Monday, December 18, 2023

RECENT UPDATES

Feb 23rd 2024
RIP Pamela Salem (Jan 22 1944 to Feb 21 2024) - Xoanon voice in The Face of Evil, Toos in The Robots of Death & Rachel Jensen in Remembrance of the Daleks
RIP John Savident (Jan 21 1938 to Feb 21 2024) - Squire in The Visitation
RIP Stuart Organ (Nov 8 1951 to Feb 15 2024) - Bazin in Dragonfire
Feb 14th 2024
Added Uncredited Cast to The Dalek Invasion of Earth
Feb 5th 2023
RIP Michael Jayston (Oct 29 1935 to Feb 5 2024) - The Valeyard in The Trial of a Time Lord
RIP Clifford Norgate (1941 to Jan 4 2024) - Voice of the Nimon in The Horns of Nimon and Voice of the Generator in The Leisure Hive
Added Uncredited Cast to The Reign of Terror

The Church on Ruby Road

Just wait until he starts singing...
One episode (The Church on Ruby Road)

First broadcast: Dec 25 2023
Audience for story: 7.49m

REGULAR CAST

Ncuti Gatwa (The Doctor) Born Oct 15 1992 Click here for Ncuti Gatwa's entry on The Giggle

Millie Gibson (Ruby Sunday) Born Jun 19 2004
Doctor Who credits
Played: Ruby Sunday in The Church on Ruby Road (2023), Series 14 (2024)
Career highlights
Millie debuted in Love, Lies and Records (2017), followed by 16 episodes of Jamie Johnson (2017-18) playing Indira, Butterfly (2018) and more than 170 episodes of soap Coronation Street playing Kelly Neelan (2019-22).
Awards
2022: British Soap Award for Best Young Actor (Coronation Street)

GUEST CAST

Gemma Arrowsmith (Ruth Lyons)
Career highlights
Gemma's earliest credit was as Sex Addict in The Life and Times of Vivienne Vyle (2007), followed by roles in Home Time (2009), Merlin (2010), Hustle (2011), Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps (2011), The Ministry of Curious Stuff (2012), WPC 56 (2013), Nurse (2015), Upstart Crow (2017), Tracey Breaks the News (2017-18), The Tracey Ullman Show (2017-18), Stath Lets Flats (2018-19), Code 404 (2020), Hitmen (2021) and Rosie Molloy Gives Up Everything (2022). Gemma also writes for TV, contributing to Off Their Rockers (2016), Dave Gorman: Modern Life is Goodish (2016), The Amazing World of Gumball (2018-19), Horrible Histories (2019) and Spitting Image (2020).

Bobby Bradley (Denzel)
Career highlights
Scotsman Bobby's other work includes Best Laid Pans (2011), The Bench (2017), Summer of Rockets (2019), A Gift from Bob (2020) and Crime (2022).

Anita Dobson (Mrs Flood) Born Apr 29 1949
Career highlights
Anita's earliest TV credit was in the 1979 TV film Leave Him to Heaven, followed by roles in Nanny (1981), Partners in Crime (1983), Up the Elephant and Round the Castle (1983-84), Split Ends (1989), Red Dwarf (1993), Rab C Nesbitt (1993), Woof! (1993), Smokescreen (1994), Ghosts (1995), Dangerfield (1995), The Famous Five (1996), Highlander (1997), The Tichborne Claimant (1998), Sunburn (1999), Urban Gothic (2000), Daddyfox (2000), NCS Manhunt (2002), Hotel Babylon (2008), Gigglebiz (2009-11), Sadie J (2012), Pompidou (2015), The Rise of the Krays (2015), The Fall of the Krays (2016), Call the Midwife (2017), The Worst Witch (2018-19), Dodger (2022) and Inside No 9 (2023). Of course, Anita will forever be remembered most for her role as Angie Watts in 274 episodes of the soap EastEnders (1985-88).
Facts
Anita is married to Brian May, legendary guitarist with the rock band Queen. She is the great-granddaughter of Sarah Dearman, one of the leaders of the 1888 Bryant & May matchgirls' strike, which had a lasting impact on gender equality and the trades union movement. In September 1986, Anita reached number 4 in the UK singles chart with a vocal version of the EastEnders theme, entitled Anyone Can Fall in Love.

