also tweeted a picture of himself from the ceremony.
Voices for the Library shared a piece by Sam about why he values his local library (via their Twitter @VftL_UK).
The Southbank Centre tweeted a picture of Sam reading at a Make Apartheid History event. Excerpts from the readings have been posted on Youtube (via Artists for Palestine).


Sam participated in a march against austerity in London 20 June (@fugueur). Participants opposed public sector cuts in areas such as welfare, health and education (ABC).

Romola Garai, Ruth Wilson, BBC Radio

Romola Garai and Nicholas Burns will star in The Village Bike at the Royal Court from 24 June to 30 July.

A quote from Ruth in the Telegraph about Michael Grandage, outgoing artistic director of the Donmar Warehouse:

"'He is an agent’s worst nightmare!’ Ruth Wilson laughs. Not only does he cut them entirely out of the process by contacting their clients directly, but he also expects his actors, however famous they are, to work for a company wage."

Ruth previously performed at the Donmar in A Streetcar Named Desire, and will star in the theatre's upcoming production of Anna Christie.

BBC Radio

• Hattie Morahan, Bertie Carvel and Tobias Menzies star in the Drama on 3 Serious Money by Caryl Churchill (available on iPlayer for 4 more days)
• Alex Jennings reads Twenty Minutes "A Warning to the Curious" (available on iPlayer for 5 more days)
• Andrew Scott voices James Joyce in the Book of the Week James Joyce - A Biography. Jim Norton narrates.   
• Jason Isaacs was interviewed on Loose Ends 

Television - Eternal Law

An excerpt from an SFX interview with Matthew Graham:

How's your new show, Eternal Law, coming along?
Ah, Eternal Law is going great! I can't believe we're three weeks into filming already. It's looking great. It's being so beautifully made, and the cast are really bedded into their roles and having fun with it.
It's too early to say what kind of show it's going to be. It's clearly going to be a very emotional show, and quite dramatic and powerful. It's not overtly fantasy, but it does have a fantasy vein in it. It's too early to know quite the full tone is, like we were with Life On Mars. You can't tell until you see it cut together! So far, we're having a great time on it!

A timeline of sorts summarising selected tweets from Sam West (Zak), Monastic Productions (writers Matthew Graham and Ashley Pharaoh), Ukweli Roach (Tom), Claire Jo Benjamin (assistant director), Sophia Di Martino (guest star) and Rosalie Carew (script editor) for the past few weeks.

20 May
First block i.e. episodes 1 and 2 has completed filming (@exitthelemming, @MonasticProds, @UkweliRoach)
The readthrough for episodes 3 and 4 made the execs cry (click here to find out more!)

18 May
A limping scene featuring Zak Gist (Sam's character) references Twelve Angry Men and visually hints at The Third Man (@exitthelemming)
Guest star Sophia Di Martino finished filming (@soafdimartino)
TV Choice visited the set (@TVChoice)

16 May
Sam has described Zak Gist as "grumpy." (@exitthelemming)
The production had a night shoot at Harewood House, which has a "spooky forest" (@exitthelemming, @TheDramaCat)

14 May
Sam noted the "beautiful" acoustic and interior of Dewsbury Town Hall, one of the locations used (@exitthelemming)

12 May
A location: Headingley Stadium (@ClaireJoBenji)

11 May
Episode 6 has a lot of cats (@MonasticProds)
Filmed Zak and Tom's first day on earth (@MonasticProds)

5 May
The show will have some romantic moments (@MonasticProds)

4 May
Hints at guest character casting for episodes 3 and 4 (@MonasticProds)
Positivity about rushes viewed by the writers so far (@MonasticProds)

3 May
Some very kind comments about one of the cast members (@exitthelemming)

2 May
Jamie Payne will direct episodes 3 and 4. He previously collaborated with Monastic Productions on series 3 of Ashes to Ashes. (@MonasticProds)

1 May
Tobias Menzies (Richard Pembroke) began filming (@MonasticProds)

30 April
Rosalie Carew has been described as an equivalent to Mrs Sheringham... (@MonasticProds)

Television - Eternal Law

Unreality TV has a copy of the Eternal Law press release.