Michelle Greenidge (Carla) Born Jun 15 1970
Career highlights
Debuted in the 2009 short Leave, followed by All About the McKenzies (2014), Venus vs Mars (2015), A Lesson Learnt (2015), Intruders (2017), Timewasters (2019), I May Destroy You (2019-20), Small Axe (2020), It's a Sin (2021), Cruella (2021), King Gary (2021), Grantchester (2021), Alex Rider (2021), The Witchfinder (2022) and My Happy Ending (2023). Recurring roles include Lola in Mandy (2020-22), Valerie in After Life (2019-22) and Judith in Code 404 (2020-22).

Davina McCall (Davina McCall) Born Oct 16 1967
Doctor Who credits
Played: Voice of Davinadroid in Bad Wolf (2005)
Played: Davina McCall in The Church on Ruby Road (2023)
Career highlights
Davina is one of the UK's best known TV presenters, best remembered as the host of Big Brother on Channel 4 between 2000-10. Other hosting duties include MTV's Most Wanted (1994), God's Gift (1996), Prickly Heat (1998-99), the Brit Awards (2000/03), Streetmate (1998-2001), Don't Try This at Home! (1998-2001), Pride of Britain Awards (2002), BAFTA Awards (2002/04), The Vault (2002), Popstars: The Rivals (2002), Stars in Their Eyes (2003), Reborn in the USA (2003), Top of the Pops (2004), Davina (2006), The Million Pound Drop (2010-15), Stepping Out (2013), Got to Dance (2009-14), Long Lost Family (2011-23). The £100k Drop (2018-19) and The Masked Singer (2020-21). She has also acted in a handful of shows, such as Sam's Game (2001) and Dead Set (2008, as herself), and has released several keep fit videos and books since 2004.
Awards
2023: Member of the order of the British Empire (MBE) for services to broadcasting
Facts
One of Davina's early career cul-de-sacs was a solo singer, but despite being the girlfriend of the legendary Eric Clapton in the late 1980s, success eluded her. She also ran a restaurant for two years, was a waitress at the Moulin Rouge in Paris, and was a backing dancer for future Doctor Who actress Kylie Minogue (see if you can spot her in the video for 1991's Word is Out).

Mary Malone (Trudy)
Career highlights
Mary's other work includes The Girlfriend Experience (2021), Chivalry (2022) and Vera (2023).
Facts
In January 2023, trans actor Mary launched a GoFundMe page to help raise money to support gender-affirming healthcare.

Angela Wynter (Cherry) Born Jul 14 1957
Career highlights
Jamaican Angela's earliest credit is 1981's Burning an Illusion, followed by The Nation's Health (1983), Minder (1984), No Problem! (1983-84), The Bill (1992), Murder Most Horrid (1994), Cracker (1994), Cutting It (2002), Death in Paradise (2017), The Tunnel (2017-18), Les Miserables (2019), Last Christmas (2019), Home by 8.30 (2020), Mood (2022), Vampire Academy (2022), Call the Midwife (2023) and Time (2023). Regular roles include Makeda Sylvester in Doctors (2021) and Yolande Trueman in more than 360 episodes of soap EastEnders (2003-23).
Facts
Angela is also a singer, having been part of the 1980s band View from the Hill between 1985-88. During this period the band released an album called In Time, and three singles: No Conversation  (which peaked at number 58 in the singles chart), I'm No Rebel (which peaked at number 59) and Stay and Let Me Love You. More recently, Angela has been a member of the female reggae group Sistas.

Hami Yeroham (Abdul) Born Jan 2 1980
Career highlights
Turk Hami's earliest credit was in 2008 film Mamma Mia!, followed by EastEnders: E20 (2010), Common Ground (2013), Tyrant (2014), Benidorm (2017), The Cockfields (2021), the voice of Zakariya in the video games Agatha Christie - Hercule Poirot (2021-23) and Casualty (2024).

CREW

Russell T Davies (writer) Born Apr 27 1963 Click here for Russell T Davies' entry on Rose

Mark Tonderai (director) Born Jul 16 1974
Doctor Who credits
Directed: The Ghost Monument (2018), Rosa (2018), The Church on Ruby Road (2023)
Career highlights
Mark's earliest directing work was on the 1996 documentary The A Force, followed by stints on Friday Night's All Wright (1998), Uncut Funk (1999), Hush (2008), House at the End of the Street (2008), 12 Monkeys (2015), The Five (2016), Paranoid (2016), Time After Time (2017), Lucifer (2018), Black Lightning (2018), Gotham (2017-19), Nightflyers (2018), The Passage (2019), Castle Rock (2019), The Mysterious Benedict Society (2021) and Locke & Key (2020-21). He has also worked in front of the camera, in Comedy Nation (1998), Kevin and Perry Go Large (2000), Dog Eat Dog (2001), The Four Feathers (2002) and Holby City (2003).
Facts
Between 1993-98 Mark was a DJ on BBC Radio 1, with his own show.

Producers to be added...

Wednesday, December 06, 2023

The Giggle

Neil Patrick Harris as the 21st
century version of the Toymaker
One episode (The Giggle)

First broadcast: Dec 9 2023
Audience for story: 6.85m

REGULAR CAST

David Tennant (The Doctor) Born Apr 18 1971 Click here for David Tennant's entry on The Parting of the Ways

Catherine Tate (Donna Noble) Born Dec 5 1969 Click here for Catherine Tate's entry on Doomsday

Ncuti Gatwa (The Doctor) Born Oct 15 1992
Doctor Who credits
Played: The Doctor in The Giggle, The Church on Ruby Road, Series 14, 2024 Christmas Special, Series 15 (2023- )
Career highlights
Ncuti (pronounced "shooty") made his acting debut in Bob Servant (2014), followed by roles in Stonemouth (2015), Horrible Histories: The Movie (2019), The Last Letter from Your Lover (2021) and Barbie (2023), but he rose to fame playing Eric Effiong in the series Sex Education (2019-23).
Awards
2020: BAFTA Scotland Award for Best Actor - Television (Sex Education)
2020: Broadcasting Press Guild Breakthrough Award (Sex Education)
2020: Royal Television Society Award for Comedy Performance - Male (Sex Education)
Facts
Ncuti was born in Nyarugenge, Kigali, Rwanda. When he was two, his parents fled the Rwandan genocide against the Tutsi and moved to Scotland. Before being cast in Sex Education, Ncuti says he was homeless for five months. He is the first person born outside the UK to play the Doctor, and the first person born after the classic series ended to play the part.

GUEST CAST

Nicholas Briggs (Voice of the Vlinx) Born Sep 29 1961 Click here for Nicholas Briggs' entry on Rose

Lachele Carl (Reporter [Trinity Wells]) Born Apr 29 1960 Click here for Lachele Carl's entry on Aliens of London

Karl Collins (Shaun Temple) Born 1971
Doctor Who credits
Played: Shaun Temple in The End of Time (2009-10), The Star Beast (2023), The Giggle (2023)
Career highlights
Karl debuted at the age of 12 in the 1983 Dramarama Because I Say So (credited as Carl Myers), then made appearances in the children's series Your Mother Wouldn't Like It (1985), Hard Cases (1988), As Time Goes By (1992), EastEnders (1992), Metrosexuality (1999), Grease Monkeys (2004), Silent Witness (2008), Shelfstackers (2010), Come Fly With Me (2011), Attack the Block (2011), Twenty Twelve (2011), The Fades (2011), The Slammer (2011), Black Mirror (2011), Blackout (2012), Our Zoo (2014), Transporter: The Series (2014), The Driver (2014), Transporter: The Series (2014), Midsomer Murders (2019) and The Larkins (2021). He has also had two regular roles, as DC Danny Glaze in The Bill (1999-2003) and Louis Loveday in more than 220 episodes of soap Hollyoaks (2015-19).
Facts
Karl's brother is fellow actor Johann Myers. Here he is on Twitter.