A couple of tweets about the first few days of filming:
@MonasticProds (Monastic Productions): "Just about to wrap on Day 2. Adrian [Shergold, director] shooting fast and confident. Ash [Ashley Pharaoh, writer] on set and reports a lot of warmth and laughs amongst cast and crew."
@exitthelemming (Sam West): "Just done a scene looking straight down the lens. Really hard. Should have asked @RealDMitchell how he does it."

Television - Eternal Law

Sam West, Hattie Morahan, Tobias Menzies, Orla Brady and Ukweli Roach star in Eternal Law for ITV. Ashley Pharoah and Matthew Graham wrote the six part series; Adrian Shergold will direct. It began filming today in York (Sam's Twitter, @exitthelemming 1|2|3). A press release will be issued later today (Monastic Productions' Twitter, @MonasticProds).

Theatre - Cloud Nine

[updated 8 March 2014]

This review round-up focuses on James Fleet, Tobias Menzies and Nicola Walker.

Variety
"...Tobias Menzies is remarkably subtle as Harry Bagley, the gung-ho, intrepid explorer whose public persona is at war with his hush-hush homosexuality. Bagley is not the richest role in the play, but Menzies brings out gravitas beneath the comedy by showing the pain and strain of Harry's position.

Nicola Walker's Edward also allows auds to see the confusion underpinning the behavior of a boy who cannot live up to his father's (double) standards..."

Reviews Gate
"...The cast are resoundingly excellent. Tobias Menzies is utterly convincing as British explorer Harry Bagley (desired by men, women and children alike) and the downtrodden husband of the second act..."

Observer
"...It is the acting, in Sharrock's production, that redeems all deficiencies...James Fleet is wonderful..."

Independent
"...beautifully modulated and cannily cast production..."

Guardian
"...there is still a wicked pleasure in watching James Fleet's patriarch, Clive, banging on about the way women are "dark like this continent, mysterious". Fleet's revulsion at discovering his best friend, the romantic explorer Harry Bagley, is homosexual is also a joy to behold...Nicola Walker moves perfectly from white-suited colonial boy to independent granny championing masturbation in plummy, upper-class tones... Tobias Menzies also brings exactly the right air of insouciant arrogance to both an imperial adventurer and a manipulative modern husband..."

What's On Stage
"...The play resounds with such witty echoes and carefully finessed acting..."

Bloomberg
"...Nicola Walker is superb as the neurotic child Edward, and she transforms into a wonderfully clipped, domineering Betty for Act II. James Fleet (Clive) is a bluff, gruff paterfamilias and then a sweet five-year-old girl in a pink frock..."

Telegraph
"...James Fleet, as the furtively unfaithful Clive, excels in the ramrod hauteur of the stereotypical empire-builder while signalling in sly sideways glances the guilty look of the arch hypocrite...

Nicola Walker shines as the subjugated young Edward, carrying the weight of patriarchal expectation on his far from manly shoulders, before gloriously emerging in the second half as an imperious, neurotic matriarch, back from Africa and adrift in the permissive society.

Tobias Menzies is also a tense-faced delight as Harry, adventurer and closet homosexual in Act One, reappearing later as an abject, wheedling but slyly manipulative modern husband..."

Evening Standard
"...the superlative, versatile ensemble of actors..."

London Theatre Guide
"... [Thea] Sharrock’s production is a fast-paced orgy of intentional confusion, in which the cast’s finely tuned character-swapping and cross-dressing link the two eras as well as providing much humour. Fleet in Act Two playing toddler Cathy – with pink dress, hair bow and moustache – is certainly bizarre, but strangely believable..."

The Stage
"...this play is an absolute joy for both actors and audience..."

Pictures
Broadway World
Press night party (wooller.com)
Almeida Theatre website

Screencaps from the trailer