Aidan Cook (The Vlinx)
Doctor Who credits
Played: The Mummy in The Rings of Akhaten (2013)
Played: The Crooked Man in Hide (2013)
Played: Cyberman in Nightmare in Silver (2013), The Time of the Doctor (2013)
Played: Zygon in The Day of the Doctor (2013), The Zygon Invasion/ The Zygon Inversion (2015)
Played: The Vlinx in The Giggle (2023)
Career highlights
Aidan started out as one of the animatronics operators on children's series Fimbles in 2002, for which he also provided voice work. He was also movement director on the 2009 adaptation of The Day of the Triffids, and was the children's acting coach on the 2011 film Horrid Henry (he also provided various voices for the TV series (2006-19)). Further acting work includes Jackanory (1982/84), Mack the Knife (1989), ChuckleVision (1998), Sir Gadabout, the Worst Knight in the Land (2002), Hellboy II: The Golden Army (2008), Warrioress (2011), Restless (2012), Yamla Pagla Deewana 2 (2013), Star Wars: Rogue One (2016), Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019), Andor (2022) and Willow (2022).

Charlie De Melo (Charles Banerjee) Born Sep 26 1989
Career highlights
Charlie's other work includes Doctors (2013), Casualty (2014), The Interceptor (2015), EastEnders (2017) and Still Up (2023). He is best known for playing Imran Habeeb in more than 380 episodes of soap Coronation Street (2017-22).

Alexander Devrient (Colonel Ibrahim)
Played: Colonel Christopher Ibrahim in The Giggle (2023), Series 14 (2024)
Career highlights
German/ French actor Alexander made his screen debut in the 2010 short Detente, followed by We are What We Drink (2010), Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (2011), Voodoo Magic (2013), Emmerdale (2014), The Danish Girl (2015), SS-GB (2017), Genius (2018), The Bureau (2018), Industry (2020), Motherland (2021), Ted Lasso (2021), All the Old Knives (2022) and The Bastard Son and the Devil Himself (2022).

Yasmin Finney (Rose Noble) Born Aug 30 2003
Career highlights
Yasmin rose to prominence playing Elle Argent in the series Heartstopper (2022), and has also appeared in the short film Mars (2022).
Facts
Yasmin is a trans woman.

Glen Fox (Pilot)
Career highlights
Glen's earliest credit on screen was 2011's Flawed, followed by Years and Years (2019), Brave New World (2020) and The Inside Man (2021).

Ross Gurney-Randall (Middle-aged man) Born Dec 4 1965
Doctor Who credits
Played: Reg in An Adventure in Space and Time (2013)
Played: Middle-aged man in The Giggle (2023)
Career highlights
Ross's CV begins with Mainline Run (1994), followed by The Governor (1995), The Prince and the Pauper (1996), London's Burning (1997), Duck Patrol (1998), Doctors (2001), Waking the Dead (2008), Big Top (2009), Upstairs, Downstairs (2012), EastEnders (2014), Rellik (2017), It's a Sin (2021) and Call the Midwife (2023).

Neil Patrick Harris (The Toymaker) Born Jun 15 1973
Career highlights
New Mexico born Neil made his screen acting debut in Clara's Heart (1988), followed by roles in Purple People Eater (1988), Cold Sassy Tree (1989), Stranger in the Family (1991), Blossom (1991), Quantum Leap (1993), Murder, She Wrote (1993), The Man in the Attic (1995), The Outer Limits (1996), Starship Troopers (1997), The Next Big Thing (2000), Will and Grace (2000), Ed (2001), Boomtown (2003), Numb3rs (2005), Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (2009 and its 2013 sequel), Glee (2010), The Best and the Brightest (2010), The Muppets (2011), Gone Girl (2014), American Horror Story (2015), It's a Sin (2021), The Matrix Resurrections (2021) and Uncoupled (2022). Neil's most memorable roles are playing the title role in 97 episodes of Doogie Howser, M.D (1989-93), Henry McNeeley in 22 episodes of Stark Raving Mad (1999-2000), the voice of Peter Parker/ Spider-Man in the 2003 animated Spider-Man series and Barney Stinson in 208 episodes of How I Met Your Mother (2005-14).
Awards
2010: Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Special Class Programs (63rd Annual Tony Awards) - shared with Ricky Kirshner and Glenn Weiss
2010: Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series (Glee)
2011: Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series (How I Met Your Mother)
2012: Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Special Class Programs (65th Annual Tony Awards) - shared with Ricky Kirshner and Glenn Weiss
2013: Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Special Class Programs (66th Annual Tony Awards) - shared with Ricky Kirshner and Glenn Weiss
2014: Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Special Class Programs (67th Annual Tony Awards) - shared with Ricky Kirshner and Glenn Weiss
Facts
Neil's husband is fellow actor David Burtka. He is also the author of a series of children books called The Magic Misfits since 2017.

Tim Hudson (Edward Lawn Bridges)
Career highlights
Tim debuted in The Vet (1996), followed by Picking Up the Pieces (1998), Dr Willoughby (1999), MIT: Murder Investigation Team (2003), Suburban Shootout (2006), My Family (2006), Father Figure (2013), A Very English Scandal (2018), De Gaulle (2020) and Sardar Udham (2021).
Facts
Tim also works as a tour guide in London.



Leigh Lothian (Voice of Stooky Sue)
To be added...

John MacKay (John Logie Baird)
Career highlights
John made his screen debut in London's Burning in 1999, followed by appearances in Trial and Retribution (1999), Doc Martin (2003), Law and Order UK (2009), The Honourable Woman (2014), Holby City (2014), The Hollow Crown (2016), Black Earth Rising (2018), Judy (2019), The Power (2021), Call the Midwife (2021), Cruella (2021), Temple (2021), Landscapers (2021), Traces (2022), Bridgerton (2022) and Great Expectations (2023). John played the same character of TV pioneer John Logie Baird in Russell T Davies' drama Nolly (2023).

Ruth Madeley (Shirley Anne Bingham) Born Aug 4 1987 Click here for Ruth Madeley's entry on The Star Beast

Jemma Redgrave (Kate Stewart) Born Jan 14 1965 Click here for Jemma Redgrave's entry on The Power of Three

CREW

Russell T Davies (writer) Born Apr 27 1963 Click here for Russell T Davies' entry on Rose

Chanya Button (director) Born Dec 25 1986
Career highlights
Chanya started out directing short films such as Frog/ Robot (2011) and Fire (2012), before moving on to productions such as Burn Burn Burn (2015), Vita and Virginia (2018), World on Fire (2019), The Spanish Princess (2020) and Whitstable Pearl (2021).
Facts
Chanya's father is Roy Button, former managing director of Warner Bros Productions in the UK.

Vicki Dellow (producer)
Doctor Who credits
Produced: The Star Beast, Wild Blue Yonder, The Giggle (all 2023)
Career highlights
Vicki began as a script editor on soap EastEnders in 2005, followed by work as a senior editor and script editor on both EastEnders (2006) and Holby City (2008), before becoming a producer on That Thing That Happened (2014), The Tunnel (2016), Tin Star (2017), Humans (2018), The Last Kingdom (2020) and His Dark Materials (2022).

Chris May (producer)
Doctor Who credits
Produced: The Star Beast, Wild Blue Yonder, The Giggle (all 2023)
Career highlights
Chris's other work includes being associate producer on the 2012 short film Bacon, and first assistant director on Sex Education (2019), His Dark Materials (2019-20), The Mezzotint (2021), Litvinenko (2022) and The Last Bus (2021).